Joe Mills

Social Networking and Web Presence for Illustrators and Artists – Part 1

As of the summer of 2006, I have jumped headfirst into social networking. I began the blog you are reading now, and I have never looked back. Now, I am trying to figure out just how important all of this is to my “business”. Maybe there are other illustrators and designers who feel the same way as me. It can consume you, and I am not sure of the initial or long term benefits. Part of me feels like you just have to try it and see what sticks. The other part…thinks it is just white noise. Let me break down some of the things I am doing and what has been the most useful:

Web Site: My father registered joemills.com in 1997 and it was one of the best things that could have happened to my online presence. I love having my name as the site especially since my name is very common. I have used it for different reasons over the years, and I think I finally have it in a place where it is most useful. I think a well-constructed site is probably the most important part of my online presence. While it is probably one of the few things people find, it is my flagship. No matter where people see me on the web, I can always point them back here.

Blog: I’ve enjoyed having a blog, but I do not think I have totally figured out the best way to use it. It really doesn’t have a theme that sets me apart. Plus, I really need to work on making my writing more interesting…there is a reason I enjoy drawing. I have focused on inspiration for most of the time, but I was reading recently that might just be pointing people away from me. I still think I will include inspiration on my site, but I need to focus more on my work. It does not pay to be humble on the net.

YouTube: I dabbled with some puppet videos in 2008 and did a few things last year. Plus, I have tried doing a few artist journals as well. I really love doing videos, but it takes me away from my illustrations. My issue with YouTube has always been production value. When I put something up, I want it to look just right. Obviously, that takes more time. I wish I was quicker with the video camera to capture things happening. I wish I was more comfortable making quicker snippets that I could just “put up”. I get too wrapped up in making a good production…and maybe there is nothing wrong with that. Even as I’m writing this, I’m wondering how a great video can help my business. I want people to find my artwork…not some cool video I made. It is hard to give video up because it is a fun medium. I just wish I knew the best way to make it work for me.

Flickr: Some people use Flickr and Picasa as portfolio sites. I usually use it to put up pictures of events I attend like concerts. If you tag things just right, people will find your work. Since I am not a photographer, this site is not of much use, but it is one of the more popular sites. I do not think it works well as a portfolio since you are stuck with their structure, but I do like the ability to put up non-portfolio pictures that I find interesting.

Facebook: Obviously, Facebook is one of the premiere social networking sites. I think some people feel that you need it to promote yourself, but I do not feel like it is a good place to get noticed. When I sold my recent poster, I got more attention from a good old fashioned email than I did a Facebook post. I think that Facebook only helps keep the ball rolling…it is not the place to get noticed. Like a web site, though, I think it is a good place to send people when they are already interested in your work.

Twitter: Twitter falls into the same category as Facebook. It has gained a lot of attention this past year, and I have only recently started using it. The thing I like about Twitter is how informal it is. No site encapsulates this more. How does this fit with promotion? I think you really need something to say to get people interested in you. I just don’t always have anything interesting to say all the time. The other problem is that so many businesses and people have Twitter and Facebook accounts…what makes me stand out? I have said that it can really keep people updated on new things, but as my wife says, “If you really want to know, couldn’t you just search for it?”  I’m still going to mess with it, but I am continually thinking of ways to focus my online attention.

Google Profile: Since Google has taken over many online lives (including mine), I felt this was necessary. According to Google, it should make it easier for people to find you if they do a Google search, but I can only hope that is happening…

I will try and tackle more of the lesser known sites next time…

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Sketch2Photo

Sketch2Photo: Internet Image Montage from Tao Chen on Vimeo.

I read about this program on Gizmodo and it is amazing. In Sketch2Photo, you create a very crude drawing on the software and label each drawing with a text label. The software will then scour the web for images that will match your drawing and text labels. These images are then fused together to create a complete image. I’m not sure how they wrote the code for this program, but it seems to be another positive step towards creating a better way to classify images on the Internet and making it useful for the user.

