The following is a post I recently wrote for our staff newsletter thingamajig. It isn’t supposed to be ultra-techy but just introduce some emerging technologies to people that aren’t regularly exposed to such things.

When I was growing up in the 1980’s I was a fan of a lot of the same things as any South Florida guy: the Miami Dolphins, baseball, “The A-Team,” and Terri Nunn from the music group Berlin. On the other hand, if I had an idol, someone I wanted to be when I grew up, it would have been “Case” from William Gibson’s 1984 classic Neuromancer.

I have been thinking about Neuromancer lately because I have been reflecting on how we’re suddenly living in this pseudo-amalgamation of Neuromancer, Snow Crash, and Accelerando. Most of us would agree that technology is growing exponentially. In other words, not only is technology accelerating but the acceleration is accelerating.

How often have you heard someone say, “I can’t keep up with it all?” Well, you know what? That’s okay. I can’t keep up with it either and I don’t think I’ve gone a day without being on the Internet since 1994. As I see it, the art is not to know everything, but to know the right things. As we speed toward technological singularity, the art of information is not always about how much you know, but rather how good are you at filtering out what you don’t need to know?

In some senses, we’re all a little bit more like Gibson’s Henry Dorsett Case navigating the virtual reality “cyberspace” of Neuromancer than we realize.

With that said, here are some trends I’ve come across over the past year accompanied with some thoughts of mine that are opinion and not meant to be taken as gospel:

• The iPad – Yes, it is basically an oversized iPod Touch. For some reason it uses the antiquated 4X3 aspect ratio instead of widescreen. But, could you imagine being in college, storing all of your textbooks in it, searching all of those textbooks in seconds, recording audio of your professor’s lectures, linking up related internet articles, and even taking class notes in it? All in one place? It’s just one example of many possible revolutions this could precipitate. Not so fast, though: many other companies are developing tablet style computers that operate similarly to the iPad, so Apple doesn’t have nearly the same head start they had with the iPhone. In addition, the other companies will probably feature a more open operating system. Apple’s closed system of applications could come back to haunt them here.
• Instapaper – How often have you seen an interesting article on the Internet but wanted to save it to read later? This free site allows you to click a bookmark to save any web page to read later, from any computer connected to the Internet. Wait, did I say computer? I should have also said the iPhone, Kindle, Nook, and other readers. Instapaper is so big it is already becoming a verb as in, “If you see me in line at the grocery store reading about the Prometheus tree, it’s because I instapapered it.”
• Tumblr/Posterous – These are a little bit like Twitter, Facebook, and blogging all rolled into one. You can follow people like Twitter, but you can also post videos and pictures directly on your personal feed for your friends to see. You can also write full-fledged blog posts right in the stream as well.
• QR Codes – Credit goes to @librariantom for introducing me to this one. A QR code is a funny square barcode that many mobile phones can read. How is this useful? They operate like real-world hyperlinks. Imagine a library book tagged with a QR code. Scan it with your smartphone and you could immediately see other books by that author in our system, their availability, or their Goodreads.com page. What if I come up with my own QR code and post it at my office entrance? It could link to my current schedule or calendar so you know where I am if I’m not there.
• Barcode Readers on Phones – This directly relates to QR codes, but it can go even deeper. With the county’s fitness program in full swing, did you know you can watch your weight with your phone? Scan the barcode on the food box or wrapper and Daily Burn’s “Food Scanner” can automatically add the calories up for you. Want to comparison shop? Scan an item in stores with the “RedLaser” app and your phone looks up the competitors’ pricing.
• eBooks, Piracy, and DRM – Currently, anyone that can use Google can find easy ways to un-protect eBooks with DRM protection. This includes Kindle, Nook, and the Adobe Epub DRM that our Overdrive Digital Library uses. What does this mean? If someone wanted to, they could give their friends copies of eBooks they bought or even check out an eBook from our Digital Library, duplicate it and keep it forever. On the other hand, sales of eBooks have increased at some publishers that dropped all DRM protection. Apple’s iTunes store had this issue a while ago and guess what happened! They eventually dropped all DRM protection. The problem with DRM has always been this: it punishes those who get things legally and rewards those that get it illegally (if you download an eBook illegally, you’re getting it DRM-free). That’s not really a strategy that makes sense to me.
• Dropbox – There are several of these kinds of backup/file synchronization apps, but none of them seem as fluid and seamless as Dropbox. Imagine having a “Dropbox” folder on every computer you use. The small Dropbox app keeps that folder synchronized across every computer you use. You get 2 gigs of storage completely free.
• Google Buzz – This is a late update that has emerged just since I wrote the original version of this article. What is it? It’s one of those things that is easier to understand if you just use it. Imagine a central location that automatically aggregates much of your online activity. It is a bit like Twitter except it allows images, blogs, videos and other online sites to automatically publish information to your “Buzz” stream. In a sense it is actually most similar to Tumblr or Posterous, except it allows external sites to automatically publish to your stream more easily. There have been serious privacy issues with Buzz thus far but Google is already modifying how Buzz works based on these concerns.

