Evolution of Information Media

Evolution of Information Media

• The pre-historic period consists of time periods in the origin and evolution of humankind from about 2.5 million years to about 900 BC.
• The pre-historic period is divided into three archaeological periods: Stone Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age.

Examples of Pre-Historic Media

• Cave Paintings (35,000 BC)
• Clay Tablets in Mesopotamia (2400 BC)
• Papyrus in Egypt (2500 BC)
• Acta Diurna in Rome (130 BC)
• Printing press using wood blocks (220 AD)
• Dibao in China (2nd Century)
• Codex in the Mayan region (5th Century)

Industrial Media Age (1700-1930)

• Characterized by the replacement of hand tools with power-driven machines and the concentration of industry in large establishments.
• Examples:
  • Printing press for mass production (19th Century)
  • Newspaper – The London Gazette (1640)
  • Typewriter (1800) and Telephone (1876)
  • Motion picture photography/projection (1890)
  • Motion picture with sound (1926)
  • Telegraph
  • Punch cards

Electronic Age (1930-1980)

• Began when electronic equipment, including computers, came into use.
• Long distance communication became more efficient.
• Examples:
  • Transistor Radio
  • Television (1941)
  • Large electronic computers – UNIVAC 1 (1951) and EDSAC (1949)
  • Mainframe computers – i.e. IBM 704 (1960)
  • Personal computers – Hewlett Packard 9100A (1968) and Apple 1 (1976)
  • OHP (Over-head Projector)

Information Age (1900-2000)

• Access to and control of information is the defining characteristic of this era.
• Also called the “Computer Age”, the “Digital Age”, and the “New Media Age”.
• Examples:
  • Web Browser
  • Video Chat
  • Blogs
  • Search Engine
  • Social Network
  • Portable Computers
  • Video
  • Smart Phones
  • Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality
  • Cloud and Big Data

Media and Information Languages

• Genre comes from the French word meaning 'type' or 'class', and can be recognized by its common set of distinguishing features (codes and conventions).

Codes and Conventions

• Codes are systems of signs that create meaning.
• Conventions are the generally accepted ways of doing something.

Types of Code

• Technical Codes: ways in which equipment is used to tell the story (camera techniques, framing, depth of fields, lighting and exposure, etc.)
• Symbolic Codes: show what is beneath the surface of what we see (objects, setting, body language, clothing, color, etc.)
• Written Codes: use of language style and textual layout (headlines, captions, speech bubbles, language style, etc.)

Technical Codes

• Camera Techniques:
  • Basic Camera Shots: Extreme Wide Shot, Wide Shot, Medium Shot, Medium Close-up, Close-up, Extreme Close-up
  • Advanced Camera Shots: Two Shot, Over the Shoulder, Point of View, Cut Away, Selective Focus
  • Camera Angles: Eye-Level, High Angle, Low Angle, Bird's Eye View, Worm's Eye View, Slanted (canted)
• Camera Movement:
  • Basic Camera Movements
  • Applying Camera Movements using a cellphone
• Audio:
  • The power of music in film
  • Importing audio using pixabay.com and clipchamp.com

Symbolic Codes

• Symbolisms in Films: objects, setting, body language, clothing, color, etc. that show what is beneath the surface of what we see.

Written Codes

• Use of Language Style and Textual Layout: headlines, captions, speech bubbles, language style, etc.

Conventions

• Conventions and Iconography of an Action Film: generally accepted ways of doing something in an action film.
• Cinematic Conventions: applying cinematic conventions in film-making.

Guess the picture activity about the evolution of information media, covering different stages from old to new. Learn about the history of information media and its transformation.