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Scribblenauts

I’m not much of a gamer, but after reading about this game in Wired, I want to go out and buy a Nintendo DS. Scribblenauts is based on something called emergent game play. Basically, you can help the hero, Maxwell, solve any problem any way you choose just by writing it in. For example, one of the earlier stages is getting a star out of tree. You could write “ladder” in order to get the star out. Or, you could type in “axe” to chop the tree down and get the star. Or, you can write “football” and knock the star out of the tree. From what I understand, the possibilities are endless. It seems like half the fun of playing the game is figuring out what is available and how you can use it. Most heroes have a select number of tools at their disposal to pass from stage to stage. Here…you don’t have that problem…

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Geocaching

From what I understand, Geocaching has been around since 2000. Or, should I say, that is what Wikiepdia says. Yet, I have only heard about it recently. Here’s a quick rundown on it from the Geocaching site:

Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. Geocaching is enjoyed by people from all age groups, with a strong sense of community and support for the environment.

What is appealing to me about this is that it takes into account our growing technological capabilities with a focus on gaming and community. This is a very simple way to get people to use their GPS capable phones to do something out of the ordinary. It seems like there is something more here. Why not have a more elaborate scavenger hunt based around Geocaching? Or, a game that requires to find things within a city using their phones? I’m sure I’m not the first person to think of something like this, but I doubt anyone has done it “right” yet. My first goal…is see exactly what this geocahcing is all about…

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Open Source Hardware

Wired recently had an article about the Arduino board. Open source software is not a new concept to me, but this one was. Here is a quick explanation about it from the Wired article:

That’s because the Arduino board is a piece of open source hardware, free for anyone to use, modify, or sell. Banzi and his team have spent precious billable hours making the thing, and they sell it themselves for a small profit — while allowing anyone else to do the same. They’re not alone in this experiment. In a loosely coordinated movement, dozens of hardware inventors around the world have begun to freely publish their specs. There are open source synthesizers, MP3 players, guitar amplifiers, and even high-end voice-over-IP phone routers. You can buy an open source mobile phone to talk on, and a chip company called VIA has just released an open source laptop: Anyone can take its design, fabricate it, and start selling the notebooks.

I continue to be flabbergasted at the continued success of these open source ideas. When most companies are so focused on making money at any cost, it is refreshing to see these open source companies have any kind of success. It breeds a sense of working together and collaboration. The reason open source pioneers like Linux and Apache have lasted so long is that the focus is on the best working product, not the bottom line.

I guess it doesn’t make a great “business plan” but I wish these kinds of companies were more prevalent in our society.  Or, the companies that already exist had some sense of working together. As consumers, we deal with so many propiertary items and closed systems (hello…iPhone) that it feels like the only reason we are given the “choice” of buying all this extra gadgetry is to increase the stock prices.  Why can’t all the plugs I have just be universal? Why can’t I switch phone services without it being a huge ordeal? I guess all of this requires some cooperation on the part of the consumer, but I think we are entering a part of our history where we just can’t throw money at every consumer good that hits the market. With this kind of collaboration from company to company and company to consumer, I think we can have better consumer goods and more profitable companies. I guy can always dream…

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Wikime

No, I will not be getting an iPhone (although, I’m hoping to get an Android phone…when they are not sold out), but I think this application for it is awesome. Basically, the phone figures out where you are and Wikime sends you Wikipedia articles based on that location. I’ve been hesitant to get the Internet on my phone because of the unnecessary, increased cost. (Ooooohhh….I can be bothered by email at all times.) With applications like Wikime, though, I could see myself being converted.

