Making sense of the visual – is Google the seventh language?
Robert K. Logan
In his 2005 Semiotica article, Logan explores the notion that Google might be the seventh language , Through discussion of technology and its communicative effects, Logan takes the reader through an evolutionary chain of language, in which the Internet subsequently became recognised as the sixth language; it is from this understanding that Logan concludes Google should be recognised as the seventh language.
I find it difficult to imagine a life without the internet, indeed it has become a necessity for many. Logan discusses the discovery of speech for our predecessors, which was born out of the need to communicate more effectively as lives became increasingly more complex. Without speech the ability to control fire, live communally and share food became ever more difficult, therefore humanity’s first words came to be. Can we liken our own world to early man’s? The notion of a ‘shrinking world’ (Allen and Hamnet: Oxford University Press) struck me whilst reading Logan’s article. While technology has allowed us to travel and communicate more easily with one another it has further increased our reliance on the internet. Had I moved some 2800 miles away from home ten years ago, my overall experience would have been significantly different to the one I am having now. I am able to speak to my family and friends via email, Facebook and Skype, even though I am not particularly dexterous. The prevalence of the internet in our lives has given even those lacking computer skills the ability to navigate the internet easily.
It would appear that Logan’s article brings us full circle, as once again we are reminded that “the medium is the message.” From start to finish, this course has wrestled with McLuthanesque theories, trying to place them within our own perceptions of the internet and what it offers. Logan’s article offers further insight into the way the internet has evolved, yet I feel the article lacks substance and I am left feeling somewhat confused by the claim that Google is the seventh language; I am left wanting more to substantiate the claim.
Project Gutenberg and the Million Book Project should not be likened to Google, as they offer only one thing, the ability to reproduce texts, whereas Google has many capabilities and is first and foremost a search engine. I was puzzled by Logan’s claim that Google has become the seventh language – how so? Logan inadequately explains his prediction and further confuses the reader by likening Google to dissimilar enterprises. Google is fast becoming a rival of Microsoft’s. The shift from Microsoft’s Hotmail, to the superior Gmail has occurred over the last couple of years with many preferring Google’s alternative over Microsoft. Furthermore, I would like to suggest that Google has become synonymous with the internet itself. Everybody is familiar with the word Google, even if they aren’t aware of its capabilities.
While I agree that one day “all the books ever printed will be accessible to Google (or its successor)” (page 350) I think Logan should go further and question the future of music and film on the internet – a true return to oral communication. If every book becomes accessible for free, will music and film be as readily available free of restraints? “Publish or perish.”
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Colour as a semiotic mode: notes for a grammar of colour
Gunther Kress and Theo Van Leeuwen
Hamish and Vanessa Dows are chiropodists. They remove warts, veruccas, corns and calluses for a living; these people are odd.No wonder they’ve decorated their home a myriad of colours; they’ve done so in order to escape from their hellish work lives. Perhaps I’ve been unkind, but seriously, feet creep me out. Are our homes and the way we decorate them an apt representation of our personalities? Is a house number plate with feet on it an expression of personality? If so, I think Hamish and Vanessa Dows are morons.
I found Kress and Van Leeuwen’s article troublesome. I fully understood the concepts discussed and, while I found their definitions a little tedious, I found the examples used to support the “grammar of colour” theory wholly unsuitable. Throughout the article, Kress and Van Leeuwen allude to “section 5,” wherein they will discuss “home decoration: colour, character and fashion.” Section 5 left me feeling uninspired. Is the way two wacky chiropodists choose to decorate their home an effective illustration of “colour semiosis”? (p. 359) Kress and Van Leeuwen ask whether colour is a mode of communication in its own right (p. 345), and while I agree, the way in which Kress and Van Leeuwen attempt to illustrate how colour can be recognised as a mode communication is unsuitable.
