LJ Idol Season 9 Week 9 - This Virtual Party Runs All Night
o/` "There's computers in the microwave, computers in the automobile, computers in the phone.
Oh and even my wife who used to tell me to 'get a life'
has got a computer of her own.
I spend so much time saving time I can't find any time to spend ..." o/`
-- "Virtual Party" performed by Petter, Paul, and Mary
When it comes to modern technology, I'm usually one of the last to adopt. If it's technology, I generally wait until nothing I regularly use will run on the old operating system; if it's a social innovation or fad, I may never catch on or catch up. Most of the time, I don't think I really need to do so. The Internet forms a very small part of my world and I'm prone to neglecting it for weeks at at time in favor of what is actually happening all around me.
This is especially the case with memes. When I saw my first meme, I didn't even know what it was and had to look it up --- oh, the irony! --- on the Internet. Per the Urban Dictionary:
Used to give a bit of pseudo-academic gravitas to stupid viral shit.
A 'meme' doesn't have to be funny, provocative or even make sense. Most memes fall into one of three categories:
- 'Quirky' stuff that isn't funny.
- Pathetic stuff that fills you with vicarious despair.
- Revolting pictures that could be presented to some alien jury as evidence that humanity is cancer.
I don't spend a lot of time in the realm of pop culture. The television and DVR have thick coatings of dust on them and my book cases are far more likely to hold a case analysis of serial killers of the 20th century than they are to have Twilight or The Hunger Games. Therefore most of the memes which come across my screen are completely meaningless. I can, on occasion, tell you their original meaning and origin which would most of the time actually classify them as a true meme as defined in cultural studies but I often have no idea of the actor, book, movie, or political antics being mocked.
For instance, the Keep Calm meme originates with the British. During World War II, the Ministry of Information created three morale boosting posters to help keep the public supportive of the war effort. The last, Keep Calm and Carry On, was designed to be released and posted only if Great Britain were invaded by Germany (which they almost were, but that's another history lesson). Most of the posters were destroyed when that didn't happen but a few survived. The poster itself has worth as a work of art --- eye catching colors, large and eloquent font, simple and easily remembered phrasing.
Unfortunately, it collided with the Internet to create stupid. The design, poorly replicated, and part of the phrasing appear everywhere in generators, viral videos, icons, games. It's lost its meaning. I doubt most people were even aware that once it had important historical significance and that it belongs in the category of real human world history not Game of Thrones. I gave up trying to correct those idiosyncracies (emphasis on idiot) long ago. I just wish the damned meme would go away.
Oh and even my wife who used to tell me to 'get a life'
has got a computer of her own.
I spend so much time saving time I can't find any time to spend ..." o/`
-- "Virtual Party" performed by Petter, Paul, and Mary
When it comes to modern technology, I'm usually one of the last to adopt. If it's technology, I generally wait until nothing I regularly use will run on the old operating system; if it's a social innovation or fad, I may never catch on or catch up. Most of the time, I don't think I really need to do so. The Internet forms a very small part of my world and I'm prone to neglecting it for weeks at at time in favor of what is actually happening all around me.
This is especially the case with memes. When I saw my first meme, I didn't even know what it was and had to look it up --- oh, the irony! --- on the Internet. Per the Urban Dictionary:
Used to give a bit of pseudo-academic gravitas to stupid viral shit.
A 'meme' doesn't have to be funny, provocative or even make sense. Most memes fall into one of three categories:
- 'Quirky' stuff that isn't funny.
- Pathetic stuff that fills you with vicarious despair.
- Revolting pictures that could be presented to some alien jury as evidence that humanity is cancer.
I don't spend a lot of time in the realm of pop culture. The television and DVR have thick coatings of dust on them and my book cases are far more likely to hold a case analysis of serial killers of the 20th century than they are to have Twilight or The Hunger Games. Therefore most of the memes which come across my screen are completely meaningless. I can, on occasion, tell you their original meaning and origin which would most of the time actually classify them as a true meme as defined in cultural studies but I often have no idea of the actor, book, movie, or political antics being mocked.
For instance, the Keep Calm meme originates with the British. During World War II, the Ministry of Information created three morale boosting posters to help keep the public supportive of the war effort. The last, Keep Calm and Carry On, was designed to be released and posted only if Great Britain were invaded by Germany (which they almost were, but that's another history lesson). Most of the posters were destroyed when that didn't happen but a few survived. The poster itself has worth as a work of art --- eye catching colors, large and eloquent font, simple and easily remembered phrasing.
Unfortunately, it collided with the Internet to create stupid. The design, poorly replicated, and part of the phrasing appear everywhere in generators, viral videos, icons, games. It's lost its meaning. I doubt most people were even aware that once it had important historical significance and that it belongs in the category of real human world history not Game of Thrones. I gave up trying to correct those idiosyncracies (emphasis on idiot) long ago. I just wish the damned meme would go away.