General course information

for a course that resembles this in some ways, see Howard's University of Michigan Fall 1995 class  (this course will be considerably different, but there will be a significant amount of common curriculum)

NOTE: If you want to get email about the class (which you will need to do if you are taking the class), at the beginning of the term you will need to send an email message to requests@lists.gseis.ucla.edu .  Make sure that the return address for this message is your own personal email account.  In this message you need to put the words "subscribe IS-287 yourname" in either the subject or the body of the message.  (Put your own name in place of yourname.)

Grading

• 45%  final project/presentation (written projects due March 7)
• 25%  Vietnam editing assignment
• 30%  class participation

Tentative Weekly Schedule

Jan 11

Introduction to the course

Digital Delivery Systems

• Multiple Narratives, Editing, and Repurposing
• Assignment #1 and #2:  Re-edit a selection of photos and text from Howard's recent Vietnam trip to create two different narratives: one that involves some research and attempts to be "truthful" and "accurate", and another that could be either "truthful" or fictional.  Each narrative should include at least 45 photographs and several hundred words of text.  You can include text or photographs from other sources, but your primary source for photos should be the one provided by the instructor.

 

 

You should create your narrative as an html file using relative links to the images.  You should not make copies of the images, but instead should make links to those images.  (The images will appear on your pages but will not be located within your workspace.)  Your work on this will need to be done on skipper in the account is287a, and the instructor will give you a password.  (During the first class session you will choose a directory name.  Each time you login, make sure you change directories into your own directory name, or someone else might overwrite your files.)  Late in the first week of classes the Lab will create instructional material and a templet file that should explain the location of the files you need to access, and how to use Dreamweaver to best to avoid copying images (but instead create relative links).

• The narrative involving research (due Feb 1 Feb 8) could be about anything from how rice is grown to a summarization of the photographer's own memory of events photographed.
• The narrative not requiring research is due in 2 3 weeks (Jan 25 Feb 1).

Jan 18

Deconstruction of Social Phenomena
The Internet and changing social structures

How is Digitization Chaning libraries, museums, & archives?

• Before class read at least 3 of the following:
• Besser, Howard. (1998). The Shape of the 21st Century Library, in Milton Wolf et. al. (eds.), Information Imagineering: Meeting at the Interface, Chicago: American Library Association, pages 133-146
• Besser, Howard. (1995). The Information SuperHighway: Social and Cultural Impact Chapter from Resisting the Virtual Life: The Culture and Politics of Information, edited by Jim Brook and Iain Boal, City Lights Books, 1995
•  Besser, Howard. (1994). Fast Forward: The Future of Moving Image Collections, in Gary Handman (ed.), Video Collection Management and Development: A Multi-type Library Perspective, Westport, CT: Greenwood,

pages 411-426
• Besser, Howard. (1994). Movies-on-demand May Significantly Change the Internet appeared in the October 1994 ASIS Bulletin theme issue on Entertainment Technology and Information Services
• Besser, Howard. (1997).  The Transformation of the Museum and the way it's Perceived in Katherine Jones-Garmil (ed.), The Wired Museum: Emerging Technology and Changing Paradigms, Washington: American Association of Museums, pages 115-127
• Besser, Howard. (1997).  The Changing Rol e of Photographic Collections with the Advent of Digitization in Katherine Jones-Garmil (ed.),The Wired Museum: Emerging Technology and Changing Paradigms, Washington: American Association of Museums, pages 153-169


Hegemony example--discourse around the AOL/Time Warner Merger

• AOL-Time Warner Merger Could Steer Internet Down Wrong Road, by Gary Chapman, LA Times, January 17, 2000 (back-up copy)
• AOL / Time Warner, by Phil Agre, Red Rock Eater News, January 17, 2000
• A Look At . . . The AOL Deal;  Mourned: No One Was Supposed To Own the Net,  by Ellen Ullman, Washington Post, January 16, 2000; Page B03


Government involvement in Entertainment

• Prime-time propaganda, by Daniel Forbes, Salon, January 13, 2000
• Networks trade integrity for a few commercials, USA Today Editorial, January 17, 2000, page 14A
• Government and Hollywood, Together Again on One Stage, LA Times, January 23, 2000


Networks showing Images onscreen

• On CBS News, Some of What You See Isn't There, by Alex Kuczynski, NY Times, January 12, 2000, page 1


Questions to think about

• How are libraries/museums/archives different today than when you were a kid?
• How will they be different when your kids are grown?
• How has public attitude changed towards sitll images:
• -since snapshots came on the scene?
• -with the advent of the Web?
• -with digital photography and applications like Photoshop?
• How is public attitude likely to change as creation of moving images becomes commonplace (with digital "home movies", easy-to-use video editing capabilities, etc.)?
• As individuals begin to amass home collections of digital still and moving images, what problems will this pose for repositories that receive these like other collections of personal papers?

