11/26/2008

Software Takes Command

6 days ago Lev Manovich released his softbook Software Takes Command. He described his book as a software, as it will have its patches in the same way as a new installments requires its bug (big?) -fixes:
One of the advantages of online distribution which I can control is that I don’t have to permanently fix the book’s contents. Like contemporary software and web services, the book can change as often as I like, with new “features” and “big fixes” added periodically. I plan to take advantage of these possibilities. From time to time, I will be adding new material and making changes and corrections to the text. All previous versions will be still available, and I will tell you what I changed. (Don't worry, I promise not to change the book's ideas from versions to versions. Think of the subsequent versions as new software releases with big fixes and new features added.)
I designed a cover and yeay, Mr Manovich uses it now! The starting point of my design was a still from the glitch-based music video Radio Dada. The still has been vectorized and rescaled so I am not sure if i would still call it a 'clean' glitch. But it still stems from a moment that I let Software Take Control, and then me taking back the control afterwards. Check, Download, Read it! Talking about publishing, I was also on Rhizome.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

congratulations ...
P.S. it is interesting that this Style can easy used as design ...
Glitches and bugs are the Chic of the new modern art (it refer to the relation from dada to typography in this Case ... and translate it to the next century ...)
greetings
sakrowski

Rosa Menkman said...

Thanks mr. Sakrowski,
//It is really interesting that glitches and design go so far together. It brings up a lot of questions and doubts in my head, I dont know if I really like it yes or no, I think I am more into the conceptual glitch.. (which might also be designed though, yes?no?//
If it becomes design, it becomes commodified, less shocking and instead normal. And is it still a glitch then? it is all in the eye of the beholder of course.
Ah well. .
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