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Wii

Yes, I realize that the Wii has been talked about ad-nauseum, but hey, I just got one a couple months ago. I was even lucky enough to happen across a Wii Fit recently as well. I was interested in getting a Wii because it reminded me of playing video games with my brother when I was younger. And at the same time, make it new by amping up the game play. What I liked about playing video games when I was younger was the social apsect and the simplicity. A lot of hardcore gamers have given it disparaging reviews because of the lack of great graphics, simple game play, and not-so-great titles. For us casual gamers, though, it is perfect. If I want to just play a game for an hour or so and not just push buttons, I can throw a game in the Wii. I have used it as a way to entertain family. And, my wife and I have enjoyed the expanded game play courtesy of the Wii Fit. I don’t feel like I HAVE to play it every day to “beat a game”.

I guess my only concern is that something “else” will make its way into the marketplace in the next two years or so and make this oboslete….which should not be surprise. I guess the reason I think that won’t happen is that I think the best is yet to come with the Wii. I don’t think game developers have fully captured all that can be done with the game controller. Nintendo envisioned a whole new way to play video games, so I think people are still figuring it out…at least that is what I hope. Hey…if it can be as cool as this ad for Wario Land, I think there is still room for more.

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Android

Something I’ve been looking forward to…in case you were unaware, cell phones are painfully behind the times. With all of the propietary programs that go into each phone, cell phones are locked into whatever your provider will allow you to have. While open source programs are all over the Internet, cell phones are not capable pf handling other programs. Enter Android. Not surprisingly, Google is behind Android. Here’s the explanation from Wikipedia:

Android is a software platform and operating system for mobile devices based on the Linux operating system and developed by Google and the Open Handset Alliance.^[1] It allows developers to write managed code in a Java-like language that utilizes Google-developed Java libraries,^[2] but does not support programs developed in native code.

I’m looking froward to getting a phone that handles Android, but from what I understand, the big carriers, Verizon amd AT&T, are not going to have a phone that will support Android. It is too bad. It is too bad that many major companies (in general) want to hold on so closely to their own stuff, that the words “open source” must send them into a frenetic barrage of “No’s”. This must be the reason we need a different cord to charge every electronic device we have. Regardless, I still think Android is a step in the right direction, and maybe the major carriers will change their mind…

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Physics Programs – Launchball and Phun

I’ve come across a couple physics based programs recently which are very well done. I’ve been interested in doing a Flash animation or game recently, so I’ve been particularly drawn to well done programs, animations, and games.

Launchball was done by a group called Preloaded. It is a Flash-based game that really makes you think. Basically, you have to get the ball from where it comes out to the goal. To get it there, you have to use devices like springs, slopes, batteries, wind turbines, etc. It looks and sounds easy, but the beauty is in the complexity of each level. It must be checked out…

Phun is a program you must download to play on your computer. This one is much more sophisticated than the game above, but has a slightly different application. It is more like a drawing program that reacts to physics. Fro example, if you were to draw an upside down triangle, it would fall over. Or, you can draw a square and then it turn to a liquid, and it will act like, well, a liquid. Check out the video for more…

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It’s a Game You Control with Your Cell Phone

Wired recently had a short article on a company called MegaPhone that…well…read this:

(They are) multiplayer cell phone games where people can interact with rivals they’re battling onscreen. Here’s how it works: When players dial a special phone number shown on a public screen like MTV’s jumbotron, avatars representing the callers pop up on the display, identified by the last four digits of the participant’s cell number. They’re controlled using the phone’s keypad or, more often, by speaking (or shouting) into the handset. Scream “shoot” in one game, for example, and your basketball player shoots. Who are you schooling? Look for the other goofballs yelling at their phones.

I think this is a fantastic idea. It really brings that idea of connection and technology and fun and…all the good things that people clamor for in this (forgive the over used terminology) Web 2.0 world. I guess it works for me because I see it in my head…I’m standing in line at the grocery store or some other store, and I can play this game with other people standing with me. It reminds me of the trivia games I used to play at bars when I was in college with strangers at the bar. I can see the technology end of it being very difficult to work out, but this seems like an idea that could work.

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