ENGL 680M: New Media

Here's a totally passable, Flash based verision of Guitar Hero so you can get your fix if you don't happen to be near the Playstation, X-box, Wii of your choice.

http://www.kongregate.com/games/Shinki/super-crazy-guitar-maniac-deluxe-...

It's played with the arrow keys and A, S, D. The songs are from complete unknowns due to copyright issues, but they're not completely horrible. It does make the game harder though, cause knowing the song well helps you get into the rhythmn.

Sad sad story here, but an important one. Story of a thirteen year old girl who committed suicide after recieving a barrage of harrassment on Myspace-- sparked by a boy she friended who turned on her. But the boy was not who he seemed . . .

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/20071121/tc_usatoday/townmaycriminalize...

The dark side of identity play my friends . . .

I do so love my students' creativity and ability when they're set free to tackle new media projects about almost any topic they want. And if there was ever a captive audience of other people who would appreciate their work, it's ya'll. So I'm gonna toot their own horns for them. These are two responses to my recent music video assignment. Assignment simple: "make a music video refuting a stereotype you percieve people to have about your generation." Not much further instruction. And with cool results like these, why would I mess with it by giving more limitations?

So I’m designing a Flash, persuasive game for my final project (walk by the computer lab in HEAV sometime and you might hear me cursing at the screen), and I had an odd thought during my hours and hours of desperate, frantic frustration. Basically, that the desperate, frantic frustration I’m having while designing a video game is very similar to the kinds I get while playing them. There’s a lot of similarity between the two processes.

For some reason, the section on JFK Reloaded in Bogost really crystallized for me what procedutal rhetoric is. Couldn't find the game, but there are a number of Youtube videos of people recording their playing of the game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqV-tNL0vbE

Edit:

Correction, I have found the game available for download

http://www.cool.com.au/computers-technology/personal-computers/jfk-reloa...

Downloading now, haven't played it yet.

K-Dawg and I (that’s Ms Kristen Moore for those of you not in the know) are currently working on a research proposal for Empirical class that involves assessing to what extent, and in what specific ways, instructors are utilizing new media and visual rhetoric in English 106. The way I’m approaching the research is to wrap it around the fact that the 106 Goals/Means/and Outcomes do specifically ask for New Media in the class.

I made it to the Games Forum's last panel (on using games and virtual worlds for education) and got to watch a pridful moment for rhet/comp folk. The talks were all interesting (Sarah Robbins is always charismatic, entertaining and the best Second Life eductation proponent one can ask for) but the question and answer period was my favorite part. Our own Morgan R, Cat, and someone else (apologies for the loss of memory) asked some pointed access questions that had been across the board not covered in the actual talks.

A website that had a photoshop contest to turn celebs into cyborgs.

http://www.worth1000.com/cache/contest/contestcache.asp?contest_id=15684...

So many fascinating questions come to mind it boggles the mind.

Turkle’s piece on video games this week was like taking a walk down memory lane. Joust! Hell yeah!

One of my academic faves, and yours too, Henry Jenkins, the "Marshall McLuhan of Web 2.0"

Not sure the title is all that apt, but anyways. Here's a great podcast interview with Jenkins from the Chronicle of Higher Education. He's got a most excellent blog too that's worth checking on a semi-daily basis.

http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/index.php?id=2377

http://henryjenkins.org/

When I grow up, I wanna be Henry Jenkins. Beard and all.