I see both sides of the comment discussion re: comparing the size of the list increases under G.W. Bush and Obama. But the true math error is division by zero, as there was no list when G.W. Bush came into office, and the classification of citizens as terrorists was based on the "us vs. them" mentality, which assumes that Americans will never take up arms against their own country. We only have to look back to the days of the civil war to see that this thesis is false. So the real problem is the assumption behind the lists... which give a false sense of security based on quantity of data collected, neglecting the data quality issues.
I like your example of the standardization of song length to fit the capacity of 78's. Another example would be the determination of CD format to fit the capacity of an old U-Matic tape. That's why I love those old jam session recordings where the players just blow and blow to fill up the side of a 33 rpm "long-playing" vinyl record, because they could! wonder why that didn't happen with CD's? Clearly there is some kind of interesting and perhaps symbiotic relationship between media capacity and content.
I am very happy to see that you put out this book. As an interested laymen I downloaded my copy before even finishing the article. Thanks for making it available!
Has anyone considered the issue of conflict of interest that exists when professors require their own book? Several of the required textbooks that I purchased while an undergraduate were very shoddy and poorly written, but they were nevertheless required by the professor/author. With all the cuts in funding to state education, I can't fault the professors from trying to pad their own income, but it cheapens knowledge acquisition for everyone and bypasses adequate peer review of textbooks. Whatever happened to the awareness of the need for intellectual competition in the marketplace? A conflict of interest caused by a textbook monopoly doesn't help the student or the professor.
I find this discussion fascinating because I have experienced the need to build relationships with fans, but it is a "labor of love." Facebook has been very helpful to me in being able to reach my friends with gig information. I enjoy getting feedback from fans on Facebook and via email.
In the 19th century, "superstars" like Franz Liszt emerged at a time when publishers wanted to sell more sheet music of dead composers, and promoters started to book large halls for performances of "classical" music. Prior to that era, relationships had been what music was all about. So if you attended one of Beethoven's recitals in Vienna, you probably knew the composer personally or knew one of his students.
It seems to me that the Internet is causing us to need to return to that older emphasis on relationships, but the tools are now available to help us reach a larger number of people. I agree with the idea that those who refuse to do this are likely to fade from the music scene, regardless of how well they play. This could end up being a good thing for the local musician for whom building relationships comes naturally. Middle men may still thrive if they understand how to facilitate these digital relationships without demanding total exclusivity for their artists.
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Statistical Math
Re: Content vs connectivity
Cost of Textbooks
Has anyone considered the issue of conflict of interest that exists when professors require their own book? Several of the required textbooks that I purchased while an undergraduate were very shoddy and poorly written, but they were nevertheless required by the professor/author. With all the cuts in funding to state education, I can't fault the professors from trying to pad their own income, but it cheapens knowledge acquisition for everyone and bypasses adequate peer review of textbooks. Whatever happened to the awareness of the need for intellectual competition in the marketplace? A conflict of interest caused by a textbook monopoly doesn't help the student or the professor.
Promotion and relationships
In the 19th century, "superstars" like Franz Liszt emerged at a time when publishers wanted to sell more sheet music of dead composers, and promoters started to book large halls for performances of "classical" music. Prior to that era, relationships had been what music was all about. So if you attended one of Beethoven's recitals in Vienna, you probably knew the composer personally or knew one of his students.
It seems to me that the Internet is causing us to need to return to that older emphasis on relationships, but the tools are now available to help us reach a larger number of people. I agree with the idea that those who refuse to do this are likely to fade from the music scene, regardless of how well they play. This could end up being a good thing for the local musician for whom building relationships comes naturally. Middle men may still thrive if they understand how to facilitate these digital relationships without demanding total exclusivity for their artists.
Techdirt has not posted any stories submitted by Glendon Gross.
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