This is a question I seem to be constantly asking myself. It was a question a friend asked me when I felt like I was facing certain doom. And I often still have to ask myself it as a reminder. So frequently, like this picture, I suffer under the weight of the world with a fear that something is lurking and waiting to knock me off-balance.
I’m still hear. I’m still breathing. I have fallen many times, but some how I am ok.
The lesson for me in the question is…”Am I really in control of the outcome? Have I chosen to base my believe system in something that is cold, uncaring, and looking to rob me of the joy in life?”
I hope not. But many times I often act like I do. The more I control-the more I try to protect myself- the more I place myself in the position of harms way.
Agon and Ecstasy: Transgression, Transformation, and Transcendence in Competitive Geocaching.Full Text Available By: Hawley, Francis Frederick. Deviant Behavior, Apr2010, Vol. 31 Issue 3, p225-250, 26p; DOI: 10.1080/01639620902855024
In this article Fred Hawley highlights that geocaching appeals to the individual through its mimicking and participating in “deviant behavior”. He begins with the point that much of the searching and sneaking around in th cities looking for caches resembles the actions of a burglar, spy, or a thief.
He believes the marginal group of wh has created the deviant subculture appeals to the “transgressive agon”; someone who enjoys and commits violative trespassing deviant acts. He draws light to how the community has created guidelines and rules to prevent official trespassing and destruction of property. However, that does not disregard the “pleasant fear” or “sneaky thrills” many cachers seek in the experience of their hunt. They even have created code names like “muggle” for the non-geocachers that they one is supposed to evade when looking for the cache. Hawley mentioned that some people even wear disguises ( official uniforms) so they do not draw attention to their searching around public areas. Hawley described this behavior as being “privately deviant in public places”.
Yet, surprising in the end, Hawley states that he thinks that the majority of people are only superficially deviant and only adding an element of adventure to their mundane lives.
This article definitely gave me a new perception of what a geo-cacher must look like to an outsider. I was only thinking about the excitement of finding hidden treasure and not so much the risk of unnerving the people around me or the legal consequences I may face.
I also think the idea of a disguise pretty interesting. I want to include that somehow in my film.
Gillin, Paul & Dana. “The Joy of GeoCaching: How to Find Health, Happiness, and Creative Energy Through a Worldwide Treasure Hunt”. Fresno: Quill Driver Books, 2010.
I’d say this resource was my most valuable text. It was written by a husband and wife team whose love for technology eventually lead them down the road of Geocaching. Because of their interest in gadgetry, these writers have a gift of explaining the ins and outs of this game to the layman.
One of the best features of this book is the compilation of experiences. The book is caulked with stories and explanations of people’s geocaching adventures, how the game has impacted their lives, and how they have progressed with time. By reading this book it was as if I had refocused my lens to that of an expert and was able to enjoy caching even more.
Groundspeak. “The Complete Idiots Guide to: GeoCaching”. 2nd Ed. NewYork: Penquin,2009
This guide was great for helping me navigate the Geocache landscape. Because the game has been around for almost 10years, the subculture surrounding it has created a language and edicate of its own that an outsider would not understand. This also helped give me hints in preparing for looking for a cache and which caches might be best to select. There was a lot of information that helped men navigate through the games main home base on the web (geocaching.com). This was a hot spot for connecting with groups, message boards, and different versions of the game such as WhereTiGo, Bookcrossings, and virtual caches.
This article outlined how once public use of became modified in May 2000 that it laid the foundation for using GPS’s for finding “exact” locations, which set the stage for the idea of Geo-caching or originally known as Geo-stashing.
Rapidly, Tech-geeks were discussing all over the internet how this new technology could be used. The first cache was placed by the end of the month and the game began. Shortly there after, the game cause buzz and articles about it were popping up all over the web and in print (ny times).
From this initial interest, Geocache.com was started and is still maintained an a mainly volunteer basis. The biggest obstacle was people were interested in the game, but caches were to far away to be found. From this came the mantra, “if you hide it, they will come”, and they did! People began setting up caches everywhere and because of this enthusiasm the number of caches and geocachers in the game mushroomed.
What interested me most about this article is the “if you hide it, they will come”. I am going to start a few caches in my film and will follow their development. I think it will give a new spin on the story. Instead of purely, what can I find? I will also learn about “what comes out of becoming one of the creators of the game?”
