Manovich Article Response

a) I think that my capstone measures up well to Manovich's definition of new media in the article "What Is New Media?" He has a very technical definition of what new media is. Like his descriptions, my project has a numerical representation on a computer, is modular, can be automated, has variability, and can be transcoded. I think the princible that fits my project the best is the first one, numerical representation. All the principles are related to each other, but they all seem to be based on this first one. Manovich bases his argument on the principle that something is new media if it is created in a new language that is on the computer. This language can then be changed, recreated, and open up many new paths. Since my project will essentially be a database driven website, it will be run on code, which is a language that computers can read and one that can be easily manipulated. It will allow different parts that will make up the bigger overall picture.

The principle that fit's my project the worse is probably the third one, automation. I won't have a lot of automation in my capstone, since users will be doing most of the work (submitting and viewing events). There will be some automation involved within the code to add the events and create the timelines, as well as in showing the events on the timelines. To conform to this principle more I will have to make the project more self reliant, where everything that is submitted is checked and added by the computer, so that I don't have to do a lot of work to keep the project running once it is complete. I will also need to make sure that my project remains variable so that there are many different paths for users to make and so that it can allow for growth and many changes. Scalability will also be a big issue that I will have to design for so that it will be able to grow.

b) I agree with most of the principles that Manovich discusses, but think that he is being too technical. I think of new media as more of a concept than a computer program. However, I do agree with what he says about the project having to be variable and to allow for change. It is important that the project is flexible and allows for growth. If it remains stable and unchanging, then it will soon become old media. I think that people who create new media projects should apply the principles to their projects, but they don't necessarily have to do the project all digitally because the idea behind the project should be more important than the medium it is done in.