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July 28, 2002

When all you have is a hammer, every problem is a nail

You know, I don't know whether to consider this article a Good Thing (ie, recognition of digital djs and legitimate use of MP3 tech) or horribly insulting to my knowledge that djing is more than just being able to fade between songs on a playlist. Especially after witnessing 4+4=M the other night at whatissound.

The article raises some good points about use of new technology versus established practices, and some of the controversy regarding digital music in general, but parts of the article remind me of when I hear people say programs like Dreamweaver can make any schlub a webmaster. Or that desktop publishing software can make anyone a graphic designer. Photoshop and a digital camera makes you into Ansel Adams. Painter means that anyone can be a fine artist.

Bullshit.

The still-evolving tools which allow the computer to help us with "analog" tasks can certainly take away the emphasis on some of the "tedious" portions of the task - just like CAD/CAM software removes an architect's need to mess with t-squares and a drafting table. However, the true skill and artistry is not in those simplistic manipulations. Rather, it's in having a deep knowledge of theory, the actual medium, and how to properly utilize those tools - whether it's proper understanding of information architecture, layout and design, or music theory - to generate a desired result.

A better hammer does not a carpenter make.

Posted by jim at 01:07 PM | Comments (0)

July 21, 2002

I'd like more spam like this

I received the strangest spam earlier this week. The address it came from is invalid - generates a bounce. But... I liked it. I wouldn't mind receiving more unexpected messages like this one, not at all...

From: beauty@lebaron.com
Date: Wed Jul 17, 2002 03:43:28 PM US/Pacific
Subject: BEAUTY & ART

Dear friends of my art,

Beauty and art will always enrich our lives.
They give us the power to survive in the madness of the millennium's too-fast pace.
Beauty gifts us having a sense in everyone's existence.
Art can transform every beautiful moment into a new vision of the future.

Posted by jim at 09:25 PM | Comments (0)