…Anyone know how to put together a home-made motion capture studio for less than $1k?  :P

Anyway, I’ve been spending last night and today trying to figure out how to embed waves into WordPress, so I can experiment with the liveblogging that I mentioned in my last post. It took awhile just to figure out how to add robots like Bloggy or WP-Bot so that I can publish the waves

Luckily I found the WordPress plugin Wavr, which doesn’t require any extensions within Wave at all. (Though I did have to upgrade WordPress to 2.8.5 for it to work, and finally found the instructions on how to use it buried within the notes on the file list at Sourceforge.) The actual wave I’m using is embedded below this post…for those without Wave accounts, here’s a screenshot:

Still, while Wavr is cool and works beautifully, there are a couple of problems I see right off the bat that seem to be consistent across these Embed APIs, including WP-Bot and Bloggy:

• Only those with Wave accounts can see what is in the wave. This sort of defeats the purpose of using it as a publishing tool.
• In order for a wave to be seen on the blog, it has to be marked as public. If it’s marked as public, anyone can go in and edit the content or comment on it. (I could be wrong about this one, but so far I haven’t seen a way for a user to publish a wave publicly, and still keep it protected.)

My hope was that Wave would give bloggers a way to update posts dynamically in real time while readers watched. I’m not sure if this is possible without a Wave account on the part of the audience…and even if it is, I wonder if it’s possible to customize the wave in such a way that it appears more like a blog post?

I could see one way to build an extension that would potentially accomplish this goal: build an extension that interfaces with the WordPress install, but doesn’t embed it. Rather, it reads the title of the wave and makes a new blog post with that title. Then it reads each blip, and adds those as paragraphs to the post. When the writer is done, they publish the wave and the extension publishes the content as a post. If the writer goes back to edit the wave later, the extension goes back to that original post and edits it accordingly.

Of course, the problem with this is that you have to wait until the wave is “finished” before the post is published. And even if you were to set up the extension so it updates the post every time you finish a blip, not only would it not be updating character by character (which is way cooler)…but the reader would have to refresh their browser before seeing any changes. Lame.

Maybe it’s a moot point, as within the next couple of years it’s very possible that most of the technologically-savvy world will have Wave accounts anyway. Though honestly, that’s a bit optimistic. Another hope is that Google will open up waves so that everyone can see them…they just can’t interact with them (this would make more sense IMO).

Regardless, my “live novel” won’t be ready for the start of NaNoWriMo I don’t believe. Though I did find a cool extension called CountColon (countcolon@appspot.com for any wavers who want to add this bot to your contacts), which lets you count lines, words, characters etc. by adding it to the wave and typing “[count: words]” in a blip. (It doesn’t dynamically update though, so if you go back and edit, you have to re-insert the code to get a fresh count.)

Also, I’ve found a couple of pages that have been a big help as far as finding extensions for Wave…apparently there was supposed to be a welcome wave in my inbox when I first logged in that had this kind of info, but I never got one. So I’ve been spending a lot of time browsing forums and trying to glean the simplest of info on how to use the service…such as how to make my avatar appear publicly. Anyway, here are a couple of those resources:

The complete list of Google Wave Gadgets, Robots and Servers
Comprehensive Google Wave Extensions List

And for the wave-savvy, here is my test embed of Wavr!

[wave id="wavesandbox.com!w+pqCcr5FeC"]

Or, if you’re impatient and don’t feel like siting through 1.3 hours of cool demonstrations, at least check out from about minute 19 to 22, which is what I’m going to be talking about.

So you can see how Google Wave is going to completely change communication, right? Not just the tools that we use to communicate, or subtle changes such as character-by-character transfer of information…but how those subtle changes will very likely modify our fundamental perception of communication. At least, I think so.

My first thought was about publication. Publishing has already changed dramatically within the past decade…we are in the middle of a revolution in which the public is now the publisher. We are moving away from trained professionals, censors, and media giants controlling the content – whether that content be news, opinion, fiction, or what-have-you – to the individual as the creator, editor, and publisher. And finally, we are getting used to that idea (or at least some of us are). Then along comes Google Wave to once again turn publishing on its head.

