Digital Literacy & Me

The key word that comes to my mind when I think of digital literacy is weaving. It is my feeling that the most important thing we can do online is make information more available to the next person who needs it, weaving information forward... It was interesting to learn about Jacquard's weaving loom, one of the early programming machines that contributed to the development of information storage and programmable machines (Manovich, p. 7)

I grew up on a small farm and my Mom used to hand-spin wool and weave wall-hangings. Essentially the process was to take a series of unconnected strands of sheep hair, spin them into a manageable thread or yarn and weave something interesting. Sound familiar?

Isn't that essentially what we do on the internet? Spin our thoughts into coherent strands, weave a message that we hope will interest others?

Much of my digital literacy has come from my studies in the MACT program at the University of Alberta. For example, my first Twitter and LinkedIn connections came with careful assistance from colleagues and instructors. It can be very nerve-wracking to use social media for the first time, and I am very grateful to have MACT classmates, alumnae and instructors who guide us through the process.

Here is one of my first YouTube experiments, naturally it's about weaving, potholes!

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hye_C5mBnEk)

The weaving metaphor holds up strong though... we weave as we navigate the roads (internet) hoping to arrive at our destination without losing ourselves in potholes. Some of my earliest memories of digital engagement are of getting completely and utterly lost online.

Here is the link to my first podcast (Warning: please get ready to turn down the volume if you hear any Space Invaders approaching!!)

Reference:
Manovich, L. (2001). The language of new media. MIT press.