spela

Digital Cities

I digged a little deeper into the concept of digital cities. They started to be planned in early 70ies and were designed somehow different from what the digital city is concidered today.

Before digital cities were seen as Internet access points to public information on public spaces, today they are planned as virtual networks providing services, links, information and contacts for public cooperation, education, communication, etc. based on broadband connection.

The aim of Digital Cities is to built (Toru Ishida)

1.) social information infrastructure for every day life (Internet enable us to create rich information spaces for everyday life)
2.) arena in which people in regional communities can interact and share knowledge, experience and mutual experience.
3.)DC integrate urban information (both achievable and real time) and create public spaces in the Internet for people living/visiting in/at the cities

According to Ishida digital cities consist of three layers - information, interface and interaction layer.

But from my point of view both - information and interface layer, are too narrowly understood and usually limited to city maps and city information instead to interests and services of the community that goes beyond borders of a region or a city.

Some additional articles could be found in pdf format here as part of the project Digital City Kyoto.

posted by spela @ 3/28/2006 02:39:00 PM 0 comments

Microsoft Inc.

When I was researching blogs more into the details, it was a time when Microsoft just launched its MSN Spaces - a software like Blogger. I was interested how Microsoft sees his service on the Web and what implications his service might have for the users.

Xeni Jardin is a great contrubutor to the research of Internet and a coeditor of BoingBoing site, that was a year ago one of the most popular and awarded blogs on the Net.

I found the following link that might be interesting when talking about Microsoft blogger platform and automatic censorship in his software.

Another issue is presented here. By being a user of a platform you and your ideas easily become an intelectual property of Microsoft Corporation. Well? Somebody is eating my brains - is this a modern way of canibalism? (That was a serious question about information society trends!)

posted by spela @ 3/21/2006 03:01:00 PM 0 comments

Mi casa su casa!

By creating my first blog I've just got a feeling that I am getting an extra memory unit! Whaaa, even more - that I am getting a task to create a new 'up-to-me' memory from the blank. It is interesting to reexperience what I was doing 26 years ago:) ...... trying to gather some data and turn it into information by exploring the surrounding space and extending it into knowledge.

What I'll try to 'remember' right here is what I find interesting and useful and share it further.
This blog is created for the purpose of a New Media and Society course held by Nick Jankowski, but I claim that the use can never be predicted, so I'll leave the possibilities open.

I try to look for interesting links and topics on the Web and I keep an eye on development of infocom technologies and their regulations, on directions of communication flows and their uses and evolution, so - some extra working memory is most kindly welcomed! And what I find the best is that this memory unit is not existing in isolation, but can be linked, commented, challenged and perturbed.

I'm aware that what is most interesting for me, would be very strange to be the most interesting for you, so try harder to understand:) but keep being unique.

posted by spela @ 3/21/2006 11:01:00 AM 0 comments