Jeju Archives
The Power of (Not) Recording Video
Nov 10, 2008
The video for the Future Social talk at LIFT Asia can now be uploaded from here with accompanying notes and presentation here.
You're hosting an event and invite a number of so-called experts to speak, the talks are recorded and within a month are distributed on the internet.
It makes sense - videoing what the speakers say opens the talk up from the 80 people in the room to a potential audience of millions, and even if only a couple of dozen bother to watch its a couple of dozen more would have otherwise. After a few events the video archive grows and the talks become part of the conference/school/organisation/host's brand - the process of choosing whom to invite and what parts of what talks to show reflects the community they hope to build.
Sometimes talks are videoed for internal distribution only - it makes sense particularly when the organisation is large and geographically spread - properly archived the recording can become part of it's collective memory. It's not a bad thing - every organisation even those darlings of the search world suffer from problems with hand-eye co-ordination short term memory loss - there's no such thing as the perfect flow of information. A recording can allow ideas to linger and sometimes spread.
From recent experience (and this is not a dig at the excellently run LIFT Conference, above) the prevailing attitude of event hosts is that the talks will by default be recorded - something that puts the average speaker in a dilemma. With a few exceptions most public presentations are a work in progress an opportunity to articulate ideas and with instant feedback from the audience, figure out what works and what doesn't. Questions (and the occasional projectile) from the audience highlight what need refining and suggests additional material to be included. Recording every talk is like publishing every draft or iteration of that paper/report/design and expecting people to take away the salient points and to tune into the final version, when in reality they'll have moved on. In an information overload world you only get one shot at engaging, and with the notable exception of gonzo, you can't afford to blow it.
Some so-called experts object to recordings because the relative scarcity of their material helps them maintain demand (take a look at the research/presentations whether and how they distribute online as one indicator of whether they're milking limited ideas for all they are worth). Some are torn between wanting to communicate a message but wanting to maintain a degree of anonymity. For some - every time you press a record button it eats a little of their soul. But mostly its just that not everything is record-worthy.
There's a simple solution, ask in advance, expect no for an answer.
Urban Entertainment in the Age of CarNet
Sep 12, 2008
The ideal vehicle is traveling slow enough to catch up to with a sprint-burst, fast enough to be worth the pocket-of-calm momentum when you get there. People carriers work well enough and sometimes have the added benefit of providing a glimpse through a minefield of headrests, of the road ahead, but it's usually trucks and coaches that provides a longer, more fulfilled, sensation and ultimately sense of achievement. Predictability is a must. You learn to accelerate whilst the break pads are on the rim.
Tubing - the art of tucking into the slipstream of large vehicles is driven, so to speak by a desire for cyclists to leverage the natural resources of the city, ride scary fast & scary close, and inject some adrenalin into the day. A decent tuber is able to switch between the slipstreams of overtaking vehicles with an elegance that would make Chris Hoy proud - leveraging stamina, timing and not a little bit of luck. (The practice of hanging onto passing vehicles is rare in Tokyo - a reflection perhaps of the sanctity of the vehicle and the fact that Japan is mentally and physically indisposed to contact sports).
The two main challenges for a tuber are anticipating when the vehicle in front is likely to slow; and avoiding potholes, with the former mitigated by an understanding of the grammar of the road and the body language of the vehicle, the latter by an authority that seems hell bent on smoothing out any kinks in the asphalt. The life expectancy of holes in this city is low which is good because, tucked into a little wind-resistless world there is a minuscule margin of error.
Driver reactions to tubing range from humour to nervousness. A surprising number of slipstreamed' driver's figure out what's happening and play along - a reflection perhaps of too many hours spent watching the Keirin races, ciggie hanging off lower lip - ash teetering off the ciggie, hand clutching a partially torn betting slip. Or maybe it's the technology that's making it's way into the driver / parasite equation in the form of rear mounted cameras that record the road behind (photo from coach, above).
