The Last Word

Throughout the semester, there were many things I learned about Web writing that helped present a complete overview of how to design and what to design. I learned the history, its comparisons with other types of media, and especially the ease with which people can get content on in this age of Web writing. I also learned that I am a contributor to the 'living' web right now as I publish this blog. I also realized that burgeoning technology and the explosion of hand-held wireless, Internet-capable devices are creeping into the media scene faster and faster, with prospective users living a 'connected' life style. My distaste toward television and radio has been furthered by my new knowledge and experience in participating in Web writing. In addition to simply publishing content to a blog, I also learned how to use Dreamweaver to design websites for direct publishing on the web. With the use of the University's web server and personal student web space, we published assignments and are now responsible for making or improving a website in groups. I feel I can use my knowledge in Web writing and design to make my own successful website/blog in the future.
Furthermore, I feel that the most important difference between Web writing and other forms of writing is that design plays a much more crucial and influential role than in other forms of writing. When looking at a website, with any kind of content, the design and layout of the site must be user oriented and it must hold the attention of the user. As I've seen, attention can be considered the currency of the web, and print publications have lacked in recent years in keeping the readers attention. Additionally, with design playing a much more influential role, web designers are trading success secrets and creating a plethora of attractive Internet locales with powerful draw and advertising prowess. Therefore, web writing has exploded as a veritable form of both news, currency, or expression in recent years through web design, successful Internet ventures around the globe, and the emergence of new technology that ushered in the Web 2.0 movement.

The Night of the Living Web

In “10 Tips for Writing the Living Web,” Mark Bernstein says, “Some parts of the web are finished, unchanging creations – as polished and as fixed as books or posters. But many parts change all the time.”
In my class, I have been studying and producing both kinds of writing. As far as these two types of web writing are concerned, I would much rather participate in the 'living' web exemplified by my blog or by the online organizations I hope to work for in the future. I think my comfort level as a writer is at a point where I could write in either style and still excel at having the content be effective and meaningful. The main reasons why I prefer this 'living' web is it keeps the content fresh, encourages public publication, and it gives people the opportunity to see how others think and form their thoughts and arguments coherently (or at least that's the goal). Plus it allows for diversity, creativity, and an openness unlike any other media institution, besides maybe recorded music, which has recently been bolstered by the Internet coincidentally.
Today's basis for media consumption has seen two main divisions: People seeking content based on need or service, and people seeking content due to recreation, malaise, etc. Regardless as to why they're seeking content, the drive of most of these service-providing website operators is to make money. It is my experience that most sectors of the 'living' web are users simply doing what they do or what they want to do, and somehow getting it on the Internet for web surfers to access. The fact that creativity, innovation, and truth are stressed rather than profit margins and bottom lines is reason enough for me to continue blogging and reading/writing in an independent media state-of-mind.

Pretentious Trends

Web design (which controls the appearance and format of Web writing) goes through trends much like any other form of design or fashion. I took a look at Current Web style to see some examples of the current trends in Web design. These trends are very simple design techniques, and when used sparingly and effectively, can bolster readability and the user-friendly attitude current designers carry.

When looking at Current Web style, it outlines the design features that great sites share as: simple layout, center orientation, soft or neutral background colors, presence of white space as well as the use of big text; also, the sparse use of 3D effects, strong colors, and cute icons. I agree with nearly all these design features. They make the content easy to read, easy to navigate, easy to access, and easy to digest. This is important for web users in our Web 2.0 era, where nearly everything is 'connected.' The best part about current design is the fact that it's useful and it looks good. By spreading out content and injecting some white space, the website stated it was like a breath of fresh air for users.

In designing a website for class, my group decided on a revision of the Bob Marley Foundation's website (here). As far as current design techniques, I would like for our group to spread out the web sites content and keep the horizontal link bar. However, we should orient the content toward the center rather than 'above the fold.' Lastly, we must make good use of icons, the Rastafarian color motif we hope to employ sparingly, and white space to organize and streamline our site.