This was the first video I saw about GeoCaching and it really sparked my interest. It made something that normally if explained would seem technical and difficult actually very simple. It wasn’t so much that this video gave me full literacy of the GeoCaching Game; however, it did open the door and clearly point me towards the right steps to get started.
As I struggled to find my first few caches, this helped give me a better idea of what one looked like. I had the idea of a box stuck in my head. But, I couldn’t have been further from the truth. This video helped me see the many sizes and shapes that caches come in. But also, the many different ways cachers disguise them. And often caches are well disguised.
IV. Post Presentation Reflection Post
I began this project with curiosity and that was about it. I didn’t know much about GeoCaching other than what I read on the net. I wanted to explore and document my experience with this subculture of Geocaching and was it worth “buying into”. I began to see that even though it was a game that was advertised anyone can just jump in and play, that really wasn’t so. Yes, perhaps you could go out to a cache that wasn’t in the heart of the city and find it. But, the first cache I went to (2 blocks from my house) was incredibly well-concealed and produced more frustration than treasure. Yet, because of my commitment to learning about the game, I was able to learn how to deceiver the problem of where to cache and how to find one. I also realized that in spite of what one might think, Geocaching is MUCH more fun when done with a group. It acts much like a team building exercise where everyone gets pumped up together to complete the task of finding the different caches. One of the most interesting things I discovered when going out was the abundant amount of really interesting places that I can find at the click of a few buttons. Often we follow predisposed paths, to the grocery store-gas station-gym-etc,etc. But when I went to visit my Dad at his new house for the second time, the surrounding area had developed a completely new landscape. Geocaching replaced the old reasons for going out to the store and because of that my trips began to bare different results. A completely foreign town began to unfold. I started to find tucked away parks, interesting landmarks, or just take strolls through the outdoors on beautiful days.
The hardest part of the composition part of the project was foreseeing something I knew nothing about. I created a rough sketch of a storyboard, but in the end my plan was to go out and cache, bring a camera and notepad, record whatever caught my interest, and sort it out in the end. As careless as that may sound, it wasn’t. I wanted to capture something pure, keep it as pure as possible, and properly package it for the YouTube community to easily digest and enjoy. The biggest things I kept an eye out for where steady shots at multiple angles and smooth audio. I feel like continuity (audio and visual) is the biggest thing that hurts different YouTube producers. Ironically, once I left the lab I realized I missed the mark. It wasn’t that I didn’t arrange the film properly, but instead forgot to keep in mind most people will be watching the video minimized and through computer speakers. It wasn’t a major problem though. I was able to go back to the lab and make minor adjustments after viewing the video without headphones and stepping back to make sure all my visuals were clear.
I believe my role of the filmmaker is to entertain and inform. I want the few to feel a strong interest t what they are watching and not just ruminate on the thought “Is this going to get better?” or “What is the point?”.
Lange’s article was most attractive to me. Especially her idea that people choose videos on YouTube based on “affinity” or “feelings of connectedness to other people”. This is one of the touchstones I want to add to my film. I want to make sure the user feels connected to me and my search. I plan on achieving this effect through: 1) not acting as an Authority on the subject of GeoCaching. Therefore, I can create an atmosphere where the viewer feels as if they are accompanying me on my quest. 2) I want to pretend to share material items with the view such as handing them a GPS or a drink. That way the viewer has the instant feeling that I am speaking directly to them and they are there with me.
Culturally, I’m facing a “pop culture” bias that GeoCaching is a nerdy game and I have to present it in an interesting and mainstream . Or perhaps answer my question of “is GeoCaching worth my time?” by realizing “No”, and that is why it is played by such a select group of people. I think this is where I will be able to be comical like Morgan Spurlock or Chris Rock. Many points of this video-journey will have to be subjective. This will lead to considering many of Peters’s & Seier’s statements about self and how I am portrayed in-front of the camera; “How will I consider the viewer and appeal to them without losing my opinions and standpoints?”
At this point however, I have to head out and find my first GeoCach to get an understanding of the game and exactly how I want to depict and explore it.
In this article Fred Hawley highlights that geocaching appeals to the individual through its mimicking and participating in “deviant behavior”. He begins with the point that much of the searching and sneaking around in th cities looking for caches resembles the actions of a burglar, spy, or a thief.
