ego (my personal site)

[Intrepid Homoludens]

http://www.geocities.com/sectorblue/SigArt/egobernini.jpg

Finally! I've updated ego (http://www.geocities.com/sectorblue/ego/egolayout_001.htm) after several months of not being able to figure out a bug in my web design software. Whew! I've simplified the entire site, focusing on only a few contents at a time. The conceptual plan is still the same, though - a lifestyle magazine format centering on what people/places/things I'm thinking about at the moment instead of listing every single thing the whole time (like too many others try to do in their websites). This way I can keep the site dynamic, changing things every few weeks, and not demanding too much viewing time from you but giving you just enough for inspiration and intrigue. Hence, feel free to visit the site from time to time, there's no telling what I'll offer, whether it's advise on personal style, a recommended film, a new book to read, a corner of the world to virtually visit, or even a glimpse into my journal. If you like you can post your comments in this thread or send me an email.

Enjoy.

[emma]

Just spent a couple of minutes in there, and I'm blown away! You're an artist, Trepidó! :) Will probably lose myself in there several times. Thanks!

[pleto4_ryan]

Hey trepie, why don't you add this to your sig? :)

I like it. It's really different from anything else.... :D

[remixor]

Trep: A site so elegantly designed really doesn't deserve "geocities.com" at the front of its URL :)

[Royal Fool]

Nice site, smart to name the links after the various fonts.

[ysbreker]

Gah! Damn the proxy/firewall on my work all to hell! They blocked geocities here so I can't check your site here :/

Will need to check it when I'm at home...

[Wormsie]

Trep: A site so elegantly designed really doesn't deserve "geocities.com" at the front of its URL :)

I fully agree. Those are the kinds of sites you should have wine with... too bad I never drink... wine. (If no-one gets that quote, I'll start sucking other people's blood).

[Tamara]

I was going to say isn't it Pratchett, the reformed vampire?but then realised the implications of that .. *cough* .. so ...




Isn't it the reformed vampire in one of Pratchett's books?

[ragnar]

It is a very goodlooking site Intrepid. Although I didn't find out how it is supposed to be navigated consiously. You just click on some links and see what's behind it. :)

[twifkak]

On a literal note that wasn't meant to have metaphorical connotations (but feel free to add them), you can't squeeze a sponge completely dry. You do the best you can, and then leave it alone to let the rest evaporate.

edit: And on the note of the dynamism (well, dynamicness, whatever) of the page -- I understand the purpose of form, but the use of negative expression (removing information) to achieve form always scares me. Maybe because I'm a pakrat, and the Internet is even beyond *my* abilities.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Thanks for the feedback, guys. Keep 'em coming, I'm intrigued to see how the site affects people.

On a literal note that wasn't meant to have metaphorical connotations (but feel free to add them), you can't squeeze a sponge completely dry. You do the best you can, and then leave it alone to let the rest evaporate.

Which is the perfect analogy for how I felt that evening and beyond with J.W. ;)

...And on the note of the dynamism (well, dynamicness, whatever) of the page -- I understand the purpose of form, but the use of negative expression (removing information) to achieve form always scares me. Maybe because I'm a pakrat, and the Internet is even beyond *my* abilities.

This is one idiosyncratic characteristic of the Information Age I wanted to address through the design of my site. The prevailing notion is that of cramming as much stuff as possible into each page to the point where practically every single image and every other word is 'clickable', leading to another page or pop-up that is crammed with yet even more stuff to click. 'Numbing' is just one way to describe the effect of this. When everything is highlighted and in your face, the result is that nothing is perceivably important, and you're left with a blur of fragments, useless ultimately.

I wanted my site to have as much 'breathing room' for the viewer as possible. I also wanted to convey the idea, the experience, of a dynamic 'stripping away' process whereby the most emphatically vital elements - and content - are left, they are what you end up working with once you leave the noise behind. I think this is particularly eloquent in the arial (http://www.geocities.com/sectorblue/ego/egolayout_007.htm) page, conceptually parallel with the topic itself, artist Sophie Calle, whose works deal with the ideas of memory (real and surrogate), loss, fabrications, and shifting awarenesses. I give you just enough time to read my brief texts before they vanish, and all you're left with are the artist's images themselves.

Finally, I wanted to challenge the conventional bombards of the typical Internet website by proposing a very different way of experiencing the gathering of information. I don't think 'minimalist' would be accurate to describe what I wanted. The best word would be 'distillation'. Even the animation of a single word slowly appearing in the space of a neutral background suggests the process of editing, that is, what matters most is what you are given, nothing more, nothing less. But then even that word slowly fades away, and your cognitive awareness shifts. The meaning and context of that word is now in your mind, why stare at it onscreen anymore?

[twifkak]

Hrm.. I want to respond but I don't know that I have much to add. So here's a hodgepodge:

It's a strange combination of scaring me and comforting me. (For the reasons you mentioned -- it's an abrupt change, but it's a format that doesn't scream at you, like, say /. (http://slashdot.org/). Incidentally, I like /., because it works for a geeky mind like mine, but I think it's changing the way I approach things I read.) That said, trying to pace textual information is difficult, what with varied reading speeds. Also, Mozilla seems incompatible with your fading thingies.

The meaning and context of that word is now in your mind, why stare at it onscreen anymore?
Interesting way of looking at it. I never really valued the subconscious as having a valid, nontrivial effect on what I read/saw/heard/played before.

The prevailing notion is that of cramming as much stuff as possible into each page to the point where practically every single image and every other word is 'clickable', leading to another page or pop-up that is crammed with yet even more stuff to click.
I guess I oughtn't link to HyperDictionary (http://www.hyperdictionary.com/), then. ;) Like I said earlier, I am starting to see how it changes the way I approach reading material (wow, what a dry term for that..), but in cases like HD, I think of it as a tool for empowerment. Yes, the artist (or journalist, or advertiser) is here to drag me down his on-rails experience, but I've got other plans. I'm gonna dissect the little sucker, and it may mean breaking an egg or two, but I'll be damned if I'm not going to make me an omelette.

[Wormsie]

Isn't it the reformed vampire in one of Pratchett's books?

Actually it's a movie. "Dracula", if I remember correctly...