New Media Reader: Ch. 16-20

Chronology:

• 1968: Douglas Engelbart and William English publish "A Research Center for Augmenting Human Intellect"
• 1970: Les Levine displays his experimental technical art piece at the Jewish Museum and Hans Enzensberger publish "Constituents of a Theory of the Media"
• 1972: Jean Baudrillard publishes "Requiem for the Media" and Raymond Williams publishes "The Technology and the Society"

Summary:

• 1968 Fall Joint Computer Conference occurs in San Francisco with a risky public presentation of new media technologies
  
• The Augmentation Research Center attempts to create technologies that facilitate ease-of-use between user and machine
• ARC developed basic concepts of simple interaction with a digital universe for the layman
• The 1970 exhibition "Software" enabled patrons to freely operate computers in an experimental setting that was completely unique for the time
• Enzensberger envisions a world where everyone is a mobile media mogul and that communities can form around subjects instead of having them dictated by media conglomerates
• Baudrillard expands this idea by saying that refusal of mass accepted forms of dissemination paves the way for technology users to create an equilibrium for society, devoid of producers and consumers
• Winner beleives in the importance of the technology themselves. Within each new piece of important technology, lie the cultural and societal desires that created it. The technology makes itself important simply by existing. It is incorporated into our lives even if it turned off.
• Constant user input and manipulation of new technology makes a better, more usable product. Socialising technology is the future.