He believes the marginal group of wh has created the deviant subculture appeals to the “transgressive agon”; someone who enjoys and commits violative trespassing deviant acts. He draws light to how the community has created guidelines an rules to prevent official trespassing and destruction of property. However, that does not disregard the “pleasant fear” or “sneaky thrills” many cachers seek in the experience of their hunt. They even have created code names like “muggle” for the non-geocachers that they one is suppose to evade when looking for the cache. Hawley mentioned that some people even wear disguises ( official uniforms) so they do not draw attention to their searching around public areas. Hawley described this behavior as being “privately deviant in public places”.
Yet, surprising in the end, Hawley states that he thinks that the majority of people are only superficially deviant and only adding an element of adventure to their mundane lives.
This article definitely gave me a new perception of what a geo-cacher must look like to an outsider. I was only thinking about the excitement of finding hidden treasure and not so much the risk of unnerving the people around me or the legal consequences I may face.
I also think the idea of a disguise pretty interesting. I want to include that somehow in my film.
This article outlined how once public use of became modified in May 2000 that it laid the foundation for using GPS’s for finding “exact” locations, which set the stage for the idea of Geo-caching or originally known as Geo-stashing.
Rapidly, Tech-geeks were discussing all over the internet how this new technology could be used. The first cache was placed by the end of the month and the game began. Shortly there after, the game cause buzz and articles about it were popping up all over the web and in print (ny times).
From this initial interest, Geocache.com was started and is still maintained an a mainly volunteer basis. The biggest obstacle was people were interested in the game, but caches were to far away to be found. From this came the mantra, “if you hide it, they will come”, and they did! People began setting up caches everywhere and because of this enthusiasm the number of caches and geocachers in the game mushroomed.
What interested me most about this article is the “if you hide it, they will come”. I am going to start a few caches in my film and will follow their development. I think it will give a new spin on the story. Instead of purely, what can I find? I will also learn about “what comes out of becoming one of the creators of the game?”
“This article focuses on the type of affiliation that refers to “feelings of connections between people” some of whom may already be a member of or wish to join a video maker’s social network. Of particular interest is exploring the characteristics of video affinity. How do they compare to other home-mode media? How do they establish a “labile field of connection” between video creators and viewers, and how do such videos create and maintain dispersed social networks?” (Lange 71).
Paraphrased: “How do videos become popular and catch the attention of people who watch them.”
II. Important/Key Terms
Videos of Affinity: videos, interesting or not, that establish and maintain communicative connections to people usually in the social network of the creator.
Affiliation: feelings of membership in a social network or attraction to people, ideas, or things.
Social Network: connections between people who deem other members important to them in some way.
Habeas Corpus: no body, no crime. No body, no affinity-limits the traditional content.
Phatic Signals: Contact function- establishing/prolonging discourse without being particularly useful.
III. Stakes
“Many so-called amateur video creators can use characteristics found in videos of affinity to gain support and viewership for work that would happily commercialize. In addition, video makers who are professional media makers have used videos of affinity to make more action that gives viewers a feeling of being connected not to a video, but a person who shares mutual beliefs or interests.” (Lange 83)
I agree with Muller that there definitely is a discourse on YouTube and it seems to focus around the binaries of either the Educated Professionals or the Uneducated amateurs. However, I think there is a common ground that was spoken about in the article, quality. The quality of the video is what either attracts or repeals a user. Yes, sometime a choppy amateur video sets the authors tone and has a captivating effect. Yet, the majority of the time key elements such as lighting, sound, and stability determine if I will view something again.
Muller described quality films as being produced with “Professionalism”. He also made another point that I would say really encompasses what it is about professional films that makes them more attractive. He said that when a user is making a film to impress their close friends it has better quality than someone making a film that they want to become viral. The element about professional videos that makes them attractive is it is clear that the creator put careful consideration into how the film was shot and then took the time to craft (edit) so it met their vision. Where on the other hand, many people on a whim have the idea to shoot something. They hit record, goto it, and then upload it. Yes, the idea my be good, but it comes across as unthought out when it is produced so rapidly. It’s like writing a paper without proof-reading it and then handing it in. The chances of a good piece dramatically decrease.
So I think the question you have to ask is what do you think the producer was aiming for: Quality or quantity of Hits?
I’m still searching for ways to make this interesting. I’ve never gone GeoCaching before and it seems interesting. I’m finding out it has a much greater following then I anticipated with many videos explaining it. I originally wanted to do a video explaining and exploring the topic; however, there are already a few. So , it look like I’m mainly going to document my curiosity and interest and see if the experience matches the buzz.
What are the important elements, facets/components of this project?
I’m still not sure. Web research, Geocache.com, and the different treasures I find.
