(You might want to open it in a new window.)
Okay, so I had this weird stray thought just now. Bear with me, I'll get to it.
I've always dearly loved the luxury of emails and, more particularly, blog and forum posts when conveying ideas. I have all the time and space I need to really compose my thoughts and express them clearly. In fact, I used to think that this was the ideal mode of communication.
Then I read about the ridiculously high instance of misinterpretation of tone, intent, and attitude that goes on with text-only media and saw that it has its flaws. In my own case I know that I can be quite a forum warrior due partly to the fact that, divorced from any true humanity, I tend to address the poster as an anthropomorphic personification of the ideas zie puts forth, rather than a whole human being who deserves to be treated respectfully.
Anyway, that leaves me at the dilemma of communicating via text with the drawback of my tone being easily-misunderstood and the fact that I'm talking to a real person being detrimentally abstract. That's where my idea comes in. I thought... hey! This is the twenty-first frelling century! Why limit myself to text?
Long story short (yeah, yeah, too late) I'm considering the value of writing a post like I always have, then posting a Vocaroo link of myself reading it. I think the process of reading the post will help me to remain aware that I'm talking to a person as directly as if I were having a face-to-face conversation, and being able to hear the tone I'm using might get across my typically-genial demeanor. So what do you think? Good idea or dumb gimmick? Thanks for listening.
As an extra addition it might be nice for a lot of people, but I, personally, wouldn't want to listen to video and prefer text.
I can read your post in about 1 minute, how long do you think a video of you reading it aloud would be? Something tells me the forum would move too slowly for me if I'd have to listen to video rather then read a post.
Weeeell, I clocked the recording of my above post at a minute twenty-five, which I'll grant is a fifty percent increase, but I try to keep up a fair pace. As for listening rather than reading, I probably could've been clearer that I'd still post the text I'd written, it'd simply be accompanied by a recording as above.
With that, I think I really ought to sleep now, so further replies will be delayed for the requisite six hours needed to recover my dailies. G'night.
It would help in stopping short an argument with 12-year old kids though, a glimpse of their chipmunk voice would tell you whom you're dealing with.
At least you have a fairly pleasant voice to listen to, but I still don't think listening to your posts would be something I'd do regularly
sounds like you want his weiner
Or you're merely extremely uncertain in your masculinity.
Sounds like you are a closet homosexual that screams "gay" at everything in an attempt to deny your raging sexual desires.
Or you're merely extremely uncertain in your masculinity.
I think you took Jesse's joke too seriously...
Maybe we should get Jesse to post a recording reading his post.
Funny idea, but like Plu, I read quite quickly (had to so I could pass the reading parts of my English certificate exams). I also won't be participating in this because a) I have no microphone b) I value my privacy that much and c) I really don't like the tone of my own voice.
Interesting idea. But I wonder how many of us have voices that are pleasent to listen to? Goodness knows I don't like the sound of my own voice1, not to mention that some of my own posting habits don't translate well to an audio stream1. But... 'eh. It's a new toy. Might as well play around with it.
But a few things that might not work well... quotes. I mean, if I wanted to quote Jesse's stupid joke from earlier, then it would quickly get painful if I also recorded me reading his quote in my worst impression of what I think Jesse sounds like. Maybe having a new audio message if there's a break3...
Hrm... on the other hand, after reading this aloud to check that I liked the tone of it before recording, I made a few changes to better improve the flow/sound of it4. So I suppose that's a merit if nothing else.
On the other-other hand, I'm pretty sure this audio-message just dispelled any thought that my cowboy-image was anything more then just that... an image.
________
1I sound so much better in my head.
2Like my use of footnotes.
3Say, after quotes, in spoiler blocks, so-on?
4At least to my ears.
(click here for audio)
Interesting idea. But I wonder how many of us have voices that are pleasent to listen to? Goodness knows I don't like the sound of my own voice1, not to mention that some of my own posting habits don't translate well to an audio stream1. But... 'eh. It's a new toy. Might as well play around with it.
But a few things that might not work well... quotes. I mean, if I wanted to quote Jesse's stupid joke from earlier, then it would quickly get painful if I also recorded me reading his quote in my worst impression of what I think Jesse sounds like. Maybe having a new audio message if there's a break3...