Close, But No Cigar

As we’ve seen, the Web means that anyone with access and knowledge can publish content. The Web also allows people to use written content, sound, video, animations, and images with much more ease than in other types of media. This has lead to an explosion of creative content online. For many in the industry, this explosion has lead some to question the staying power of the more traditional outlets like publishing houses, magazines, film, and television. I believe this content explosion will affect these traditional outlets in a negative fashion, turning attention away from these aspects of media and onto the Internet.
Despite affecting traditional media outlets negatively, I believe that the Internet will only make a small impact in this realm. What dictates the staying power of media content or technology is its transmission to the public as well as monetary factors. For film, there are only a few major studios controlling nearly all production and distribution of content. So, there are millions and millions of dollars spent on films through marketing, advertising, pre- and post-production fees, talent expenses, etc. The simple fact that the movie industry, along with television, is a multi-billion dollar industry makes it nearly impervious to degradation or loss.
In the case of magazines and publishing houses, I am hoping that these print outlets stay afloat in coming years since my career depends on them. My goal is to write scholarly works or write for a magazine on music, current events, religion, philosophy, writing, or anything that will pay the bills. The Internet seems to be a worthy foe for these print outlets, seeing as readership has plummeted and people are turning their attention to the cheaper, faster, and crazier Internet media explosion in order to get their fix of news, sports, comedy, and the like. Most of those producing the buzz-worthy content for the Internet are seemingly normal people with a bigger Best Buy bill than others. These amateurs will never topple the major media outlets, but can distract attention, pull in menial profit, or make a name for themselves as competent in production, film, recording, animation, music, etc. Most of the content being produced is sub par in terms of technique, technicality, and technology, but there are a few bright-shining examples from people we will surely hear from in the future.
The Internet has already shown us that it can tango with the fat cats of the media industry, as seen through the case of Napster. Since Napster's inception, court-ordered destruction, and then its miraculous shift to commercialism, record sales have steadily declined because of the Internet and its liberal policy on music. Besides the issue of music, I think that the only media outlets that should 'worry,' if at all, are the magazines and the publishing houses. Newspapers are becoming less and less prevalent in today's society, and magazines may be condensed the same way newspapers have. If this shift toward technology, speed and thriftiness continues, publishing houses may need to make use of Internet capabilities for a new generation of media users, seeking instant gratification and hilarity, which only the Internet can provide.
The beauty of the written and spoken word in all realms of life has now been replaced with a spirit of impatience, bordering on disillusion and discontent; a shift toward instant gratification and a ridiculously wide range of available media, in any format imaginable, may see the Internet getting stronger and stronger in the coming years.

There is, however, one issue I must raise before concluding. Though my arguments on the subject may be convoluted and repetitious at times, one counter statement must be assessed to gain full knowledge of the issue. The battle for Net Neutrality, a bill that attempts to limit broadband bandwidth usage, had been heeding much attention in Congress before their adjournment. The bill effectively seeks to make bandwidth and bit rates part of Internet service charges. Just as everything that one sees on television is paid for in some way or other, Net Neutrality opponents wish to do the same thing with the Internet, making anything downloadable or streaming, anything that requires a large amount of information to be exchanged between terminals an expense. ISP bills would, in theory, increase and all our activity of the Web would be tracked. If you like the Internet the way it is now, then oppose these bills and seek an end to these attempts by media conglomerates to make the Internet a brothel for more advertisers and scheming marketers.
Fight back here-->
http://www.netcompetition.org/
http://www.itsournet.org/

Digital Dinero

In Hot Text (and as quoted in Writing for the Web), the Prices describe attention as the “currency of the Internet.” In that, I believe they are referring to attention being the main economic factor driving the Internet today. To elaborate, I believe that a website must command and almost dictate the behavior, attention, time, and even decisions of its users for it to be profitable, thus tying in the currency element of the above statement. In order to make money, websites must attract, dazzle, or satiate users, driving them to expend the most vital thing about web browsing; time. In our world, time is money and the same goes for the Internet. The more time one spends on a website, the more likely they are to return/tell others/buy something/log on/participate. Just like they always say: "An inch of gold for an inch of time." While working in our web groups, or writing for the web later in life, I will definitely take into consideration the true attention-grabbing and -clutching elements of website design. In order to grab the attention of users, one's site should be organized, concise, excellent, correct, pleasant, and original. (Jeney 37) I have spoke of website design elements previously on this blog, and, as you may know, originality and organization are two principle elements sites must possess to be memorable and worth return visits. When making our website for class, publishing my own content to future Internet endeavors or blogs, I will forever keep the fact that "good Web writers know that the written content must satisfy the visitors." (Jeney 36) Therefore, no matter how much attention users pay to layout, text fonts, headers, borders, boxes, and text styles, the true power and clout of a site is derived from it's content ultimately.