What are the central questions you’re hoping to explore?
“Is GeoCaching fun and practical?”
“What started this new hobby”
“Is it worth it”
What forms of research will you conduct?
I’m not sure. I will definitely do internet research, field research documenting the hunts for different cache’s, and maybe I can get an interview with other members of the community or store owners that supply the hobby.
Who do you imagine as your audience for your film?
Everyday people and possibly GeoCachers, but Im not looking for the language to be GeoCach specific language.
How are you going to provide a context for your project?
I definitely want to use indirect context to present visual narration of the adventure. From watching others videos, it gets pretty monotonous watching some guy walk through the woods and dig around for caches. So, I think i will find ways to cut that out and use a montage of finding cache’s for more continuous action that makes the video pop. Geocaching is supposed to be fun, I don’t want my video to have the emotional appeal of a slow nature or science video.
Why does this project matter to you, but even more importantly why should it matter to others?
It matters because it looks fun. I like adventure and Geocaching is designed to be an exciting treasure hunt.
After your experience with the 60 second auto-video, what have you discovered about technique, style, approach, as tone? (What worked and what didn’t? How will this knowledge inform this next film? Be as specific as possible.)
I learned how important continuity is in the last project. I also, learned that interviews are great, but they take up a lot of time so they aren’t always useful.
I think what I learned from last project is to make the film interesting and try to reach a larger audience. It’s easy to make the film very self-centered which will put it in a category with thousands of other vlogs. So for me, in order to reach a larger audience, I have use multiple contexts and tones throughout the film for people to identify with.
The section “Habeas Corpus” within Lange’s chapter “Videos of Affinity on YouTube” gave me a completely different angle at portraying film on YouTube. Most film and clips we have watched previously we looked for the technique in which the were shot to capture the producers messages. However, this section is more about advertising and how to shoot in-order to capture the viewer.
I found it incredible insightful they way psychologically plays into creating affinity. Such as using commonly shared items or experiences to create instant repoire with the viewer. I am actually highly tempted to use such techniques within my next project.
Another idea I like was the support of Peters and Seier’s evidence in “Home Dance” the participatory culture is not just amateur home videos. Yes, much of the work is self-regulated, but the performers are subjectively trying to mimic hollywood standards. I think this supports the idea that YouTube goes beyond sharing video. Many are trying to use the site to harness the power of Hollywood to promote their ideas or potential of recreating something that was so far out of reach before.
I thought all the presentations went well and each group was effective in carrying across their different points. The only thing that I thought that would have been more effective for some groups would have been showing multiple videos to prove different points instead of highlighting a technique multiple times throughout the same clip.
I thought the use of discussion afterwards also helped solidify each groups objectives and help the class nail down the ideas that didn’t make complete sense through presentation.
As far as our group, what was most effective was going last. It helped make clear for me a few ideas I wanted to present, but weren’t clearly defined in our presentation and would have wasted time accessing if we tried to use them mid-presentation. Seeing the video-clips stall also made it clear that we had to prep them during the introduction.
The part I found most interesting and controversial the idea of digital literacy becoming the dominant discourse of pop culture. I’m really unsure if Standard American English will hold its ground. If there is a change I doubt it will be anytime in the immediate future. I do not see a strong enough platform for people to abandon the discourse of collegiate academia. However, I do see people looking for ways of more powerful (faster and effective) means of communication. Film can give an accurate representation of that which the producer wants, leaving little up to the imagination unlike books. Creative writing was once taught in art class and I think it may return there as cultural and societal interests shift.
If we are to take an honest look at where YouTube is going, we have to first look back 80years to the story of a girl lost and searching for a way back to her place in the world. The girl I am talking about is Dorthy from the Wizard of Oz. The world watched in amazement at the ease in which she was wisped away by simply clicking her heels and saying “There is no place like home”. Today this phenomenon has become our reality. With the click of a button anyone can be transported to the destination of their choice via streaming video. YouTube is no longer about the sharing content. Instead it is the foundation for the ‘Tube Experience’ that the majority of popular culture seeks out on a daily basis. People are no longer confined by class or location because of the tool that YouTube has created. Much like the secret-levels hidden within the tubes of Mario Bros., our society has stumbled upon an innovation that has empowered the human condition. Anyone with a computer or wireless device has the ability to enter a digital realm in which they can connect with experts, personal interests, or take virtual tours of almost anywhere in the world (even outer space) without leaving the comfort of their couch.
