Convenient writing & convenient reading
The concept of hypertext on Bolter’s Writing Space was reminiscent of my favorite reading memory from childhood – the Wisely series. The Wisely series is a series of Chinese adventure-science fiction novels in which the story events allow the readers to play the role of the protagonist, namely Wisely, by choosing amongst given multiple options in various scenarios throughout the reading experience. Following the instructions on the pages with multiple options, I recall having to flip to the designated paginations, or the subsequent scenes, based on my own decision. For example, I might be asked to decide whether to stay in a cave to wait for a lost friend or to go out and look for him/her. My decision would then lead a different “outcome.” I remember having so much fun reading the series because it made me feel like I was actively involved the plot myself and that I had control over what would happen to the protagonist. These fragmented scenes would then turn into a unique storyline that I “created”. This reading experience was eye opening and resembled early form of hypertext in print back in the days. I agree with Bolter when he wrote, “all writers have had the experience of being overwhelmed with ideas as they write,” especially when I reflect on the writing of Wisely series, a fiction series that required a high degree of prior planning (perhaps through the process of “prewriting” or “brainstorming”) and thought process to be able to craft and write such enticing and enthralling story elements and put them into amazingly organized and consistent orders.
Externalizing data is indeed an amazing way to help organize ideas. The invention of outline processor allows our fragmented ideas to be recorded, organized and arranged into a “space” by structural and topical writing, which give us more convenience and free up more mental space and capacity for new creations.
Given the basis and conditions for “convenient writing”, we might soon be fully adapted to the idea of “convenient reading” without being aware. In the digital age, we see the pattern and habit of readership are rapidly evolving as technology advances. We are experiencing a shift from having to engage in the process of active text seeking to now becoming more accustomed to passively receiving text. I found that the networks that we form, either online or offline, function as a strong filter for our consumption of text and information. Advancement of computer-based instruction and the World Wide Web also open doors for mechanisms of text production, liberation and dissemination, via popular social networks and social media. After joining and using a Chinese messaging and networking app that allows users to connect with peers across countries, I found that its becoming a useful source of hypertext and hypermedia to me; not only can I read a lot of thought-provoking articles by subscribing to popular and reliable sources or “newsgroups” (sometimes even individual writers and curators), I can also become “contacts” with anyone and form defined themed group chats with whom I share different area of interests with. I found that many of the groups and media sources share particularly useful and high-quality online journals and articles.
New technologies continue to create new and innovative ways for us to read and write conveniently. As audiobooks become available, we can now “read” while we are driving, exercising, traveling etc. I think that all these medium bring us different values and meanings; they would not replace but would continue to complement each other in our everyday lives.
References:
Bolter. Jay David. (2001). Writing Space: Computers, Hypertext and the Remediation of Print. New Jersey: Erlbaum.
Image from: http://webpic.chinareviewnews.com/upload/201307/18/102636555.jpg
(Role mapping, Wisely series)
Your thoughts of the Wisely series remind me of the western version known as “Choose your Own Adventure” book. I recall only reading a few of these books. Unlike you, I did not enjoy this type of writing series because I was always accustomed to reading a book cover to cover, left to right and it felt awkward to skip pages (sometime ahead sometime going back) to continue on with the decision you made. It also drove me crazy not knowing if I made the ‘right’ decision and sometimes the story would be finished faster than I anticipated. I remember having my fingers hold the position of a couple different places in the book so that I could flip back if I read the first few sentences of the next section and didn’t like my choice.
Bolter (2001) describes certain text on webpages or graphics as ‘hot’ giving rise to ‘layered writing.’ Meaning that some text or graphics link on to other pages with similar information. Like you described, this ability to click away can be seen as “convenient reading.” The hashtag on twitter is another way in which linking can be used on a social platform. In my experience, twitter has allowed me to expand my personal learning network by selecting hashtags that have themes in which I am interested. From one haghtag, I can find relevant people or groups who also share the same interest and frequently ‘tweet’ on the topic.
Bolter. Jay David. (2001). Writing Space: Computers, Hypertext and the Remediation of Print. New Jersey: Erlbaum.
Your concept of ‘convenient reading’ reminds me of several brain showers (not quite storms) that I have had thinking about social media, social circles and ‘reading’ recently. I have often wondered about how social circles affect they way we think and the way we consider issues. Your post and some of the readings from this course are helping me develop a somewhat coherent point of view.
One of my close friends is a city planner and another one is a police officer. They have clearly defined and differing views on urban issues and I am thankful that I have easy access to both their points of view. Recently I was reading the comments on an urban issues blog and there was a post that questioned why people who didn’t agree with the blog’s author on most issues continued to post in the comments section. This lead to a discussion on whether these contrarian commenters were ‘trolls’ or valuable points of view. One poster seemed to wish those accused of being trolls would just go away…
MET program aside–I don’t spend as much time online as many people I know so this is an honest question: Are the new online circles/information communities so insulated and Google’s search algorithms that good that people are coming to expect everyone they encounter on the internet will agree with them?
My second post considered audio books as well. I am totally on board with your idea that all of these new options for ‘convenient reading give us more ways to access the information we are looking for. One of those ways is audio books. Since I commute by bike I don’t have the opportunity to ‘read’ while driving but if I had a car or train commute I would be taking advantage of the technology and listening to audio books and/or podcasts all the time. Electronic versions of print materials have also increased our options when it comes to accessing information. While I prefer the printed page to digital rendering of the same, I did find a digitally archived copy of an out-of-print book for my research on Assignment 2. It was tedious to scroll through the particular file instead of just turning to the desired page but I still have to admit that digital archiving of rare or out of print books is another option to access information that we couldn’t just a few years ago.
In my mind it still comes down to sharing stories, ideas and information. Every form of communication has benefits and drawbacks. Print media and published books allow a permanent record of the stories, ideas and information expressed by people at various times. Audio books allow the printed word to be expressed as sounds so people can ‘read’ them (gain access to the stories, ideas and/or information) in a hands-and-eyes-free fashion but the ‘reader’ needs to be in an environment where listening is possible. E-Books allow people to carry as many books they want in a package smaller than some paperbacks but still have some challenges when it comes to usability (Siegenthaler, Wurtz, Groner, 2015). Books have/had the limitation of publishing industry filter but the web has allowed people to publish almost anything freely. Of course there are things worth reading and not worth reading online and this is not new when it comes to innovations in print technology. In the Cambridge Forum from the beginning of this course O’Donnell mentions that every time technology of print advances there is a fear of trash being distributed and an abundance of the dissemination of trash (Engell & O’Donnell. 1999).
And this brings us back to the point you made about social and online circles: who we associate with affects the information we have access to. Near the end of the Cambridge Forum O’Donnell comments that the availability of information is not the problem now. What one chooses to read now is just more difficult but also more important (ibid). Continue to choose wisely. It’s sounds like you’ve found some good things to read so far!
Engell J. & O’Donnell J. (1999). From Papyrus to Cyberspace. [Audio File]. Cambridge Forums.
Siegenthaler, E., Wurtz, P., & Groner, R. (2015). Improving the Usability of E-Book ReadersJUS. Uxpajournal.org. Retrieved 1 July 2015, from
http://uxpajournal.org/improving-the-usability-of-e-book-readers/