Hrm... on the other hand, after reading this aloud to check that I liked the tone of it before recording, I made a few changes to better improve the flow/sound of it4. So I suppose that's a merit if nothing else.
On the other-other hand, I'm pretty sure this audio-message just dispelled any thought that my cowboy-image was anything more then just that... an image.
________
1I sound so much better in my head.
2Like my use of footnotes.
3Say, after quotes, in spoiler blocks, so-on?
4At least to my ears.
heyyyy how about this joke.
my japanese girlfriend dumped me but its ok know why?
Come to think of it, there are a few people on here I think I'd get some chuckles out of watching in a video-debate.
I don't know about Mr.C, but I don't have a webcam, only a mic. Though video messages might be fun, especially since then we could use props. On the other hand, I'd feel like I shouldn't be posting until my morning rituals, like putting clothes on1, are done.
________
1Wearing clothes sucks.
I would not participate even if I could. My voice is awful and I'd sound closer to 13 rather than as close to 33 as I am. That and I post from work so it'd be all weird if I recorded stuff first.
EDIT: My thoughts on the idea: It's a stupid gimmick that's also immensely interesting, potentially helpful and could be hilariously entertaining.
Just imagine a flame war with audio. That would rawk. But yeah, it has its limits. Like, I gotta open a window and listen instead of jus' read n' scroll, read n' scroll. I imagine I'd be more inclined to pay attention to walls of text, though, as hearing it read may be less obnoxious than wading through the text. I'd have to test that theory, though.Either your mic is bad, the volume is turned up too much for the input or you've a bad cable, EE. It gets all distorty.
Might be. I'm no audio geek and mostly use my microphone for Skype chats with my sisters where we often have problems of people coming across too softly, so I think I just have the input turned all the way up.
Might be. I'm no audio geek and mostly use my microphone for Skype chats with my sisters where we often have problems of people coming across too softly, so I think I just have the input turned all the way up.
Yeah, that may be it. And it's intermittant so it isn't too huge a deal. No biggie.
Anyway, here's the character:
EDIT: It's come to my attention that the computer's been using my webcam mic to record these instead of my headset, so I'm rerecording this one with the correct device. Hopefully it'll sound better.
Hey, thanks for the replies! Let's see how this format handles multiquote. You can expect me to mumble bits of context and incoherence for a brief moment as I skim over the text of each quote; expect to hear 'dabadabada' a few times.
Interesting idea. But I wonder how many of us have voices that are pleasent to listen to? Goodness knows I don't like the sound of my own voice1, not to mention that some of my own posting habits don't translate well to an audio stream1. But... 'eh. It's a new toy. Might as well play around with it. ... On the other-other hand, I'm pretty sure this audio-message just dispelled any thought that my cowboy-image was anything more then just that... an image.
To EscherEnigma: thanks for jumping in with me, if only to see how it goes. I hear what you're saying (HA HA!) about pleasantness of voice, but personally I'd place 'unpleasant voice' below 'bad spelling' on the list of things which annoy me about corresponding with others. On not liking the sound of your own voice, I think that's probably a universal phenomenon. For what it's worth, I like your voice; somehow you sound just how I'd expect you to. I'm afraid I never had any sort of cowboy image of you, but I think that you can blame that picture of you in the leather pants for that one. ;)
But a few things that might not work well... quotes. I mean, if I wanted to quote Jesse's stupid joke from earlier, then it would quickly get painful if I also recorded me reading his quote in my worst impression of what I think Jesse sounds like.
Clearly the most elegant solution is to read everyone's quotes in a horribly grating impersonation of a Monty Python sketch. SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM...
If you're really concerned about misinterpretation, why not take it yet another step and post video, rather than just audio? I mean, a lot of information is conveyed by expression, posture, gestures, and other physical clues. Why go half-way?
Come to think of it, there are a few people on here I think I'd get some chuckles out of watching in a video-debate.
In reply to jetshield: reason number one not to use video is directly linked to that final thought of yours; where I intend the voice posting to be of use, I think video posting would cross the fine line into novelty. It reminds me of nothing so much as those video blog posts by that Warcraft nerd whining about how much harder the Cataclysm content is.
Reason number two-ish is that, while I do convey information emotively, it's typically a means of silently responding for me. Being somewhere on the autistic spectrum, body language and expressions have never come naturally to me, and when I do employ them it's a deliberate display, usually one that I can't manage very well at the same time I'm speaking.