There are a few things that I’ve been watching lately. There are things closer to that bleeding edge, but that’ll be for a later date.

Incidentally, I should mention I originally planned this article to be more conceptual, and about the possible responsibilities of a library in a world where technology is accelerating with such speed, but I realized quickly that our staff newsletter wasn’t really the medium. At some point I may revisit that conceptual analysis of the singularity and libraries.

I think the next article will probably be about some of the tools you can use to get more out of Twitter. Many people already use them, but it might be a good starting point for some. I’ve also been brainstorming some ideas about possible future uses of Twitter, maybe even some bleeding edge theoretical stuff. (Hint: I don’t know if Twitter will exist in its current form in 10 years. I *do* think we’re on a collision course for data interaction like what Charles Stross fictionalizes in Accelerando. Keep in mind, I stress *in its current form*. Something will certainly exist that will be some sort of evolution of RSS/Twitter/Facebook/Friendfeed/etc. where everything continues to meld together into one stream. With the addition of social aspects, Google Reader is certainly walking down that path.)

I also may write more about the Drupal development. There is a lot of info on Drupal online (for anyone interested), and even a lot of library specific stuff. But a sort of “case study” may help some, especially since we’re doing this as a one-person job (me!) and it is a conversion of a massive behemoth of a site with somewhere around a thousand static HTML pages.

In the meantime, enjoy some music that keeps me going when working on regular expression queries for four hours in a row.

http://www.lala.com/external/flash/SingleSongWidget.swf

I’ve been using this blip.fm service lately.  It’s a little like a cross between twitter and internet radio but it becomes increasingly addictive as you make more friends and everything starts integrating.  Highly suggested! Become one of my listeners here. (Which is the same thing as “following” in Twitterspeak or “friending” in other social services.)

I actually play some rare stuff that I no longer even own, but that exist someplace in the internet ether.

Oh, and follow me on twitter here.

While we very much hope no one comes, if some should endeavor to show up we hope you will keep these things in mind:

• The party will feature none of the bands on the flyer. If some should show up, we will not be held responsible.
• We don’t know exactly when this event will start but it will likely be a rolling party that will peak between 9 and 11pm. Some will arrive early, some will arrive late. If you are an “early” arriver, we would suggest around 7pm. If you wish to be fashionably late, we suggest around 9pm.
• Parking is available but not in overabundance. Arrive by carpool, or, if possible, parachute.
• While some alcohol will be provided, the amount per person will depend on how many people show up. If possible, encourage your friends to stay home so there is more to drink for everyone else. Failing that, bring something you like to drink to supplement the officially-sanctioned provisions.
• Likewise, some food will be provided but you may want to eat something before coming because we don’t know how long it will last. Some of our friends are big fans of free food and we support them in this tendency.
• Dress-code will be what we call “island casual”.  In essence, this means you should preferably be dressed in at least a shirt and shorts. If you can only wear one of the aforementioned, we would prefer shorts.
• The party will likely be primarily outdoors in a covered area. It could be somewhat chilly. Or at least what Floridians and Trinis call chilly. Which means, not very.
• If you choose to bring a gift, which we do not encourage, do not bring dishes. In fact, we may force people to take dishes with them when they leave.

If you want a google map to the location, click here.

If you prefer old-fashioned directions given to you from a human:

(For some reason I originally posted the correct turn was the 3rd stop sign – it should have read the 2nd one. The street is 17th Ave N.)

1. Take I-95 to 10th ave. N exit and go east (toward the ocean!).
2. Turn left at A Street which is the first light after the I-95 area.
3. Turn left at the 2nd stop sign. (at 17th Ave. N.)
4. Pass under the I-95 overpass and the location is the northwest corner of the first intersection: 1818 17th ave. N.

Perhaps I’ll be able to post more now!

I’m probably going to take the plunge and start using it occasionally ..

Working 40 or more hours a week is a chunk of time, but on top of that I’m trying to work toward an MFA in Creative Writing (and have a loong way to go) so only time will tell if I get a chance to put anything together musically and/or website related.

I have been listening to a lot of music lately, but the dancier stuff still often leaves me flat.  Much of what I’m enjoying is fairly commercial in nature, but still quite good.  Rediscovering Portishead a bit with their new upcoming third album soon, which I have heard, and perhaps I’ll post about it soon.  Also listening to a lot of Marsmobil who I think are fantastic.  And, as always, much Ulrich Schnauss.

Until next time.. ..  ..

Perhaps at some point.  Or at no point.  Or at a continuum of points.

Or perhaps a combination of the three.

But I’m still here.

-kd