Youtube is not the center of the universe. However, it is its own universe-a world where anyone can post videos of random and seemingly endless subjects with very lenient content limitations. Users create, organize, and react to content published daily, hourly, and minutely. It is both an outlet for publishing current popular culture and also a catalyst in the creation and progression of popular internet culture. Users have the ability to enter the Tubes at their own will, and much like any other website on the inter-webs there are really know rules. If one must, one can scream (caplocks) obscenities and slurs and opinions. But that is neither here nor there.
As user’s of YouTube, we can clearly see that the You in the YouTube experience is because the site is moderated, organized, distributed, editied, created, and consumed by its users. Burgess and Green also made a similar point about YouTubes structural development from within the company with their statement,
But in some respects it seems community tools are added almost as an afterthought, long after the community themselves have created solutions, as we have discussed in chapter 4. YouTube launched community ‘help’ forums in July 2008, for example, before which the website provided very few onsite tools for participants to discuss or share ideas with each other. These conversations long took place elsewhere- in forums maintained by users, on blog postings, and more significantly, in video users posted to each other. That users sought to help themselves where no other help was available should come as no real surprise; what should be surprising is that it took YouTube, Inc. so long to provide effective support for the user community on which the enterprise relies so heavily.(105)
YouTube is more of a symbol now, than a brand name. It represents a user-friendly, user-generated and published site in which the world is at everyone’s fingertips.
However, as YouTube and Participatory Culture continue to steal the attention of mass media we see corporations hungry to buy into the ‘tube experience’ so they can profit and control the experience of the viewer as was done in the past. I would say the attractablity of YouTube is it’s lack of controls in which liberates the user to become active in a participatory experience. This is reason the website spread like wild fire through popular culture and for boundary that is placed on the participatory experience, there is often a loop-hole around it, keeping the literate user always in control.
The war between users and corporations has only begun, but I would say is only the beginning of a much larger fight that will arise within the digital wilderness of ‘Tubing’.
“YouTube currently dominates online video, and its share of the market is still growing (schonfield, 2008), but there is no guarantee that this market dominance is secure. A longer-lasting consequence of the moment of YouTube is a certain degree of dominance over the idea of what a video-sharing website should look-like, and how it should work. New video-sharing sites intended for niche or alternative communities often end up emulating the look of YouTube, or even somewhat self-defeating announcing they will be the “YouTube for…” (106)
In world mainly run by capitalism, haves and have-nots, You-Tube has leveled the playing field by breaking the chains of consumerism providing products such as music, movies, vacations, education, long distance communication for free. Once one tastes freedom all else becomes stale. And we have seen this with the huge creation of copycat sites (http://www.reelseo.com/list-video-sharing-websites) that mimic YouTubes ‘tubing experience’.
Surprisingly, it is up to the user where exactly it goes. Personal agendas fuel Youtube’s evolution and change it’s restrictions and rules. If YouTube does not continue to include everything it once had, everything that is/was so attractive about it- lack of censorship, accessibility, commercial-less play, its gentle dance with social networking, and lax copyright infringement laws, its followers or rather, users will find other means to satisfy their instantaneous needs and wants, without YouTube.
One would go so far to say that YouTube has become the catalyst for full-on human dependence on the digital network. I would think that now that users know they have all they want buzzing around their head in wireless signals, why would one continue to seek out conventional or traditional methods of communication or exploration other than for the nostalgia of the past. The future is here. We have captured our world within a microchip and the only effort one needs to access that is a few keystrokes.
So this brings me back to my initial question. In the Future, Where will YouTube go?
Well that ultimately relies upon, how far will “You”, The User, take it.
Curration of Video Support
User Power of Partcipatory Culture.
This documentation of Doug Elliot represents immediate participation on the grassroots level.
From the same user- a suggested video- also replicates as current news on a global scale through this documentation of the recent Earthquakes and Tsunami in Japan
Mass media and Participatory Culture Mash-up
empowerment of it’s users.
This evolution of popular culture starts at the grass roots level as a promotional video/advertisement for Montgomery Flea Market and is mashed up with The Cleveland Show, which spoofed it. Thus showing the correlation between Youtube and popular culture
List of Site creating a loop-hole to empower the user
The innovation of YouTube has broken down the structure of the Linear world with the
This clip breaks down the linear world that we are used to living it. On the webs, and specifically with the creation of YouTube, the possiblity to discover the free world is at everyones fingertips.
