more than just a text review (pictures etc.)

[Cheryl, first facilitator]

We've got this shiny technology, let's think about using it! As I've said elsewhere, I have a GR friend who loves to be able to enhance her review with pictures. I'm not keen on the idea myself, but at the same time I respect her perspective. What do you all think of pictures, videos, links, etc in reviews?

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

I will unclick top friend from anyone who uses pictures in a review.

[Pamela(AllHoney)]

I enjoy some pictures in a review. Especially pics of locations mentioned in said book. Not keen on videos but links might be helpful depending on what they are.

[Misfit]

I do like seeing them, but they can slow down people using an older PC and/or internet connection. I understand it is a problem with those using cell phones as well.

[Sarah]

I'm ok with it if it shows some content in the book, like that it has a quality map (fantasy thing...) or if it has cool illustrations.

[Kit★]

I've seen a couple of good reviews that have pictures in them, either of locations from the book, or tv/movie versions of the characters, and even some that use famous images to express their emotions about the book. I think it's kind of neat, and enhances the review, but when I see 'em in my friend-update email, it only shows the link, and so then to see the image, I have to clink the book link, and that can be a pain if there's a lot of reviews in one email with 'em.

[Natalie]

A hyper-linked multi-media capable platform like goodreads is well used when it enables users to share thoughts and relationships to other works, art, etc through appropriate use of links and pictures.

I think I've written elsewhere on goodreads that if I wanted to communicate in a text only environment I'd go back to the dot prompt à la The Well circa 1985-1995.

Johnny Ryan, author of
A History of the Internet and the Digital Future recently wrote in From the First e-mail through the WELL and USENET: a Pre-history of Social Networking that:

"In 1985, when The Well was established, PCs were very limited machines with black and white displays. They had no built-in hard drives. Mice were such a novelty that reviewers of the Apple Macintosh in 1984 were amazed to find one attached to the machine. The speeds at which participants connected to The Well prohibited any picture or video content. "

"The idea was to establish a communal space where subscribers could talk about topics of common interest. The service was arranged into various "conferences," where people with common interests could converse using simple text."


Fast forward 20-25 years and we've now got the ability to share hyperlinks, images, and videos -not just descriptions of them!

We've even got the ability to as users to tweak our browser and application settings and make images disappear - For example, here on GR if Elizabeth doesn't want to see images in reviews she can turn images off in her browser or GR settings and display placeholder text instead. Today's user can customize their communication experience and audience more than ever before.

Perhaps most importantly, platforms like goodreads allow users (not just administrators) to form discussion groups like this one! Ryan describes how Reed's 3rd Law posits that:

"Group forming is the technical feature that most distinguishes the Internet's capabilities from all other communications media before it.

Group-forming networks such as online communities and discussion groups, argues Reed, scale not linearly, as Sarnoff's broadcast networks did, or by the square number of the total number of participants as Metcalfe's Law suggests, but exponentially.

We are truly all part of a network that is scaling so fast that discussions like these are testament to the myriad ways people can now communicate, group-form, and collaborate.

It's not so much a question of "to have images or not ?" as it is a question of how many different kinds of book reviews and discussions today's networked environment will support?

For those who don't want images, with today's browsers they can tune their networked experience to their visual appetites. For those who do want images they can group together with like-minded souls and spawn new forms of literary response and review.

I truly love the diversity of opinion, review and multi-media style here on goodreads and find it such a rich environment compared to print based reviews and even other online sites.

If you've read this far I'll give you a few tidbit examples of enhanced reviews and discussions I have enjoyed here on GR:

Stephen's review of The Maltese Falcon. This review is great: it has humor, appreciation for the work, a video, images, etc. I really enjoy Stephen's reviews -in part because of the way he incorporates links, pictures, video, dialogue real and imagined, etc.

Brian's review of The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition is great -it includes great Hurley photos, maps, etc.

Sometimes when I fumble around for a response to the reviews I read, only collages come to my mind. Here are a couple books I responded to w/review collages:
Pale King & The Passage


My own review of Curiosity and the discussion I had following w/Eric where he gives me great links to videos etc. was really fun to write and I enjoyed to follow all Eric's links.

A related book, Remarkable Creatures, is another one that also lent itself to adding images for the review - upon reading it I wanted to share pictures of the subject and her finds and did so in my review.


Cheryl in CC NV wrote: "We've got this shiny technology, let's think about using it!"

[Cheryl, first facilitator]

"For example, here on GR if Elizabeth doesn't want to see images in reviews she can turn images off in her browser or GR settings and display placeholder text instead."

How? Remember lots of us are really naive, but trying to learn!

And to what degree of precision can it be set? For example, if I want the image of the book and of the reviewer's avatar - I just don't want the 'extra' images inside the review, could I do that?

[Natalie]

In the web browser usually options -> content->Load images automatically on/off (Mozilla)
or
Tools ->Internet Options->Advanced ->Show Pictures on/off (IE)

I'll look up what it is in Safari too.

Here on GR it would be in My Account -> Settings but that section doesn't seem to include image settings right now but it changes all the time. GR discussions are a great place to keep track of what comes and goes in settings, especially in GR Feedback. That's the right place to post suggestions for improvement too.

Cheryl in CC NV wrote: "How? Remember lots of us are really naive, but trying to learn!

And to what degree of precision can it be set? For example, if I want the image of the book and of the reviewer's avatar - I just don't want the 'extra' images inside the review, could I do that?"

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Natalie wrote: "In the web browser usually options -> content->Load images automatically on/off (Mozilla)
or
Tools ->Internet Options->Advanced ->Show Pictures on/off (IE)

I'll look up what it is in Safari too..."

And that removes the avatars, too. I don't think I want to remove your smiling face. ;-)