La cola de la larga cola I

A los que no lo sepan.

Internet no es la panacea, pero sí una revolución que no se pensó y ya se hizo (viva benedetti).

Webcomic II

I need another post to keep talking 'bout webcomic.

What I've seen is how it shows up a whole “real world” on the virtual one. I don't mean the second life thing (which I also respect) I mean it in the what-a-colorful-universe-we-live-in sense.

I've found sci-fi comics, geek comics (those were the very first) manga comics 'modern life' comics ...

I've found comicstrips , comic books, “audio” comic ...

I've found terror comics, romatic comics ...

I've found experimental & state-of-the-art comics in several ways, both argumental and drawing style.

I guess many of them are not profitable ones, but I know about a few who let their creators make a living of those.

Well if that's not a “real world” example, somebody please tell me where I can find one.

Webcomic is then approaching a real world economics, since there is a huge variety of them, and there are many people making a "real" living on that. But the distribution and promotion is not handled by a editing house, neither by "internet itself", it's handled by the author and some networks they've have come of with. While I was checking webcomics, I got into several of them thanks to various links/banners system, and I quickly stayed with a few very different webcomics that I actually enjoyed. I've sightseen many more than I can recall just know, but I kept the ones I liked.

So this "promotion/distribution" network of links/banners works quite well, and quickly match readers with the webcomic they're interested in, and this is not just theory, it's actually happening now.

I think this is a taste of what is about to come in several ways: no need for intermediate, active users/readers/customers that search for what they want, distribution/promotion system based on word of mouth and helped by technology, and something that I'll call "proactive attention", related to the fact that webcomic users are people that doesn't pay attention based on a interrupting scheme (somebody interrupts you with a commercial to convince you to check something out), because there is so much to see. There is, in fact, so much to see that you, as a reader can't handle it, the reader no longer wants to 'know about everything under the sun', they actively select what they want from their "virtual neighborhood" (not based on location, but of "comes to them" through word of mouth, links, blogs, etc ..).

And yes, actually most of the comics are comic strips, yes, most of the comics are geek-style or anime or sci-fi or fantasy or 'modern'. But I wouldn't expect anything else. Obviously, the first ones to “get into it” are those tech-friendly guys (geek, scifi, fantasy, dungeons n' dragons, etc ...) and the same counts for the potential readers, so here we are: comics are very much alive on the net. Just like in the beginnings there were lots of academic people or computer talking, that is not because the net is “for them”. It's because they were already there. You can think of them as “pioneers”, if you want. there is no limitation to who or what can the net be used for.

So, sit and enjoy the net comic world, you'll get a taste of the future. Not only the “virtual” or “entertainment” world future, but the real money-earning world.

I almost forget: some listing:

• clever dialogues, acid, love new york with this comic: Alien Loves Predator
• quality drawings, impressive imagination: alpha-shade
• Keep your mind working with xkcd
  
• Modern life: Striptease
  
• blood, blood, blood. the vampires are our friends: last blood.
  

Those comic on the list that are not linked are linked elsewhere on the post. Of course, you should also read my very first post on webcomic

DISCLAIMER: The author keeps talking again & again about comics, but he just can't help it

Yoss

Hace poco conocí a un tal "Yoss". Nos caímos muy bien y ahora somos oficialmente amigos.
Mi intención ahora es presumir de amigo: yoss es "un tanto peculiar". Como primera medida es escritor de ciencia ficción , cosa que en cuba ya es algo "peculiar". Por otra parte, editoriales extranjeras llevan publicando libros y relatos suyos desde hace ya unos años, lo que significa que yoss no sólo es "escritor de ciencia ficción", sino que además es bueno.

Por otra parte, yoss encuentra una atractivo irresistible por la estética rock, con tintes de rambo, y procura llevar una apariencia acorde con tal atractivo.


Miren ustedes esta foto de la izquierda: pelo largo, cinta, chaleco sin camisa ... uno no intuye un trato finísimo, y sin embargo es lo que se encuentra. Tampoco esta apariencia indica una vasta cultura manejada con elegancia y oportunidad inusuales. Al mismo tiempo, pasión por el anime, el rock duro y demás manifestaciones usualmente asociadas al "low class culture" por las típicas elites cultirullas y gafipastas que tanto abundan en "el desarrollo".

Por lo demas, yoss es un ejemplo de algo que considero que falta en el mundo imaginado de esta isla desde hace mucho: una ficcion para el futuro, y solo por eso ya se le podria catalogar de “casi unico”. De todas formas, por las dudas, él se encarga de mantener otras muchas “unicidades” en pie ...