Let’s look at the current state of a typical blog; the user can be anyone from a trained professional to a budding amateur. They write posts as drafts; edit, modify, find and link to resources, delete and add content, etc. Then when the post looks pristine (or pristine enough to them), and they are sure it’s ready to post (I tend to double, triple, and even quadruple check mine), they hit the notorious “publish” button. Once that’s done, it’s out there in the public eye – and while the user can always go back and edit a post (hopefully before anyone has a chance to read it!) there’s no guarantee that a reader hasn’t already seen that first post, or that it hasn’t been archived by a search engine or saved for posterity on Archive.org. This means that what we publish once, we can’t unpublish. Hence why we’re so careful that a post is “ready” before it is put out into the world.

Then along comes Google Wave, with its ability to show a post being edited as it happens right within the browser. This means that if a reader across the world happens to be on your site at the right time while you’re creating a post, they can watch live as you create and edit, just as if they were looking over your shoulder while you write. This is what I’m talking about when I imply that Google is introducing a revolution in communication.

A friend asked me a few weeks ago (he has a teenage son) why it is that young people seem so much more willing to share information, info that in my friend’s day would have never been discussed with acquaintances, let alone the public. He wondered how the shift happened from not talking about our most private matters to posting them publicly on LiveJournal, Facebook, or Twitter. It was a question I had to think about, and one that I have a theory for, but I’ll save that for a future post.

The point is that there has been a shift from privatized information to public information…from assuming that sharing will always produce negative results to believing in the transparency and openness of information and people alike.

Considering this, we’re already skirting the edge of comfort with anyone and everyone being able to create, edit, polish, and publish their own thoughts. Now, we’ve removed the “edit and polish” part of that equation. Anyone who comes across a blog that has embedded Google Wave will now be able to read along as the blogger writes. This removes an important aspect of publishing that has been inherent in every form of the written language from the invention of print to the modern web: the ability to keep what you write to yourself until it’s “ready” to be seen by the public. It is a truly live form of performance, a form which to my knowledge has never been achievable by writers.

How do you think that written content, or the process of writing, will change when writers no longer choose to check and recheck and then check their post again before publishing it? How will it change when all of the mistakes – spelling errors, content errors, continuity errors, incorrect facts, etc. – are visible to anyone who cares to tune in? I think many writers will assume that their integrity as content creators will go down – that their readers will lose respect for them and their craft. I assume this because of how trained journalists have reacted to the transition from news being reported by newspapers to being reported by individuals. It makes sense in a bizarre, if antique, way – how can your news have integrity if the reporter has no institutional integrity?

However, I don’t think this will be the case. I think that fans will have a growing respect for the writers they follow…I think that being able to view the drafts as they are being built will not only entice readers to check the site often in order to catch the writer in the act, but I think it will make them feel much closer to the writer in the way that Twitter has made us feel much closer to the celebrities we love. It will help to narrow the gap between celebrity and fan, without forcing the two into mutual territory.

I can already imagine what I’d like to do with Google Wave when it’s released. I would like to integrate it with my Wordpress blog, so that I can see what this effect might have on anyone who cares to read my work. I would also like to try writing a work of fiction publicly, perhaps a short story or novella, and encourage people to log in and view as I work (talk about public accountability! If you’re not in the act of writing, your fans will be able to see right away and call you on it). If this is possible before November, I think it’d even be great to attempt this during NaNoWriMo…what a great union the two could be!

And completely out of left field, even though the extension doesn’t yet exist (to my knowledge), what if you could create an application that uses Google Wave’s ability to collaborate and update live for visual art? To draw live online or in your friends’ waves…or to even publish webcomics live – no, to draw them live as your audience watches – that could be the next evolution of streaming live!

But I’m getting way ahead of myself, I think. First thing’s first: it has to be released!

