Hello World

Listserv or Blog or both?

I asked the very international and eclectic Writing and the Digital Life list whether they would like to move to a blog, and the ensuing discussion and poll have been intriguing. Personally, it's making me move towards the idea of having both.  

JUNE TOPIC: The Darker Side of Human/Computer Interaction

George Landow has kicked off this month's topic with three good places to begin discussing the darker side of Human/Computer Interaction. Read or join the list at http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/WRITING-AND-THE-DIGITAL-LIFE.html

Some interesting takes on technophobia, writers and writing

The list has been busy this week with this month's topic of Technophobia, writers and writing. There are some intriguing views and personal histories to read, and of course to contribute to. The discussion starts here.

Desktops

We've been talking about desktops at WDL. Jeremy and Gavin put theirs online, so I am putting mine here. This is a picture of my desktop with a picture of my desk on top of it.

The conversation begins...

I opened Writing and the Digital Life to discussion on Friday night and we had a hectic weekend as everyone introduced themselves and started talking. There was a rush of email for a while but now it's settling down to a steady pace. I've set up a del.icio.us site too, so that we can share bookmarks.

It's really exciting to be starting something from scratch like this. As I wrote to the list this morning:

...after years of working in highly-managed gardens, I like the idea of swimming in a cold clear stream of ideas. It may hit a few rocks, it may run dry, but for the moment this is how I'd like to do it and I hope you'll swim with me for a bit. Needless to say, the stream will also water future projects, but it's too early yet to know what they will be.

I'm really looking forward to this!

Writing and the Digital Life mailing list

Please note this advance news of a new research project Writing and the Digital Life exploring the impact of digital technologies upon writing and lived experience.  The emphasis will be upon creating an integrated and interdisciplinary cycle of research, teaching, and writing projects, providing ongoing reflection and the generation of new ideas. We are especially interested in applying the lens of creative writing to technological and media ecologies, practical creativity, human computer interaction, and the natural environment (what do we mean by 'natural'?).

The project is managed by Sue Thomas, former Artistic Director of trAce, now Professor of New Media in the Faculty of Humanities, De Montfort University, UK.

To be kept informed of future developments send email to listserv@jiscmail.ac.uk and put the following text in the body of the message:

SUBSCRIBE WRITING-AND-THE-DIGITAL-LIFE your name

Please note that JISCmail requires a subscription confirmation.

This list will begin as announce-only. For more information please contact Sue direct at sue.thomas@dmu.ac.uk, phone +44 (0)116 207 8266, or write to:

Sue Thomas
Professor of New Media
School of Media and Cultural Communication
Faculty of Humanities
De Montfort University
The Gateway
Leicester
LE1 9BH, UK
http://www.dmu.ac.uk/faculties/humanities/