So the entire time we were discussing Montages in class, I had this little voice in the back of my head singing the song from “Team America,” which, surprisingly, is all about montages. I briefly considered posting a youtube video of the song but A: I couldn’t find it, and B: during my 10 minute search it occurred to me that “Team America” is probably offensive to at least a couple people and perhaps it wouldn’t be such a great idea to post said video. But if you’ve seen the movie, you know what I’m talking about.
I’m glad I signed up for this class (of course I may not be after a week or two, I’ll get back to you on that). I’m really interested in film and video games, and after talking to a couple people and hearing some of you talk it sounds like many of you are as well. While I no longer play World of Warcraft, I started playing Eve Online this year and I really enjoy it (when I have time of course.) My background is in English, I got my undergraduate degree from IU. I do have decent computer experience however and I’ve looked forward for several months now to getting this program underway.
I liked the expressive language discussion we had in class. Organized blog? Yeah right. Next topic! I always enjoy things, games, movies, web-pages, and etc. that aren’t afraid to use their medium to the fullest extent possible to really get out there and use what their platform has to offer. I mentioned to Jeff that I would send him the (if easily offended I would NOT open this link. Its safe to read, just content wise.) review of the Iphone by Maddox, which for those of you who are unfamiliar, is an offensive, self-proclaimed pirate who rants and raves about anything and everything.
Interaction Culture 
Permalink
It is likely that for those of us who research the vanguard of interaction culture, which often includes content produced by amateurs and hobbyists, that we will often encounter relevant material that is not appropriate for prime-time television.
I suggest that the way we handle it is to go head and make it available (e.g., via hyperlink, or “below the fold”), but to warn people before they click the link to continue that what they will see contains profanity, violence, cartoon nudity, gross humor, etc.
Permalink
I second Jeff’s notion of linking to content with a warning of what it contains, letting each of us decide what to click through and what to leave alone.
I appreciate where you’re coming from Mike and I also share your interest in games, I think you will find that this class will be well worth your time and effort.
One quote from your post caught my eye “I always enjoy things, games, movies, web-pages, and etc. that aren’t afraid to use their medium to the fullest extent possible”
It makes me wonder, are we really using the medium of computing to it’s fullest extent possible? I’m guessing that there is a lot out there that is very good, but I really think we are just getting started in all this. To go back to the analogy of the first days of TV, we are still imitating and improving on previous forms of enterntainment, but we haven’t yet really come fully into our own. I would say (no one will be surprised I would say this) that perhaps games more than anything are pushing into new territory, and starting to really come into their own.
My argument for this is two-fold: first, games as a technology driver. Games have almost continually pushed the boundaries of computer forward. While I certainly won’t ignore the powerful effect of the Microsoft upgrade cycle and Moore’s law, I think the present situation in the computer industry is very illustrative of my point. Who is pouring money into upgrades right now? People who want to play Bioshock, and Company of Heros, and Battlefield 2 etc. While some are upgrading for Vista the numbers are much lower. Another quick example, A CPU, the heart of the computer, what Moore’s law is all about, is often cheaper than a good GPU, which is the SO important for games. Like you can get an Intel Core Duo 2 2.2 Ghz for $189 on Newegg, and a decent midrange GPU is $300.
Game designers and producers are pushing system capacities faster than any other application type.
Second, people love games, they enthrall us, envelope us, and some say they addict us. Nothing gets people like good games, and people are often willing to try new things. In the casual game space at least (where development costs haven’t become as large as movies) there is a lot of experimentation still happening, and innovation. The burgeoning costs of AAA title development, I think, has stifled innovation to some extent, but still we are seeing some interesting things from some corners.
Oh and also games are important, see my blog (www.aaronh.name) with some links about how we’re spending more on games than music now and that games are where we spend THE most time online (with a possible exception of that online activity that most people partake of, pr0n, but which won’t make it into most formal polls and studies).
OK enough of the shameless blog links and me ranting about my interest areas, but I would like to hear any responses to my post and how I may be missing the mark.