THE EXPECTATION GAP
Human factor in the technological progress of new media
Ingeborg Fülepp
Introduction
Concerning the role of the new technological inventions it is clear that we have found ourselves in the middle of the great contusion. We are getting more and more information on media products which are developed. improved or already on the market. Some are expensive, some are cheaper and some we can buy for home use. Some we have, some we wish to have while we need them for some reason. We are not more surprised, just curious and sometimes not even that. It often happens that we decide to buy something with believe that it is exactly what we need, but than the new version comes and we are again on the beginning of our doubts what to buy. Than we buy this for a long time desired product and as we buy it comes a trouble. We still need an adapter, or a card or a cable or an extension memory. The list can be very long. And more possibilities the developers offer more unexpected trouble comes.
But, is it really necessary to follow technical inventions in the speed it comes to the market? The most creative works of art can be done with the less advanced techniques. Not once we can hear someone saying: "I made a video with my very old camera or I did this computer animation with my very old computer". Only inexperienced beginners or not innovative people require better technique believing they will be able to produce better work of art. Some basic quality is certainly necessary. But we shouldn't forget that content makes an art piece and not technique
Is technology developing as fast as it appears?
We should reconsider the general opinion that technology is developing so fast that we cannot follow it any more?
I remember it was in early sixties, I was still a child, when I saw in the newspaper a wonderful toy- telephone on which one could see a friend on the other side of the wire. At our home we had just got the telephone which I was immediately using to talk for hours with my friend who was living a flat over mine. And then it came the possibility that I can not only talk to my friend but also see her on the small screen! At my age then video-phone would be used just for a fun, but how often afterwards I had regretted the lack of possibility to use this extension tool for the various communication purposes. Thirty years later video-phone is here just to come, but we must still wait some years until video-phone would be cheap enough that we can use it as we use telephone now. What a long way to reach a goal.
In 1985 I had studied at MITs Media Lab, Department for Film and Video. In that time some people were working on the development of new video editing systems which would make complicated computer editing systems similar to film editing and therefore simple to learn and easy to manipulate. As a professional film editor myself and not experienced with complicated computer editing systems, I was naturally excited with the research and followed with a great interest the development of the projects. One day we had a visiting guest, a great camera-man and inventor Mr. Boviola. He was just working on his newest project, a virtual editing system. Mr. Boviola described to our class how the system works. It sounded wonderful. Just perfect. The big expectations did finally become true.
But..
Eight years later AVID editing system brought virtual editing to our thresholds. Eight years is a long time. The most of the video editing studios are till today equipped with computer editing systems which require skills of a technicians and which are for the most of the traditionally trained and educated editors too complicated to use.
In 1987 I had enrolled to the postgraduate studies at the Harvard University's Interactive Technologies Program. At that time interactive video was just becoming a very popular subject to talk about. There were many speculations on its contextual potentials but all in all the attitude of the industrial, educational and other institutions were supportive. As a teacher for film and video editing, I was overwhelmed with the possibility to use an interactive video disc for my lectures. I had developed an interactive video disc program to teach cinematic techniques. I had tested the program with students and professors of film studies as well as with other people of different educational background. The program was successful. I had enthusiastically offered the program to various educational institutions and companies which in that time had some experience with interactive video. I had found a great interest in my program.
But..
Until today I didn't have a chance to finish the program. There were some doubts on the further perspective of the laser disc technology. Digital video was just coming. Its potentials will be better. But as long as I was waiting for the better technical possibilities, I was loosing the time to continue to work in that interesting field
How to use media technology?
Interactive television, interactive movies, virtual reality.. All these great new worlds are nothing more but extended media with which we can express our ideas and position us in relation to existing arts. The permanent mystification about unknown NEW should be demystified and presented as something which is familiar to an average user. Then it should be given to appropriate institutions, artists and educators to practice their work with new tools. While badly designed and contextually poor computer and video games had conquered the market, contextually better are still in the phase of the research or demos.
Film had from the beginning leaned its aesthetics on the parameters of older established arts. Video and computers with its digital technology are bringing new aesthetics. Computer programs are developed by engineers and software programmers. Artists' influence as designers of the programs such as, for example video special effects, hardly exist. As video equipment and computer systems become cheaper, more artists are using them but their access to the newest and expensive systems is still minimal.
On the other side the massive use of the cheap video equipment and computers lower the awareness of the bad quality of the video/computer programs (games). 'Everybody can be an artist"! Praising for the cleverness of the so called smart kids" is often exaggerated. Parents are buying computers for their children because they think children would learn something important about computers. But actually, in most of the cases the only programs which those children use are computer and/or video games. Thoroughly adequate educational programs are hard to find. And while commercial use of computer/video games is growing, thoroughly conceived programs designed by experts and artists are not available, neither for the home use nor for the use in educational institutions.
Conclusion
We should push our individual strength to change the existing chaos of the media market. Artists should create with a new tools. The most appropriate institutions to influence a change in a media market behaviour should be educational institutions, and thus in all levels of education, from primary schools to the universities. Film language and aesthetic of electronic art should become a part of the regular school curricula in a similar way as it is with visual arts and literature. Practice in the domains of film, video, computer animation, interactive video programs and others alike should be taught at schools and universities as it is creative writing and painting and sculpturing. Theory and practice in education on the subject of electronic arts can not be ignored any more. There is an urgent need to intervene into the contents of the computer/video product on the market. Otherwise we would have the whole generations influenced by the programs in which the only task is to destroy the unknown "Enemy".
There is a last moment to get in control of our own inventions. We must not get fascinated with technological inventions as well as we should not reject it. We must search for the most appropriate way to use it. We must act fast, while it is a dangerous time. We should act before it is too late.