Jan 25

Creating, Organizing, and Managing a digital collection of Still or Moving Image material(I):
Issues of Still Image Capture, Display, Resolution, Compression

• Before class read:
• Besser, Howard and Jennifer Trant. (1995). Introduction to Imaging: Issues in Constructing an Image Database,  Santa Monica: Getty Art History Information Program
• Appendix A--Best Practices of the Digitization Standards Document (numbered pages 23-36) by the California Digital Library Architecture & Standards Workgroup (1999)


Hegemony example--Low power (pirate) radio

• A Step for Diversity in Radio, LA Times Editorial, January 21, 2000
• FCC Expected to Adopt Initiative on Low-Power Broadcasting,  LA Times, January 20, 2000


Intellectual Property

• Film Industry Wins Ruling in DVD Suit, LA Times, January 21, 2000
• * Norwegian Teen Becomes Industry's Latest Test Case, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) press release, January 25, 2000  (includes links to lots of interesting [and relatively reliable] analysis of the issues involved in this case)
• DeCSS developer arrested, house raided, computer confiscated, Slashdot, January 24, 2000
• DeCSS Central main page, by lemuria.org
• Background info from Jessica Litman
• Recording Group Sues MP3.Com, LA Times, January 24, 2000
• Rhymes with Orange (comic), SJ Mercury News, January 23, 2000 (you may have to do a free sign-up to access this)
• New business models -- MusicBlitz.com Gives It Up for Marketing, LA Times, January 24, 2000


Misc

• Picture Frame Delivers Photos From Web Site, LA Times, January 24, 2000
• A world of ubiquitous networked information appliances: Reading the Future in His Palm; Builder of Hand-Held Computer Muses on Networked World, LA Times, January 24, 2000

Feb 1

Creating, Organizing, and Managing a digital collection of Still or Moving Image material(II):
Issues of Network Access and Distribution to still image collections

• Before class read:
• 1995 Getty Fact Sheet on Museum Educational Site Licensing Project (MESL)
• The Museum Educational Site Licensing Project: Technical Issues in the Distribution of Museum Images and Textual Data to Universities by Howard Besser and Christie Stephenson  in James Hemsley (ed.) E.V.A. '96 London (Electronic Imaging and the Visual Arts), Thursday 25th July 1996 (vol 2), Hampshire, UK: Vasari Ltd, 1996, pages 5-1 - 5-15 (for those who find this too technical, just skim through the technical parts)
• MESL Implementation at the Universities by Howard Besser, from Christie Stephenson and Patricia McClung (eds.), Delivering Digital Images: Cultural Heritage Resources for Education, volume 1, Los Angeles: Getty Information Institute, 1998, pages 70-84
•  Comparing Five Implementations of the Museum Educational Site Licensing Project: 'If the museum data's the same, why's it look so different?'  by Howard Besser, Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Hypermedia and Interactivity in Museums, (Paris France, 3-5 September 1997), Pittsburgh: Archives and Museum Informatics, pages 317-325
• the Executive Summary (front matter) and conclusion  (Part V) from The Social and Economic Implications of the Production, Distribution, and Useage of Image Data (final report to the Mellon Foundation, 1999)


Discussion of Vietnam assignment

Newspaper articles

• Images in today's LA Times
• Sony's Music Unit Sued Over Customer Steering, NY Times, February 1, 2000
• eToys Drops Lawsuit Against Artist Group, NY Times, January 25, 2000

Feb 8

Multiple Narratives, Editing, and Repurposing: Presentations and Discussion of Vietnam Trip projects

