The idea was to combine the animation software on Xtranormal with the screen capture of Jing, using iMovie to overlap and edit everything, and then upload to Youtube. I would develop the ideas from this post to make the script. Sounds simple, doesn't it? Aheh.
MAJOR CONCEPTS: Nigel throws around a bit of jargon, so here's what he's actually saying:
Edentity: the identity/ies that we construct online. Edentity changes depending on the platform (ie. facebook vs world of warcraft).
Interface/: locus of visual interaction, in this case, how we visually represent ourselves (ie display picture, avatar, profile page).
Meritocracy: the idea that our position on social hierarchy depends on our effort/merit. Meritocracy fails to account for systematic barriers and oppressive dynamics and is largely a myth in the offline world (the American dream is arguably based on the myth of meritocracy).
The Sociological Model of Symbolic Interaction: the theory that social reality is constantly being renegotiated and is based on the sum of our interactions with one another. Everything we do has meaning, everything is symbolic (chatroulette or twitter are great examples of this).
NARRATOR: Nigel! Having a robot character as the narrator suited the theme of the video. Also, it made the text-to-speech automated voice sound a little more natural. Also, he's pretty adorable.
PROJECT LOG:
30 March 2010: Uploaded to Youtube, FTW.
29 March 2010: Lots of nitty-gritty getting the fragmented audio clips to smoothly run into each other. Added some epic background music.
28 March 2010: This keeps getting more and more complicated. Tried to record clips with Jing. Discovered Jing saves in .swf format unless you pay for it. No good for editing with iMovie. Tried to download program to convert .swf format into .mp4. Discovered I have to pay for this program too. Have decided to drop in pictures instead of video clips. After some trial-and-error fun, figured out how to keep the audio running over the images. It actually might work out.
27 March 2010: Attempted to download Xtranormal's offline editing program 'State' in order to complete video on friend's PC. When State finally downloaded, it became clear that the program barely had any options unless you paid for it. Useless. Attempted to rebuild original video with Xtranormal online and after second try, it FINALLY WORKED.
26 March 2010: Figured out problem with camera angle. Still having extensive difficulties with the server on Xtranormal. Keep getting the message: "Unable to render project, try again later." Becoming concerned and annoyed. Tried restarting project but still get same message. If worst comes to worst, will have to use Jing to record rough draft and work from there.
25 March 2010: Written up short script for narrator 'Nigel', the adorable cardboard robot. Script saturated with pretentious language. Amused. Trial-and-error work for editing script and adding animation. Nigel has trouble pronouncing some words, specifically 'epic' and 'customizable'. Editing script accordingly. Can't figure out why camera angle keeps randomly jumping around. Having trouble submitting changes for preview- serve frequently not responding. Unable to save final version. Irritated.
Hello there, my name is Nigel and I am talking on the internetz.
I want to say a few things about identity, or more specifically, about e-dentity. Specifically, I would like to suggest that the way we negotiate ourselves online is different than in so-called real life.
Online, our interface is different. We are visually represented by our display picture or avatar. It is immediately and completely negotiable. And on many sites we can customize it extensively.
Our online avatar could be anything from a small gif image to a fully animated analogous representation of ourselves. We could be glossy super models or sword wielding elves. It is negotiable in an extent that is impossible offline.
Intelligence on the internetz is largely reflected by grammar and argumentative structure. Most forms of social interaction are text-based which means that literacy is critically important in self representation.
Our place on online social hierarchies is determined by the amount of 'epic' our virtual selves display. This could be based on the possession of rare virtual commodities or by the level of customization of our user profiles. Every community has different criteria for what makes an elite, but unlike in the offline world, our ability to become leet is actually based on meritocracy.
Identity is negotiable online, and therefore, so are social systems. The internet is evolving with the sociological model of symbolic interaction. We are negotiating a virtual social reality.
New technology is changing our cultural discourse, it is changing the way we talk to each other, it is changing the way we understand each other, it is changing who we are.
I am a robot because I require a computer in order to exist. And you are becoming one too.
11 March 2010: More experimenting with potential of Xtranormal. Remixed previous video to learn more about how program reads and animates text. Automated voice is annoying, but program itself is very cool.
2 March 2010: Was sent a link to this blog. Made an account on Xtranormal and tried making a short movie.