I Love Suicide Silence

When asked to search a personal interest on the site that hosts our blog, I did a search on Blogspot for one of my favorite bands, a death metal/grindcore outfit from California called Suicide Silence. I saw them in concert on August 4th of this year, and it was one of the most wonderful and brutal shows I've ever attended. So, when asked, I thought I'd enter this fairly-obscure band into the search bar. Surprisingly, I received about 46,000 matches. They varied from suicidal gothic ramblings to concert venue postings, and even a decent fanbase with information for the five-piece itself. However, the majority of the matches ended up being off hits; I then quoted the phrase "Suicide Silence" in order to define it as the words together, ultimately referring to the band. I ended up with about 400 hits. I think this number is this low only because hardcore listeners tend to use Myspace rather than Blogspot, and Suicide Silence is not yet a popular hardcore act.

So, I clicked on the first link that wasn't a Myspace and found that it was a very hip, yet random blog featuring a random assortment of music from all genres. The music was progressive in nature, as I already own a significant amount of albums detailed on the blog. some albums even appear to have free downloads...(http://xxxemofreakxxx.blogspot.com/) So in searching for this assignment, I have definitely found a worthy source for more progressive music in the genres I enjoy. So, I have concluded that there is a small contingency of Suicide Silence fans that also operate on Blogspot, and most of their exposure has come from live shows, like me, or through 'word of web,' as in word-of-mouth but on the web. Other bloggers are mostly saying that Suicide Silence is one of their favorite bands, or they recently saw Suicide Silence in concert are were just as amazed and awe-struck and destructive as I was when I saw them. I obviously agree with their comments, and join them in their praise of one of the most refreshingly innovative and maliciously heavy bands to break onto the scene in a long time.

Suicide Silence: Check 'Em Out!
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/suicidesilence
Website: http://www.suicidesilence.net/
Pure Volume: http://www.purevolume.com/suicidesilence

Paradigm Paradox

In "Web 2.0 for Designers," Richard McManus and Joshua Porter say:
In Web 1.0, a small number of writers created Web pages for a large number of readers. As a result, people could get information by going directly to the source: Adobe.com for graphic design issues, Microsoft.com for Windows issues, and CNN.com for news. Over time, however, more and more people started writing content in addition to reading it. This had an interesting effect- suddenly there was too much information to keep up with! We did not have enough time for everyone who wanted our attention and visiting all sites with relevant content simply wasn't possible. As personal publishing caught on and went mainstream, it became apparent that the Web 1.0 paradigm had to change.

After reading the above quotation, I can definitely say I have experienced the effect being described. Everyday I surf the web, I find another fun or noteworthy site, worth visiting again. My favorites folder is bulging, and the constant increase in independent website creation is a clear factor. To keep up with the ever-exploding content seen daily on the web, I tend to stick with websites that our dear to my heart, sites that I'm loyal to. Once I find a site that satisfies me, I will continue to visit it. The only exception would be if I happen to stumble upon a better substitute, or if someone showed me something better.
As far as web writing, web design, and especially web technologies, much can be said about these elements changing the landscape of information available on the web, and its management and control. With web writing, people are able to instantly publish content to a site from any word processing program and an Internet connection. Blogs, wikis, and even message boards allow users to publish literary pieces, provide scientific definitions, and interject their opinion at any given time. Furthermore, web design allows more creative and behind-the-scenes users to really make visiting certain websites an experience unto itself. By spicing up a once mundane aspect of the wweb web design has emerged as a visually dynamic and sensatiocharacteristicitic of the Web 2.0 paradigm shift. In addition, web technologies have allowed users to publish and edit content, text message, picture message, voice message, access the Internet, type in a word processor, all at one's fingertips at anytime, anywhere. These mobile devices, powered by wireless technology, are heading up this revolutionary paradigm shift into the realm of Web 2.0. We are seeing the future of media consumption in essence as well. With print dying off, many publications are turning their attention towards the web aspect of their business. With cell phones being able to do nearly anything today, people are finding it increasingly enjoyable and easy to upload personal content on the web and chat with friends via AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) and sites like Myspace and Facebook. Blackberry, Bluetooth, and every cell phone technology developer is, and will continue to, cash in on this shift to smaller, more personal and portable devices, made possible by the boom in attention to the Web and the desire to connto to one another and the media. In the future, it will be extremely difficult to manage or control the information on the web as long as the technology continues and people have the desire to upload their lives. As for now, writing, design, and technology is dependent solely on those proficient in the field and the general public usually waits for developments to be unveiled. Today's vital aspects of the web put control and management in the hands of the people who control production of the aspects themselves, serving as almost as self-regulatory presence.
The change is happening on its own; dictated, as always, by the technological firms and developers that control the flow of information by the caliber and precision of the products they create.