English 680V: Visual Rhetoric in a Technological Age (Purdue)

Here's a terrific set of prototype logos for the Chameleon Federation, which is a project on digital publishing that networks a growing number of universities around the world. Sponsored by Hewlett-Packard, the group shares ideas and resources on a wide range of subjects, such as variable data printing, print on demand, document tagging, pre- and post-PDF production, imaging, and more. Purdue is a founding member. We're in the process of choosing a logo.

This image is part of a post I made titled "Getting to Know Elena."

For fun and experimentation, see you can make an ebook in one hour. Follow these steps to make a PDF ebook with all the right components.

1. Get your content. To to Project Gutenberg, pick out a book, then download or copy and paste the book body (including frontmatter). It's best to create a .txt version, for easy of import at the next step.

http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/

2. Download the attachments to this post. There are templates for Adobe InDesign files (cover and interior) and two PDF files that show what the template looks like as a PDF file.

Here's a good article on Second Life for y'all:

January 25, 2007
Second life
Double the pleasure, double the fun? Second Life is changing how people interact online.
Story and photos by Jim Walker, Illustration by Amanda Goehelrt

http://www.intakeweekly.com/articles/8/026252-4708-160.html

Here's another fun YouTube video called "Introducing the Book." Nice presentation of the challenges of usability!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFAWR6hzZek

A social experiment. By Mark Pepper, PI.

This could be something to aim for with your projects . . .

1st Global Conference
Visual Literacies: Exploring Critical Issues

Tuesday 3rd July - Thursday 5th July 2007
Mansfield College, Oxford

Call for Papers
This inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary conference seeks to
examine and explore issues surrounding visual literacy

Addendum: Read the story behind this video at Inside Higher Ed: A Lesson in Viral Video

I watched an excellent video this morning by Michael Wesch, a professor of anthropology at the University of Kansas. It's a great example of a good and (perhaps) manageable multimedia project.

Web 2.0 . . . The Machine is Us/ing Us

"Rhetorics" sneaks in, which I was glad to see. What does the VR squad think?

You might have already heard about this astounding new development!

NPR's "The Elements of Style Goes Beyond Words"
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4985137

In addition to illustrations, there's even a musical adaptation.