This is an unusual age different than any other in human history, mostly because of computers, the internet and the ability to communicate long distances in a flash. In past times it was a big deal for people to travel thirty miles down the road to visit relatives for Christmas. And before telephones no one could even call each other to say when they were coming to visit. People nowadays are completely used to the easy information we have access to and our ability to communicate across the world via computers. Almost anyone can be a writer these days because of the internet. You can make a personal website in a flash and start book publish online.
I know a guy who has been publishing online for years by maintaining a simple website which he programs in HTML. It’s a form of daily journal. He makes dated entries that contain both pictures and text about specific experiences in his life. He is a photographer and has been using a digital camera for about ten years now. It’s a pretty amazing thing the way individuals can become internet artists and writers so easily these days.
The guy I mentioned just celebrated his eleventh anniversary of publishing online. He started the visual journal on a whim but then found out it was a really good medium for his feelings so he continued on. When I was studying performing arts I started thinking about how if every individual had to give a performance how the performances would vary. It’s kind of interesting to think about web journals in the same way. Everyone’s day is filled with unique experiences and sequences of images. If each person had a journal of one moment from their day with text and images it would be pretty interesting to see how each individual would do it differently. In some ways I would prefer to live in the past where people were sequestered away in their individual lives. But then that was also very limiting. I know that I am fortunate to exist now when the world feels much smaller because of computers and the internet.