Unfortunately I haven’t been able to finish the book yet, and I’m sure I’ll post my thoughts when I do. But I asked a lot of questions during the talk, and afterward I usurped Ms. Miller’s time for almost another hour to chat about trends and innovation (she was quite friendly and welcoming). Some thoughts and ideas that I took away from the experience:

Breaking the Fourth Wall Goes Both Ways
I come from a theater background; it was my other choice for a college career before I had decided on multimedia. To me, “breaking the fourth wall” always meant that the actors would address the audience in a planned and scripted way (improvisational theater notwithstanding). Usually even when the audience is participating, they are being asked to perform specific actions that fit the confines of the play – The Complete Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged) is a good example. But with interactive media, the fourth wall can be broken so that the audience member not only becomes part of the action, but can direct it as well. It’s a form of collaboration between author and audience that goes both ways.

Moral Choices Are the New Black
One thing Ms. Miller mentioned is that the newest fad in cinematic video games is for the player to be forced to make moral choices that affect the outcome of the game. I have seen this already with games like Fallout, Mass Effect, Knights of the Old Republic, Bioshock, Oblivion, and even MMOs like World of Warcraft…but I hadn’t appreciated just how important this is from a storytelling perspective. Some of these choices are very difficult to make (if the player is fully engaged with the characters), and some have very obvious and definitive consequences while others are more subtle. But from a storytelling perspective, this may be the most important thing that interactive narrative can provide: a way for the user to not only become a part of the story, but to see how different choices from any fundamental moral perspective will affect the world, and what the results can be. In an open and responsive enough environment, it’s the ultimate “what if” machine. Sort of like Dungeons & Dragons, but with moving pictures. :)

Webisodes Are Bubbling
Webisodes are the new TV, as evidenced by the incredible amount of Hollywood and amateur talent getting into the game. It’s probably safe to say that in another generation services like Hulu will take over for TV, just as news sites are taking over for newspapers. Apparently, and not surprisingly, corporations are getting into the act by creating webisodes to promote products or services in an entertaining fashion. They remind me of Soap Operas, and how they too originally began as serialized dramas produced by soap manufacturers aimed at housewives who tended to be home in the afternoon. Who will be targeted by webisodic content as the medium grows in popularity? Is there a way to target a specific audience when time isn’t a constraint?

Transmedia Narratives Are the New Multi-Multimedia
I hadn’t heard of transmedia before, but I have seen it before without realizing it. Ms. Miller describes transmedia as being “when the same narrative storyline is developed across several forms of media, one of which is an interactive medium.” Transmedia intrigues me the most, as I find it a highly compelling way to tell a narrative.

I’ve seen Hollywood experiment with this before, especially in anticipation of a major motion picture release. Users can sign up at a promotional website, and receive text messages or emails from characters within the movie, essentially drawing them into the action, as with the movie Eagle Eye. Or the website itself might tell part of the story…not anything so crucial that the movie cannot stand on its own, but the additional medium offers a supplementary understanding of what has happened or will happen to the characters, such as with Requiem for a Dream or Memento. Not only is this marketing genius (the more compelling the content and the more willing the audience is to spend time with it, the better your brand is seared into the mind of your potential customers), but it’s a fantastic way to tell a story. Those who are interested only in the two to three hours it takes to watch a movie, or the hour a week it takes to watch a show, or the weekend it takes to read a book, are satisfied with the experience. But for those who want more background, more detail, and want to be in the know…they are given the option to feel like an elite member of a personalized fan club.

I remember back in school, some classmates and I were having a discussion about what we would like to do for a career after graduation. We sat huddled in the XandO cafe (now Cosi) on a winter night, cupping our foamy lattes and dreaming about the future. “I don’t know,” I remember saying. “Whatever I end up doing probably hasn’t even been invented yet.” Satisfied with my answer, but entirely unsure of how exactly that would happen, I sipped my coffee and thought about what kind of combination of media might interest me the most. I studied filmmaking, photography, web design, animation, writing, philosophy, psychology, mythology…anything that I thought might help me figure out how to make that thing that hasn’t been invented yet.

