Networked Economies : Craig Saper

I enjoyed reading this article because Bogg takes such a seemingly simple concept and really pushes it to the extreme. When other artists might recreate currency and then stop once the shock value has worn off, Bogg seems to be relentless with this art. He becomes interested in the transaction during the actual exchange of the currency, the "networks" he creates, and the interest of the government/FBI in him. Although the artworks are actually wonderfully skilled drawings, he seems to be only interested in the discourse that is created around the works. In fact, an instance of great importance to him was when Boggs wanted to use one of his drawings of a bill to purchase a meal at a restaurant; the waiter agreed to accept the Boggs' "currency" and returned with a drawn picture of the proper change, much to Boggs' delight. I thought the article was witty and enjoyable.

Denis Cosgrove : Carto City

I found his account of cartography as describing and shaping urban space interesting, but nothing new. I've been seeing for a while now maps of cities and places that are representations of the people rather than the land. Why, just the other day, I saw a map of emotions in the U.S. Someone mapped out the "happiest" city, the "saddest" city, the "sexiest" city, etc... Chicago was 5th for "sexiest" : )

It's actually very intriguing to research places based on people rather than land and I do believe that it may shape the spaces as well. I've seen maps of Africa that show where the most AIDS cases are, and this may in turn affect where people live or move to. I find this concept interesting and am excited to see where this concept of cartography will go.

Project 2 : Interfacing Space

Here's the link!

https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/jkramer3/Interactivity/ACT-FlashAss2.swf

Mini Flash Assignment

Here's my Mini Flash Animation... I'm not sure why it's so big : (

https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/jkramer3/Interactivity/FlashAnimation.swf

Responce : The Desktop : Steve Johnson

I thought it was interesting that Johnson looked at the interface of modern day computers as cultural, political, a life-style, etc... because I agreed with him completely. I always knew I was better than those who owned PC's because I owned a Mac, I just never knew why. (Joking) In reality though, it's a decision that I never really pondered deeply. I wonder now if I never became an art major, would I still have purchased a Mac? My answer is yes. The clean lines, user-friendly layout, swiss like form, industrial materials, and fresh style draw me to every product Mac puts out. They have a standard for design that no other brand has mastered quite like them. So now that I've outed myself as a true *Macocrat, I can indulge in the interface that suits me best.

*Macocrat: My term for a liberal Macintosh lover : )

Hypertext Project

Link to Project 1: https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/jkramer3/www/Interactivity/Project1/index.html

Response : As We May Think : Vannevar Bush

I found it interesting that Bush was so interested in the act of recording. Today, we rarely think about how beneficial "saving" is on our computers. We record budgets, notes, papers, drafts, etc... It is so important, in fact, that Blogger actually "autosaves" so that we do not lose any information or part of our process. It has become second nature for us to save our data and every step of our methods, and it is hard to imagine a time when this act was not available.

The most captivating part of Bush's essay was his ability to look toward the future with such optimism and intelligence. He saw flaws in the world of science and made educated predictions and claims about how to solve them. This ability is intriguing and inspiring, for many of us tend to live in the present and just accept what we have as the limit, instead of challenging it.