Metadata and Digital Collections of Visual Material

Discussion of final projects
Presentation of Vietnam projects
NOTE:  Directions for turning in your Vietnam image projects:
• You should have created 2 files -- 1 fictional and 1 "accurate"
• Make sure that each of your files has a title that accurately portrays what it is about.
• Make sure that each file states that it was done for this class, and gives the class and instructor name, and links to the class homepage and the instructor homepage.
• If you want your name associated with this file when it goes into a public webspace, be sure to put your name in the file.  If you don't want your name there, do not put your name in the file.
• Give your files filenames something like unique-fiction.html and unique-fact.html, where "unique" is replaced by some unique name (like your login name, your last name, a set of at least 3 initials, etc.  The goal here is to make sure that we have no confusion when your files are put in the same directory with all the other students in the class; we don't want duplicate names.  Also, please note that if you don't want someone a year from now to be able to guess that you wrote these files, you probably shouldn't use your own last name (or even login name).
• If either of the pieces you do consists of more than a single file (which is fine to do, but most people won't do this), make sure that when the files refer to each other, they use relative (not absolute) links.  And when you send in your filenames (see below), make sure you send in all the filenames.
• Send a single email message to Snowden telling her for each of your 2 files:
• the name of the file
• the title of the file contents
• a one-sentence (or short phrase) description of what you tried to portray in this file
• Whether you intend to work more on one or both of the files (and if you do, say when you thing you'll absolutely be finished).  [When you're completely finished with any editing, Snowden will move your files to another directory where they will sit for the future.]
• Events to Check out:
• Design Department Lecture series (Monday evenings plus other events)
• net.net.net lecture series at MOCA--tomorrow (2/9, 8PM) Geert Lovink will be interviewed by Sara Diamond and DeeDee Halleck about digital aesthetics, art and activism, the revenge of Marxism on the Internet, the collapse of the illusion of Democracy on the Internet (as witnessed by the recent merger of AOL with TimeWarner) and other pressing issues.
• Misc
• Ad Firm's Practice Seen as Threat to Net Anonymity;  Privacy: Use of consumers' names and addresses for tracking 'is happening invisibly to most,' expert warns, LA Times, February 3, 2000
• Patent Office Now at Heart of Gene Debate, LA Times, February 7, 2000
• Kodak, HP to Team on Digital-Photo Printing 'Labs', LA Times, February 4, 2000
• Music Firms Invest in Web Download Site, LA Times, February 7, 2000
• Software Makers Aim to Dilute Consumer Rights, front page of LA Times, February 4, 2000
• Reality and Voyeurism Heading to Summer TV, LA Times, February 4, 2000
• Hollywood Embraces High-Tech Alienation, LA Times, February 7, 2000
• More on DVDs
• If You Can't Protect What's Yours, You Own Nothing, by Jack Valenti, LA Times Opinion piece, Sunday, January 30, 2000
• Hackers Are the Real Victims--of Industry Greed, commentary by Erann Gat, JPL, in response to Jack Valenti's Opinion piece, February 7, 2000
• Breaking DVD Encryption, Two LA Times Letters to Editor in response to Valenti Opinion piece, Thursday February 3, 2000
• Threat of 'Piracy' Software Overblown, LA Times Letters to Editor in response to Valenti Opinion piece, February 6, 2000
• Before class skim:
• the Making of America II White Paper
• National Standards Organization Invitational Meeting on Technical Metadata Elements for Image Files
• Howard's meeting presentation
• Howard's summary of meeting results

Feb 15

Creating, Organizing, and Managing a digital collection of Still or Moving Image material(III):

Content-Based Image Retrieval
Streaming Media, Moving Image Compression, and general issues specific to moving image material

Assignments due:
• a title and one-paragraph summary of your final project which you should email to Snowden and you will share orally with the class
• look closely at at least 2 other student Vietnam projects, and be prepare to discuss your observations with the class

• Finalize discussion of still images
• Discussion of Introduction to Imaging book
• Discussion of student Vietnam projects: how do the text and images relate to one another?
• Will the text tell the same story without the images (and vice-versa)?  Try looking at one channel without the other (Henri Langlois technique).
• Does the text openly acknowledge that the image related to it exists, (disrupting the narrative flow and calling attention to the apparatus)?  Or does it just use the image as an unacknowledged support mechanism?  Is there a parallel between this and diagetic sound in cinema?
• Is "new meaning" created out of the juxtaposition of image and text (meaning beyond what is in just the text or just the image)?
• look at: Image Is Everything With Low-Cost Digital Cameras, LA Times, February 10, 2000
• Before class look at:
• Howard's Sunsite links to Content-based Image Retrieval Systems
• Moving image links for this class
• Newspaper Articles
• `It's a wake-up call'; High stakes: The third straight day of cyberattacks puts confidence in the Internet to the test, San Jose Mercury News, February 10, 2000
• Leonardo Arts Magazine raided and sued because it is retrieved by Web searches looking for Leonardo Finance, February 10, 2000 press release
• Ruling Could Boost Copying of Computer Products; Appeals court allows Sony's rival to market PC program that emulates electronics giant's PlayStation, LA Times, February 11, 2000
• 'Big Brother's' Watchers See Everything but Privacy; Television: A 'reality' program coming to the U.S. raises concerns about exploitation and obsession with fame, LA Times, February 11, 2000
• Television, as You Like It ; Today's gadgetry is smart enough to let viewers choose camera angles, or kick back and rewind as the action unfolds live. Watch it, and it watches back, LA Times, February 13, 2000
• Women: As They Roar . . . or Choose Richer Over Poorer; Fox special 'Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?' puts crass twist on modern romance, LA Times, February 15, 2000