Well, I still haven’t figured it out entirely, but I’ve gotten closer. Lately I’ve been working with interactive e-learning modules that use video and animation to engage learners and create compelling narratives. All this is through work, so I can’t show any here, but it has been teaching me a lot. I’m also interested in webcomics and how that type of interactivity, where the reader fills in the actions between panels, can be enhanced/integrated with interactivity (more on that in later posts, I’m sure). But mostly, I want to learn how to tell a good story.

One big lesson I took from school, perhaps one of the most important, is that there is a difference between the medium being formed to suit the content…and the content being forced to fit the media. It’s taken me years, but I’m slowly learning how to train myself to say “this is the story I want to tell, now what is the best way to tell it?” rather than “this is how I want to tell a story, now what story would fit this kind of delivery?” Not that there is anything wrong with the latter, but from an art-making perspective, I think the former is more valuable. The latter should be reserved for fancy marketing techniques and buzz media.

I am tending to ramble into other thoughts now, but suffice it to say I enjoyed the talk and I am learning much from Ms. Miller’s book. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in digital storytelling, interactive or otherwise.

My husband, however, is a big Street Fighter fan. So I get to hear about all the fun accessories that will make his playing for hours on end that much more fun, such as the new Mad Catz Official Street Fighter™ IV FightStick™ coming out this year:

As you can see, Mad Catz (who has a reputation for making those really cheap, crappy accessories you find at GameStop) has decided to change things up for this model. The buttons are swappable, the disconnects are labeled and color-coded, nothing is soldered down…this means that the stick is fully customizable. As a special touch, you can even swap out the artwork on the top of the base for your own (Mad Catz is releasing a template so you can print and cut your art to fit). To top it all off they’re using Sanwa Denshi hardware, commonly considered the best in the industry.

It’s certainly getting top reviews, and even won “Best of CES” according to IGN. So, what makes this joystick so great? My theory is that it has little to do with being associated with SFIV, or even the great hardware. I think it has more to do with the customizability. I don’t think any other company has ever produced a joystick that is so easy to customize…that encourages you to make your own custom artwork, change the color or the manufacturer of the buttons (which an arcade or fighting game fan can be very picky about), and basically make entirely your own…not without having to learn how to use a soldering gun.

This to me reinforces the fact that people are happy when they can craft their entertainment environment to reflect their individuality. Whether it’s a joystick, your XBox’s dashboard theme, or your computer wallpaper…people thrive on expression of their individual self. Even if no one else ever sees it, the fact that it doesn’t have to be set to the manufacturer’s default settings make the experience more enjoyable…and definitely helps with viral marketing, if not outright sales.

One way in which Twitter is changing the world is in how it’s redefining our definition of celebrity (ok, “twelebrity” might be silly…but regardless, it’s appropriate). It used to be that celebrities – writers, actors, politicians, etc. – were these untouchable, unreal icons. They weren’t human, they were human-like. We idolized them, we desired them, we felt in every way beneath them…because that’s what celebrity status is meant to do: create plateaus upon which the famous always stand higher than the average person. But you could never know much about their everyday activities, values, favorite food, which bands they like, or anything else that defines their personality.

Then along comes Twitter, and now we have people like David Lynch, Lisa Loeb, LeVar Burton, Björk, President-Elect Barack Obama, Dave Matthews, Shaq, Karl Rove, John Cleese, Erykah Badu, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Wil Wheaton, John Hodgman, Felicia Day, Al Gore, Paulo Coelho, Tina Fey, Lance Armstrong, Britney Spears, Vice-President-Elect Joe Biden, William Shatner, etc. etc. etc.

