[Nettime-nl] Nederlandse software in dienst van New Yorkse protesten (fwd)

[Patrice Riemens <patrice@xs4all.nl>]

Sorry mensen, dit is in het Engels... 

... Maar de Waag is er trots op dat een door hen ontwikkelde software een
partijtje meeblaast in de New Yorkse protesten tegen het Bush regime.

Een laptop met Keyworx erop stuurt een op een vrachtwagen gemonteerde
beamer aan die anti-Bush propaganda op muren projecteert.

http://www.keyworx.org

-------------
From: Eric Redlinger <eric@ecumedesjours.com>
Date: 1 September 2004 21:47:43 GMT+02:00
Subject: from CNET today


the article is at 
http://news.com.com/Activists+turn+to+blogging+as+art/2100-1028_3-5332518.html

and has a live link to http://keyworx.org

unfortunately the reporter did not pay attention to our explanation that 
we created patches in keyworx and instead wrote that we ourselves created 
keyworx... :( I submitted a clarification to CNET as soon as I saw the 
article. Anyway - some nice press!


NEW YORK--Official re-elect George Bush and Dick Cheney logos fill up 
the side of a building in Manhattan as big blue letters spelling "NO!" pop
up over them.

A small group gathers around a truck that has a projector attached to a
laptop mounted on the roof.

While this scene may look like nothing more than some fancy audio visual
display, what's really going on is a trans-Atlantic, multimedia protest
between users in New York and Amsterdam over the Internet.

Words written in French pop up on the wall next as the images keep
changing in a chaotic and random fashion.

"We're really jamming now," said Carol Stakenas, whose fingers are on the
keyboard. Using special software, she can manipulate what images pop up
and in what order. She can also type in text that appears over the images.

Stakenas is one of 12 artists and technologists who call themselves the
Screensavers group, which is protesting the Bush administration during the
Republican National Convention in New York City through an interactive
Web-based art project. Using RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds of blog
text, video clips, audio samples and photos from a mix of Web sites, the
artists use software they've developed called Keyworx that allows multiple
users to post images, sounds and text within a shared real-time
environment.

During the performance, called RNC Redux NYC 04, audience members can add
to the mix using SMS (Short Message Service), America Online's Instant
Messenger, and Webcams.

In an era where ultrahigh security seems to trump many expressions of free
speech, protesters and performance artists like the Screensavers are
turning to the Web.

"Artists and activists in New York and around the world really need a
channel to express themselves during the convention," said Tamas Bonavich,
the owner of Postmasters Gallery, which is hosting Screensavers along with
performances from nine other digital artists. "It's so hard to express
yourself publicly in this city. If you try to post signs or anything you
get arrested."

A perfect example of this is the Bikes Against Bush project. Bicyclist
Joshua Kinberg was planning to use a bike with a wirelessly enabled
printer attached in order to spray protest messages on the sidewalk sent
via the Internet or text message during the Republican National
Convention. He was arrested on Saturday while he was telling an MSNBC
reporter how the bike worked. Even though the printer on the bike was only
supposed to spray water-soluble chalk rather than paint, he was charged
with vandalism.

Kinberg's rigged bicycle, which included a computer, cell phone and 
electronics, is being held until further notice. He is scheduled to 
appear in court on Friday and faces possible jail time.

The Web offers a perfect medium for artistic expression where audiences
around the world can tune in from the comfort of their own homes. And RSS
technology, which allows online publishers to automatically aggregate and
send Web content to subscribers, is an important tool for these artists,
because it allows them to easily and quickly aggregate content from a
number of sources.

RSS was developed several years ago as a way to automatically receive new
chunks of frequently updated content. The format has been widely used for
keeping track of Web logs and news sites. But developers see applications
for many other types of dynamic content, from e-mail to Internet calendars
for business users. And now the technology is being used to fuel artistic
expression.

RSS is gaining attention from venture capitalists who see potential in the
technology. Earlier this month, Technorati, a leading blog and RSS
tracking service said it closed a multimillion-dollar round of venture
capital funding.

Screensavers is running RNC Redux NYC 04 every night between 5 p.m.  and 8
p.m. PDT during the Republican National Convention, from August 29 to
Sept.2. Viewers can tune in over the Web or catch a live performance on
the streets of New York City. The group was in Chelsea at the Postmasters
Gallery on Monday and plans to hit a different location throughout the
city every night.



_____________
Eric Redlinger
KeyWorx team

http://www.keyworx.org


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