Ah, the road ahead. How will tubing and other parasitic sports fair a world of the CarNet - urban transport systems that tap into and share real time road information - vehicles, roadworks and quite possibly urban parasites?
Tokyo tubing top three: 246 heading into the city around midnight; the Akasaka flyover (either direction); and the appropriate half of the imperial palace loop.
Future Social
Sep 08, 2008Something to peruse over your fresh coffee this brisk Monday morning - the slides for the LIFT Asia Future Social presentation can be viewed above or downloaded from here [3MB].
A summary? As much of the stuff that we use to do things becomes smaller and end up in more (social) contexts we will not only evolve new use-practices but it puts a greater emphasis on communicating our intended use to people in proximity.
If, like me you’re waiting for your Zero-G iPhone to recharge just enough to be able to make a call without being tethered you’ll have the time to brew another cup of coffee and peruse the following trends that will shape the future social.
One statistic from ex-NTT DoCoMo's Takeshi Natsuno's presentation at LIFT - 74% of Japanese iPhone users have it as a second phone. Great for the operators since it expands the market but also indicative of consumer nervousness that the product is able to deliver culturally appropriate communication. Or if you're suffering from a dead battery, any communication.
A Range Rifled
Sep 08, 2008
Arms, Protected
Sep 07, 2008
All terrain vehicle instructor in Jeju above and office worker in a cold Chengdu winter below.
Protection = Opportunity
Sep 07, 2008
The motivations of adopting car park door protectors in Jeju and protecting car wheels in Beijing. Design and other opportunities discussed here.
Natural As
Sep 07, 2008
A father gently wafts cool air over his daughter using the paper target from a gun range. The associative equivalent of cleaning your ears with the muzzle of a .22.
Accidental Anthropomorphism
Sep 07, 2008
Actual / Ideal Reality
Sep 07, 2008
Positive Associations
Sep 06, 2008
Two Porsche's not belonging to guests - parked outside the five star Hyatt Hotel in Jeju, a positive association that benefits both the hotel and the car company.
The officially negotiated and unofficial/ambush associations between brands, objects, people. How the current status quo changes as more of the association occurs in the digital space(s), as the medium has a degree of autonomous mobility. In an urban environment where mass commuter traffic on the 'roads ' is largely automated the ability of ad-mounted-vehicles to identify and tailgate (?) suitable targets. There's nothing like instantly pitching a new car insurance after a near miss, eh?
Stackability / Usability
Sep 06, 2008
I suspect that's Raphael Grignani on stage talking about the HomeGrown project, his full presentation here.
Perso'
Sep 06, 2008
More customised laptops from a SF based designer (above) and as designed by Bread and Butter (below), purveyors of the distinctive sketched-faces LIFT look and feel.
Rear View Mirror Norms
Sep 05, 2008
The role of religious icons in a Jeju taxi above, Xiamen below, and the support of religious rituals in this Mumbai taxi. To paraphrase a colleague "to what extent do you trust someone whose driving skills are arguably reliant on faith?". To what extent is every driver's skills based in part on faith? What's the difference between my faith and yours? How might this affect what happens on the road?
And how does the role of faith change when the driving from A to B system is fully automated?
What is the rear view mirror was designed first and foremost as a shrine?
Gear Stick Norms
Sep 05, 2008
Motivations for customising/personalising gear sticks: on a tour bus in Jeju, South Korea (above); during a bitterly cold winter soujorn into Urumqi, China and on the road into Kabul Afghanistan - although the truck & trucker were Pakistani.
The driver of the latter vehicle was a bit of a gent - woken up by my translator - he allowed us to clamber all over his rig. Interior shots another day.
Bigger Brother / Little'r Sister
Sep 05, 2008
Themed phone kiosk and its interior below - a cross between big brother and little sister - the sticker with 111 number is for reporting North Korean spies.
Welcome. Really.
Sep 05, 2008
A welcome mat of sorts.
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