While I covet nice things and wonder whether one day I will be capable of keep a refrigerator well stocked (like those on MTV’s Cribs) I am simply void of imagination when it comes to decoration and colour schemes. Last year whilst I was living in a student house with several friends, the landlord said I could paint the garish red bedroom if I wanted to ; I hastily accepted. It felt like sleeping within a nose bleed if only for a few nights, though it could have been worse my friend’s bedroom was lime green and lilac (surely an illustration of “differentiation,” whereas my red bedroom was perhaps an example of “purity” p. 356-7.) Nevertheless when the landlord offered to buy us paint, I chose an off-white colour. Reaction to the brash red that covered every inch of the four-walls? Perhaps. The painting of the room took place one Saturday afternoon as we drank beer and listened to the radio, each cleansing brush stroke bringing about more happiness. I would sooner exist in a “timid” home, as Hamish Dows puts it, and create my own colour from my experiences. The blue of my friends’ eyes, the whites of their teeth, the green dress, the red wine…
I don’t dispute that colour is a fun expression of personality however, I do object to the assumption that those who shy away from differentiation, and avoid using a wide spectrum of colours, are void of “adventure.” (House Beautiful, September 1998:21 - p. 359) Similarly, when visiting websites I am often deterred by excessive use of colour, as I feel it looks juvenile and disorganized. I much prefer simplicity and consistency. For example, clothing websites often use light coloured backgrounds and allow the clothes to become the colour. While I am under no illusions that colour usage plays a significant role on the internet, the way in which Kress and Van Leeuwen chose to illustrate the “grammar of colour” theory is unhelpful.
Gunther Kress and Theo Van Leeuwen
Hamish and Vanessa Dows are chiropodists. They remove warts, veruccas, corns and calluses for a living; these people are odd.No wonder they’ve decorated their home a myriad of colours; they’ve done so in order to escape from their hellish work lives. Perhaps I’ve been unkind, but seriously, feet creep me out. Are our homes and the way we decorate them an apt representation of our personalities? Is a house number plate with feet on it an expression of personality? If so, I think Hamish and Vanessa Dows are morons.
I found Kress and Van Leeuwen’s article troublesome. I fully understood the concepts discussed and, while I found their definitions a little tedious, I found the examples used to support the “grammar of colour” theory wholly unsuitable. Throughout the article, Kress and Van Leeuwen allude to “section 5,” wherein they will discuss “home decoration: colour, character and fashion.” Section 5 left me feeling uninspired. Is the way two wacky chiropodists choose to decorate their home an effective illustration of “colour semiosis”? (p. 359) Kress and Van Leeuwen ask whether colour is a mode of communication in its own right (p. 345), and while I agree, the way in which Kress and Van Leeuwen attempt to illustrate how colour can be recognised as a mode communication is unsuitable.
While I covet nice things and wonder whether one day I will be capable of keep a refrigerator well stocked (like those on MTV’s Cribs) I am simply void of imagination when it comes to decoration and colour schemes. Last year whilst I was living in a student house with several friends, the landlord said I could paint the garish red bedroom if I wanted to ; I hastily accepted. It felt like sleeping within a nose bleed if only for a few nights, though it could have been worse my friend’s bedroom was lime green and lilac (surely an illustration of “differentiation,” whereas my red bedroom was perhaps an example of “purity” p. 356-7.) Nevertheless when the landlord offered to buy us paint, I chose an off-white colour. Reaction to the brash red that covered every inch of the four-walls? Perhaps. The painting of the room took place one Saturday afternoon as we drank beer and listened to the radio, each cleansing brush stroke bringing about more happiness. I would sooner exist in a “timid” home, as Hamish Dows puts it, and create my own colour from my experiences. The blue of my friends’ eyes, the whites of their teeth, the green dress, the red wine…
I don’t dispute that colour is a fun expression of personality however, I do object to the assumption that those who shy away from differentiation, and avoid using a wide spectrum of colours, are void of “adventure.” (House Beautiful, September 1998:21 - p. 359) Similarly, when visiting websites I am often deterred by excessive use of colour, as I feel it looks juvenile and disorganized. I much prefer simplicity and consistency. For example, clothing websites often use light coloured backgrounds and allow the clothes to become the colour. While I am under no illusions that colour usage plays a significant role on the internet, the way in which Kress and Van Leeuwen chose to illustrate the “grammar of colour” theory is unhelpful.
The Rhetoric of Typography: Effects on Reading Time, Reading Comprehension, and Perceptions of Ethos - Eva Brumberger
Brumberger argues that typography has been overlooked, and thus? does not play a significant enough role in the discussion of visual rhetoric. Furthermore, the argument predicts typeface has the ability to shape readers’ interaction with a document.
