Questions for today – or another week? Hypermedia/narrative/digital storytelling/twine fictions
Not quite sure how I got so mixed up, but for today I read As We May Think by Bush and Database as a Symbolic Form by Manovich, a variant of his Database/Narrative text.
Reading these texts, a few questions or points of discussion that resonated for me were:
- The importance of the database interface in pulling in audiences. (For example, Netflix is doing this really well and is seeing a lot of success compared to other streaming services like CraveTV.)
- Despite many technological innovations which enable both a database structure and a selecting mechanism, I would argue the sheer volume that has been accumulated and a lack of regulation over what goes on the internet (which is the primary tool we use to access data) dilutes and clouds the meaningful data that’s out there. In this regard, I would say that critical thought is more necessary now than ever. (For example, identifying fake news, biases, etc.) So, how much does the plethora of data or choice paralyze us as opposed to propel us?
- Discussion around algorithms and their role in helping to select from the vast array of data made me consider Google searching and the fact that there are a number of parameters that can enable more refined, meaningful searches. I would argue that, despite the proliferation of Google search use, these remain relatively unused and unknown. Are these an example of how we might use advanced algorithms to sift through the muck?