I really enjoyed how the author talked about the importance and art behind a handmade website. After starting this class (and even, somewhat before) I found that a lot of websites produced by large companies with mass employees and resources seemed very sterile and boring. Don’t get me wrong, many of them function perfectly well and achieve their original purpose of being a “Company Website”, but they have no soul or heart to them. Oftentimes when I observe a handmade website (even an unfinished or juvenile one) it has personality and joy behind it. I also enjoy the emphasis the author has on websites of the past and how the updates of modern technology have distorted their original forms or meanings. It seems like a bitter sweet outcome. Overall, I love how this article touched on the complexities and hard work that goes into creating a hand-made website. I love how the author talks about websites that were created to be destroyed (like Matthew Rothberg’s website), and websites that are created to be pieces of art (like Fishes and Flying Things).
This website was an interesting read. I enjoy how the author points out that modern websites are mainly using us as products or attempting to sell us stuff as opposed to the previous internet which had a lot of websites dedicated to the sharing of information and ideas. I also agree that companies aren't even trying to hide their use of targeted ads. Targeted ads are incredibly annoying and very invasive. I use an addblocker that manages it a little, but the minute I am not connected to my WiFi it goes right back to creepy targeted ads. We are no longer people venturing into the internet to watch funny videos or look up blogs, we are now products. Objects that companies can sell and sell to, and it's gross. Our attention is their currency. I love how the author pointed out how strict some companies can be with rules and regulations around using their sites. When you want to post something on, say, Youtube, you have to agree to follow their rules. It is very different from the open web where you can do almost whatever you want. If you want to use a site to publish something you have to adhere to the site's rules. I really did enjoy reading this article! I completely agree that the predatory practices of websites are gross and unethical. I don’t think anyone's digital information should be used to sell them stuff or be kept on a file somewhere.
I am going to be honest, I couldn't manage to read this one on the original site. I tried, but the constant movement and jarring text/pop-ups were getting very overwhelming. I did manage, however, to read the PDF… so, not as immersive, but still attempted. I think the concept of digital communication is incredibly interesting itself. Over the years of the internet’s existence, we have created our own digital language. For example, WhEn I tAlK LiKe ThIs, most people in my generation know I am typing sarcasm. This is because of a Spongebob meme where the text alternating between capital and lowercase characters was used to represent a sarcastic Spongebob pecking at the floor like a chicken. This article talks about the complexities of the “...” in our modern, digital talking world. To be the dot dot dot is menacing and can only mean bad things. It has been used in conversations with friends to represent judgement and questioning. Like if someone says something inappropriate or questionable, many people in my generation will use the dot dot dot to represent silence/silent judgement/forcing you to sit with what you just said. This article also goes over the steady fusion of work and leisure. I completely agree that many jobs and businesses expect too much out of employees when it comes to communication. Back before phones, people could clock in and clock out and not have to worry about getting surprise calls/texts from their employers that could land them doing even more work for little to no pay increase or overtime. Communication has been streamlined and this can be seen in the light of it being one of the most amazing things the human race has accomplished and, simultaneously, the most damning.
TBD