Typography is the art and technique of arranging type and type design. In traditional typography, text is composed to create a readable, coherent, and visually satisfying whole that works invisibly, without the awareness of the reader. Brumberger’s article explains that distractions and anomalies will increase the likelihood of confusion; the key is clarity and transparency. Credibility is removed if the writer, designer or organization ‘mismatches’ typeface, thereby “alienating readers.” (16)
Brumberger makes effective use of other critics’ work, and this helps to create a well constructed argument, (though I did feel somewhat overwhelmed by the extensive use of parentheses’ – visual pun intended!). I found Brumberger’s discussion of “typeface persona” particularly relevant. The notion of “appropriateness” (17) in typeface is something I think many websites succeed at, but where others fail, the mistakes are glaringly obvious. One can understand why an eighteenth century historic website would be inclined to use a font type reminiscent of the time period to make it appear more authentic, it would simply create an unreadable text.
Text set in lower case is more legible than text set all in upper case, presumably because lower case letter structures and word shapes are more distinctive. Additionally, contrast is important. Black is easier to read on a white/light coloured background, far easier to read than negative or reversed images, e.g. white on black. The use of italics is less easy to read, versus standard upright type; these conventions are important as they create a more readily? understandable text.
I am reminded of a scene from the film ‘American Psycho,’ (based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis) in which an unhinged Patrick Bateman becomes enraged by the business card of a colleague. He and several workmates share business cards as if bragging about conquests, their attitudes pompous and judgemental. A man disliked intensely by Patrick shows off his business card, and he becomes visibly sickened with jealousy. What is so bizarre about the whole yuppie mentality of the men is that the cards look almost identical. All are set on white, cream, ivory, even bone coloured card, and the font types are all strikingly similar, yet the men see tackiness in some and supreme elegance in others. The whole scene is absurd and personifies yuppie culture, but effectively illustrates the importance of typography and the very nuances that determine success or failure.
Brumberger argues that typography has been overlooked, and thus? does not play a significant enough role in the discussion of visual rhetoric. Furthermore, the argument predicts typeface has the ability to shape readers’ interaction with a document.
Typography is the art and technique of arranging type and type design. In traditional typography, text is composed to create a readable, coherent, and visually satisfying whole that works invisibly, without the awareness of the reader. Brumberger’s article explains that distractions and anomalies will increase the likelihood of confusion; the key is clarity and transparency. Credibility is removed if the writer, designer or organization ‘mismatches’ typeface, thereby “alienating readers.” (16)
Brumberger makes effective use of other critics’ work, and this helps to create a well constructed argument, (though I did feel somewhat overwhelmed by the extensive use of parentheses’ – visual pun intended!). I found Brumberger’s discussion of “typeface persona” particularly relevant. The notion of “appropriateness” (17) in typeface is something I think many websites succeed at, but where others fail, the mistakes are glaringly obvious. One can understand why an eighteenth century historic website would be inclined to use a font type reminiscent of the time period to make it appear more authentic, it would simply create an unreadable text.
Text set in lower case is more legible than text set all in upper case, presumably because lower case letter structures and word shapes are more distinctive. Additionally, contrast is important. Black is easier to read on a white/light coloured background, far easier to read than negative or reversed images, e.g. white on black. The use of italics is less easy to read, versus standard upright type; these conventions are important as they create a more readily? understandable text.
I am reminded of a scene from the film ‘American Psycho,’ (based on the novel by Bret Easton Ellis) in which an unhinged Patrick Bateman becomes enraged by the business card of a colleague. He and several workmates share business cards as if bragging about conquests, their attitudes pompous and judgemental. A man disliked intensely by Patrick shows off his business card, and he becomes visibly sickened with jealousy. What is so bizarre about the whole yuppie mentality of the men is that the cards look almost identical. All are set on white, cream, ivory, even bone coloured card, and the font types are all strikingly similar, yet the men see tackiness in some and supreme elegance in others. The whole scene is absurd and personifies yuppie culture, but effectively illustrates the importance of typography and the very nuances that determine success or failure.
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