I am just having one of those moments that you only get once in a while where everything seems so exciting and every thought and idea you have so perfectly inspiring. So what better time than now to share some of these in my blog.
I have to admit that the excitement may have started when I woke up this morning discovering a thick layer of snow everywhere. You may think that a Scandinavian would be unimpressed and not jump up and down like a little kid, but you would be wrong.
Ideas, ideas, ideas....I can't type fast enough right now.
Firstly I would just like to remind everyone how little time we have left on the course and how nice it would be if we could all squeeze the most out of these blogs during our last few months of studies. I guess I am mostly speaking of myself as I haven't used my blog near enough since Christmas, which seems a shame when I have the opportunity to share thoughts and ideas with people of similar interest. So today I am deciding to make a fresh start blogging as often as I can, so watch it people, especially you Dan Stoneman, I am taking up the blogging challenge of who can blog the most. Anyone else up for the challenge?
Over the weekend I have been thinking about the exam project. Although I have no finalised idea for this project, I do know that I would like to use Skype in some interesting creative way.
Over the past two years Skype ( the free Internet telephony service) has played a major role in my life as it has enabled me to talk and see my family on regular day to day basis. I no longer feel many miles from home and never miss my family as they are right there in front of me on the screen. It amazes me how much a web camera and a free call service can change the nature of a telephone call. I guess I am lucky to have a good relationship with my family, we are all quite relaxed and never have any arguments or complex family dramas, so often I just use Skype as a way of being in their company whilst I am doing other stuff. This would never be the case if you had to pay for you calls and couldn't see the person you was talking to as it would seem pointless holding a telephone to your ear without talking whilst paying for every minute of your call. Well this is not how Skype works, I can now just be another person in the room joining the conversation when and if I want to, just as you would in any ordinary family gathering. I find this really interesting as it is a whole new form of engagement in cyberspace. I have over the past two years been the family member trapped on the screen but fully engaged and able to see the same as the others and join in the conversation when wanting. Having said that there are some limitations, physically I can't join in when everyone is offered a cup of tea or a piece of cake for example. My brother has also on several occasions joked about closing the laptop screen whilst saying "That's enough of you sister". This is quite funny because it is like they have the ultimate control, I am just helplessly trapped inside the monitor.
I have also tried to be a virtual babysitter. My brother clipped his webcam to my four month old niece's cot and told me to look after her whilst he was in the kitchen making some food. He told me to give him a shout if she started looking unhappy. 
Now that she is a bit older, about a year and a half, we also have fun using Skype. I see her about once a week and I think she experiences me as her ultimate teletubbie character who sits somewhere behind a whole in the wall and talks to her directly. Much more fun than the TV which doesn't say your name and respond to your actions.
Some links to art projects and articles involving the use of Skype:
http://girlfriend.mediamatic.net/
2 comments:
nice post, im looking forward to seeing what you come up with for the exam project and the skype starting point. this last part of the course is going to be good and very busy :-)
i see your challenge about blogging more and i except, we may have to combine our powers to beat Stoneman tho! Your idea of using skype in some creative way is really interesting, be looking forward to see what you do with it. Good luck and i'll see you weds
p.s your niece is very cute. virtual babysitting, why didn't i think of that for the 2 brats that are currently running around me right now
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