En fín, panegíricos aparte, quisiera aprovechar este "personaje" para recalcar unas cuantas cositas que me encantan de esta ciudad, y que yoss representa perfectamente, y es esta impresionante facilidad para cruzarse de todo con todo, y también la accesibilidad de cualquier "circulo" a los "outsiders". Tan accesibles, que ni de "círculo" se puede hablar. Hasta hace 3 semanas "Yoss" era para mí simplemente un "personaje habanero" , escritor, "raro" y presumiblemente inaccesible, y las circunstancias me obligaron el sentido inverso una vez más. El elitismo cultural no existe aquí, ni las gafas de pasta, ni las poses. Holy shit, como me gusta esta ciudad.

Los hermanos prosperan

Los hermanos prosperan, y mucho.
A mi hermano le han propuesto dirigir/estar a cargo de la nueva página web del suplemento económico del clarín. Mi hermano comparte conmigo un profundo entusiasmo por internet, y a mí me gustaría compartir con él algo de iniciativa y capacidad para hacer cosas interesantes.

Atentos al clarín ...

Xdistante

Living in cuba has some advantages (ouch!), and this is certainly one of them.

¨Xdistante" is a saturday evening tv show they put on
cuban tv.
It's about anime, animation and everything related to comics on screen. The thing is the guy who runs the show doesn't give a damn about copyright, so he just puts on whatever he likes or thinks must be put on tv.

Man I can't tell you how long do I expect during the week for the Saturday to come. You recall some anime title? You name it, and it's probably shown already.

[ more or less comprehensive list of anime stuff]

So the next thing to think about is. What happens to a tv channel when audience just doesn't matters? Well two things can happen:
- The guy on the show is a real geek / fanatic / trekkie whatever the tv show is about. What I've saw is it's the only thing that matters in order to get a pretty good show going on. And I mean it. I've seen the better tv shows ever here in cuba, and that's because of the enthusiasm of the showmakers. They just loved the topic they are making the show about, and they don't care about copyright, son they just put on what they thing has to be put on.

- The guy on the show doesn't care / the guy on the show is being forced to do the show / there are "hidden reasons"... And now you get real crap, but it's a minority, and it's also a "crap" you can easily identify and avoid.


Final conclusions: audience doesn't really matter. Those shows which just have an enthusiastic guy at the controls, gather some really good audience anyway. Maybe no "30%" of share but, what the hell??? which is the point of something that 40% of people is watching at the same time??? The truth is: there are very few things that we all like the same but sex, lies and stuff like that, so that's what happens when audience drives every standard goes deep down until it finds what we 100% have in common, so we can watch at the same time: animal stuff.

Moteros

Tener una mujer fotógrafa tiene sus ventajas.


En la habana

existe un club de motos clásicas , y lo mejor de todo, en la habana hay moteros de corazón que cuidan sus motos con cariño y dedicación, que se reúnen, y que han creado un ambiente de familia.

• Richard: Guajiro Natural estuvo con nosotros en casa. Pañuelo en la cabeza, manos engrasadas, cuero a montones y una mujer "motera" también. En su tiempo libre? motos. En su tiempo no libre? mecánica, cuidar la huerta, cuidar los animales. Guajiro 100% y agradabilísimo en todos sus aspectos. Olé tus cojones, Richard!!! cuanto me alegro de haberte conocido.>
  
  


• 
  
  Luisito: Inventor, "Inventor", gerente y gentil, urbano y conversador. Motero por casualidad y motero de calidad. Le gusta el café y también me brindó una linda conversación. Quedó pendiente una futura "blues session" con motos y demás.



• 
  
  William: El "boss" indiscutible, 50 años en la tienda donde trabaja, 30 años de moto, 20 años cuando está sobre la moto. Duro y espartano .


• 
  
  "Harley Man": Born to be a harley driver.
  

Estos señores son un pedazito de los USA que lleva "LatinAmerican" en gigantescas letras a la espalda y una bandera cubana en su escudo.

Gig / Blues En Centro habana

Acabo de volver de la casa de cultura de centro habana, una antigua casona que obviamente se derrumba.
Allí tuvimos la "peña del blues", al mando de Miguelito de Oca, bluesman por excelencia en cuba. Puede que sea el único sitio en la isla donde se pueda escuchar buen blues, y ya empieza a haber gente que lo sabe.

El movimiento de rock alternativo en cuba ha estado durante mucho tiempo polarizado hacia el rock "duro",. Es de justicia añadir que es un auténtico movimiento "underground": porque es movimiento y porque es underground.

Como nota "geek", entre los asistentes me encontré con la versión cubana de "faye", de questinablecontent, :

Sólo que no se llama faye, y no vive georgia, sino en "Santi Spiritus", en cuba, pero en fin, nadie es perfecto y si no, que se lo pregunten a faye.

Miguel y yo empezamos la peña hace ya 5 años, y se gestó el grupo "sociedad havana blues". Este mes es el aniversario, y pude tocar algunos temas con ellos, joder que tiempos, hacia tiempo que no pasaba un rato tan bueno.
Mi mujer hizo algunas fotos para el que quiera verlas, y si todo anda como se debe, tal vez miguel y yo comencemos un nuevo proyecto de blues acústico. Que los Dioses nos oigan.