AMIA scholarships announcement posted outside the Lab

Feb 22

Creating, Organizing, and Managing a digital collection of Still or Moving Image material(IV):
Indexing approaches specific to moving image material

Other issues specific to moving image material

• Before class look at:
• Howard's Sunsite links to Content-based Image Retrieval Systems
• Bibliography ofMoving image indexing
• Moving image links for this class
• Commercial distribution of Moving Images
• Internet Movie Firm Shifts Focus to LA, LA Times, January 25, 2000
• SUNDANCE FESTIVAL: The "dot-com" phenomenon has hit the Utah film event in a big way, LA Times, January 25, 2000
• Video-on-Demand
• Intertainer to Get Backing From Microsoft, LA Times, January 24, 2000
• Other Newspaper Articles
• Search Engine Images Attract Copyright Suit, LA Times, February 21, 2000 (photographer sues search engine over images on Web)
• Until ArtistDirect Finds Own Beat, Online Music Vision Is Still Far Off, LA Times, February 21, 2000
• More on trying to keep "Pirate" radio illegal: Small Voices vs. Big Dollars,  LA Times, February 16, 2000
• Online work raises privacy issues, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, February 13, 2000
• Health information privacy issues:  report released by California Healthcare Foundation entitled: Personal Information Shared on Health Web Sites Vulnerable, February, 2000
• Millionaire Groom's Dirty Secrets, The Smoking Gun, February 2000 (thanks to Lori Rosen)
• Media vs. Web in digital copyright war, USA Today page 1 story, February 17, 2000 (and Chuck Hamaker's same-day response)

Feb 29

Digital Longevity Issues

• Before class read:
• Lyman, Peter and Howard Besser (1998). Defining the Problem of our Vanishing Memory: Background, Current Status, Models for Resoltuion, in Margaret MacLean and Ben H. Davis (eds.) Time and Bits: Managing Digital Continuity (website | book), Los Angeles: Getty Conservation Institute, 1999
• Howard's latest article on digital longevity
• review Howard's Longevity website
• Newspaper Articles
• WTO Says U.S. Tax Law Skirts Global Rules, LA Times, February 24, 2000
• File-Sharing PC Software Shakes Up Music World, LA Times, February 24, 2000
• Top Medical Journal Admits 19 Lapses of Ethics Policy, LA Times, February 24, 2000
• A Major Academic Look at How Show Business Affects Real Life, LA Times, February 23, 2000
• Fake paintings are deemed genuine because of provenance documentation, CBS 60 Minutes report, February 27, 2000
• CMGI Sees Gold in Assembling Data Jigsaw, LA Times, February 28, 2000
• Producers Find Film's Music on the Web, LA Times, February 28, 2000
• Efforts Urging Responsibility on Net Call for a Pause to Reflect, Teach, LA Times, February 28, 2000 (story about People for Internet Responsibility)
• Experts Fret Over Effect of Gene Patents on Research, LA Times, February 28, 2000
• Important Privacy revelations--Echelon
• Europe Angered by Allegations of U.S. Spying, LA Times, February 24, 2000
• CBS 60 Minutes report, February 27, 2000
• ACLU's Echelonwatch website


Discuss next term's 208 class
 

Mar 7

Issues of Multimedia portability, access, and preservation: a case study of the Electronic Café International; Special Guests Kit Galloway and Sherrie Rabinowitz

Final Projects (html versions) due today
 
• Before class look over:
• Electronic Café International website
• UCLA/Electronic Café project
• Spring 1999 UCLA/Berkeley course on preservation of various art forms
• Newspaper articles
• Archiving the Internet: Some See Noble Experiment, Others Fear Excess of Trivia, Los Angeles Times, March 6, 2000
• A Collection Gets Shelved; Cost-cutting closed the Universal Studios Research Library, Los Angeles Times, March 5, 2000
• Video Technology to Make the Head Spin, NY Times, March 2, 2000
• Hollywood embraces the Net; After uphill battle, tech and Tinseltown find common ground, USA Today, March 3, 2000
• Hello FMD-ROM -- Bye-Bye DVD? Byte.com, Feb 18, 2000
• Hey, Don't Touch the Wall! It's a LeWitt, NY Times, March 2, 2000

Mar 14

Final Project Presentations

To see ongoing activities and course taught by this instructor click here.  To send email to the entire class, write to IS-287@lists.gseis.ucla.edu .