Processing Post: Database Aesthetic

This is the first time I thought about what it would mean to archive work that uses APIs of other services. APIs are the pluggable ends of databases that allow for retrieval (and sometimes insertion) of data. It has become a standard to have one, so Google, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Dropbox, Amazon services, NYTimes, and many many more organizations let developers use their data in external applications. Archiving a digital artwork that uses an API means to not only have the means to run and view the work, since making API calls in a program means using real time data. The conservation of this kind of temporality is a huge challenge. It raises questions about the intention behind the work. It can respond to particular events or cultural trends, in which case it might make sense to store the external data. A work could also address a process of interpreting or translating a data stream. In this case, as long as there is data coming in, the work can be experienced. There are probably many cases in between. I am curious about the artists’ role in making these decisions. This type of conservation definitely seems like a collaborative effort.

On another note, I like the idea behind XFR STN partnering with archive.org, thinking of distribution as preservation. Distribution in this context is not only exposure but also storing data on machines that are distributed spatially. I connect this theme to the article about data centers and their power consumption. I am sure that somebody out there is developing this, but computation power should be distributed as well. The computers we leave plugged in at home (not to mention ones we throw away after a few years) also suffer from the same problem as the servers in data centers. They only use a small percentage of their computation power. Wouldn’t it be amazing if we could share this resource? We should be thinking about how to use the incredible technology we already produced, since we won’t be able to continue to develop in this unsustainable pace for a very long time.

Speaking of sustainability, here is a short rant. I thought it was funny to think of anything Walmart does as sustainable. Even if gas usage is cut and Walmart saves millions of dollars, there is still a ridiculous fleet of vehicles that move products around the world instead of allowing local economies to flourish. Finally, who knows what other kinds of “small” changes Walmart is enforcing to save money. I am thinking about vacation days, lunch break times, etc. Unlike Amazon’s warehouse system that seems harmless (until the apocalypse comes of course), Walmart’s data logic, or even logistics fetishism, is raising red flags. It’s this cyborgian phenomena, of humans extending the machine and its logic happening on the extreme. We gave examples of this in class discussions, talking about the way we databasify or SEO-ify ourselves. This is a reminder that we also do this on much larger scales, it’s scary.