Old and New Media

Lev Monovich explores the convergence of two historical trajectories; computing and media technologies, how they have developed and the differences between old and new media using five different principles.

Both computers and new technologies play an important role within society. The modern digital computer was developed to calculate numerical data and it had the ability to track records such as medical and police records. New modern media technologies were developed to store images, sounds and text and helped in making of photography and films. "Mass media and data processing are the complimentary technologies of a modern mass society; they appear together and develop side by side, making this society possible." (Monovich, 2001. p46). These two trajectories worked parallel to each other then slowly began to emerge together. Modern media began to develop and saw the beginning of film, as still photography were put into motion. As modern media was developing so were computers. Computers became media processor, enabling them to do similar functions to modern technology such as images and films. "All existing media are translated into numerical data accessible for the computers. The result: graphics, moving images, sounds, shapes, spaces and text become computable."(Monovich, 2001. p48).

As computers and media technologies become more alike, Monovich developed five principles to help understand the differences between old and new medias. These key factors are numerical representation, modularity, automation, variability and transcoding. 

All new media objects are composed with digital codes and therefore are numerical representations. Some new media technologies are made on computers and others develop from old forms of media. Modularity is the principle which is also known as "fractal structure of new media”. Media has different elements which work individually and also together. These elements are independent and when mixed together they can produce larger media objects. These two principles contribute to the next which is automation. Media creation, manipulation and access are all influenced by automation. Automating is the creation and modifying a media object using templates and adjusting to users needs. 

"A new media object is not something fixed once and for all but can exist in different, potentially infinite, versions" (Monovich, 2001. p56). When a media technology develops and find new functions and features, a newer version of the technology is produced. This is the variability principle. And the last is transcoding. Monovich describes transcoding as the principle which combines computers and society. "..The new computer culture: a blend of human and computer meanings, of traditional ways human culture modeled the world and computer’s own ways to represent it." (Monovich, 2001. p64). 

As medias are changing, developing and working together it is becoming more difficult to find the line between old and new. Applying Monovich theory helps in identifying one media technology from another.


Bibliography:

Monovich, L. (2001) The Language of New Media, Cambridge, Mass; London. MIT Press.