Some of these stars are utilizing the system for PR purposes, and some don’t even send their own tweets. But others are using it as intended: to broadcast their personal status (though many of the latter are self-described geeks and would be the first to jump on the bandwagon anyway). As a society, Twitter gives us something that we’ve never had and yet often longed for: a glimpse into these peoples’ lives, and who they are as human beings. That sacred veil between the celebrity and the fan is being lifted, ever so slightly, to reveal the connections that exist between us…fear of visiting the dentist, going for a bike ride, enjoying the scenery, seeing a good movie, complaining about deli workers…all of these things are the normal day-to-day minutia that define our lives. And to see what defines a star’s life is to understand who they are as a person, which will bring you closer to them as a fan than you ever could before.

When I was young, my family went to bluegrass festivals a lot. I remember recognizing a fundamental difference between folk musicians and pop musicians: in pop music, the artist was always untouchable – they stood on a stage ringed with metal gates, separated from their fans by an army of bouncers. You were lucky if you got to be in the same room with them (arena aside), let along get a piece of scrap paper or picture with their autograph. At the bluegrass festivals, folk musicians would be mingling in the crowd before going onstage…you could ask them questions, chat, discuss the weather or their latest album. During a performance you would be close enough to reach up and touch them, and at night after the stage shows were over, they would walk among the campgrounds and jam with the attendees, late into the night. These weren’t some hometown stars either, these were Grammy winners and platinum recording artists (as an example, I once gave Alison Krauss a kitten that some friends and I had found after she asked about it).

Granted, a big part of that difference has to do with audience size…festivals are (were) naturally smaller than a footbal stadium. But apart from that, there was an attitude of friendlieness and trust that permeated the atmosphere of those festivals…an unspoken sense of “I’m more like you than you know.” Bluegrass has since become more mainstream, and thus things have changed somewhat…but there is something to be said for the beautiful truth in that original attitude.

On Twitter, your favorite stars can now talk directly to you, and you can talk back to them. When else have we had that opportunity in the past century? And if a celebrity responds to you because of something witty you said to them…well, that’s just like running into your favorite star at the mall, and getting to trade a line of conversation. What bigger high could there be for a fan? Now Twitter gives all people; large and small, famous and unknown; the chance to be on the same online playing field.

How long will it be before the opposite is true, and Twitter makes ordinary people stars?

I admit he has a point about the little blogger in the face of every company, small business, or expert in any field who is starting a blog now. It’s easy for “the little guy” to get lost, and Google doesn’t seem to put blogs at the forefront anymore. Still, his comments are based on the assumption that we want everyone on the Internet to find our blogs. I don’t want everyone and their brother reading this! I don’t think I could deal with the spam. No, I just want those who care about me as a person or as a professional to read this…family, friends, colleagues, artists, and industry innovators. I’m not out to become famous, just respected. So if I’m not on the first page of Google when searching for…whatever this blog will end up talking about…I’m not heartbroken over it.

I don’t think blogs will ever completely disappear. Come and go, maybe…go out of style, possibly. But they’re far too much of a staple of the Internet. They may evolve from the standard text we’re used to, and integrate more media and social networking (as I’m trying to do with this blog). But fade away completely? No, blogs are here to stay.

Of course, perhaps I shouldn’t take Mr. Boutin so seriously…he does write for Wired, after all. Don’t get me wrong, I like Wired…but it’s obvious that they often try to appear witty and fresh, and even a little controversial, just to sound like they know what they’re talking about. I take every review and editorial with a grain of salt, whether I want to or not. I don’t feel too bad about saying that, either…as by his own admission, Mr. Boutin will never, ever find my blog.  ; )

What do you think? Are blogs a thing of the past? Should I have tried to write this entire post in 140 characters or less? Ok, let’s give it a go:

LOL, Paul Boutin says blogs are a thing of the past. Noob! http://tinyurl.com/5f59ns

It makes me wonder – what does it all mean for us? In another 11 years, when I’m 38, will I hold half a dozen more jobs? (I hope not.) Will I be solving problems that aren’t problems yet, using technology that hasn’t been invented yet? (I sort of hope so.) But most of all, what will the new technology look like that connects us all and shrinks this world even more? And how can I be a part of its invention/adaptation?