Reason number three is that I agree with EscherEnigma: wearing clothes sucks. While I'm enough of a neo-hippie libertine that I wouldn't care what I'm not wearing when making a video post, I'm aware that the odds of any given viewer being a bear-chaser are fairly slim. The only solution is taking the time to put on clothes before posting, and **** that. Ooh, hey! Vocaroo is off-site! I can say ****! **** **** **** ****! :D
Either your mic is bad, the volume is turned up too much for the input or you've a bad cable, EE. It gets all distorty.
To ZombieBabies: I barely noticed the distortion in EE's post, and even listening for it on a second run-through it wasn't that bad, in my opinion. As with EE, I'm no audiophile. I'll only complain about distortion in the event that it ruins my stunning rendition of Walkin' in Memphis.
I like the added footnotes even more in voice format, though, cuz you have no idea where they're supposed to relate back to. It's wonderfully silly.
Yes! I absolutely agree; I read footnotes at the moment that they're referenced, viewing them as a way of keeping the sentence uncluttered rather than actually delaying the revelation of the information. Reading them aloud in that way would defeat that purpose, and while waiting until the end to read them is a bit goofy it's pretty damned fun to hear these disjointed thoughts read off one after another.
EDIT: My thoughts on the idea: It's a stupid gimmick that's also immensely interesting, potentially helpful and could be hilariously entertaining.
Yeah, so far I'm seeing a pretty balanced spread on the pros and cons, with the biggest con being that I might look silly, and honestly that one lost its bite for me a long time ago. Worst-case, I'm wearing my idealistic oddity just a bit more on my sleeve and some anonymous netfolk dismiss me as a weirdo. Best-case, it catches on like footnotes and zie/zir did and I feel like I've contributed something fun to forum discourse. Also, recording replies aloud to text comments makes me feel like the Doctor in 'Blink'. Wibbly wobbly, timey wimey...
I think that I just might try it on as a regular habit. Walk around in it, see how it feels. Thanks everyone for your input.
And you sound nothing like I imagined, other then that.
On not liking the sound of your own voice, I think that's probably a universal phenomenon. For what it's worth, I like your voice; somehow you sound just how I'd expect you to. I'm afraid I never had any sort of cowboy image of you, but I think that you can blame that picture of you in the leather pants for that one. ;)
Just 'cause something is universal doesn't mean it doesn't bother me. And I think I prefer the following pictures to the leather-pants one.
heyyyy how about this joke.
my japanese girlfriend dumped me but its ok know why?
I have a feeling this is going be bad, but what the heck... why is it o.k.?
... "other then that"? I take it that means you imagined I sounded very "gay"? What's that even mean? I would think I would "sound gay" by talking about shacking up with my boyfriend and playing tonsil hockey, not just from the sound of my voice.
Somehow the "eh" suits you, I guess. Probably my automated stereotyping mode that made me think you'd sound like a gay cowboy
Such are the dangers of the interwebs, where one has to assign their own voices to people.But just what does a "gay cowboy" sound like?
Despite being a decent writer and a trained actor, as well as an arrogant narcissistic bastard fond of the sound of my own voice and keyboard, I really don't think most of my posts require a dramatic reading, lol.
As for me, The only place I have access to a microphone is at work ... and while people can't see what I'm doing on my screen, it would be fairly obvious If I were to post an audio message.
... Although ... Let's try this ... As I work in text-to-speach software, I can record my written text.
(though I don't know how good it will sound if listen too... )
I think that's a great idea.
Even more so, with a text, I tend to quickly read it, only picking up on the -what I consider- important points. So not also do I miss tone, intent, and attitude (as with any text), but also some context.
With a full text, I could play it, and lets say, remove my spam from my e-mail; or heck, start to reply while listening to. More of the content & idea will have sipped through and less time will be lost.
Small note though; for long posts, I'dd split it up in parts ...
... While typing this, I'm currently listening to Esher's first audiopost, and I have to admit, it's much more humanizing
As if the internet needed to get any louder
:D
I am astounded by the notion of a voice synthesizer that interprets ":D" as "giggles" :o
it didn't. I faked it
(It could though: we have a sort of text-to-sound translation dictionairy for words that shoudn't be spoken normally (like names or words from foreign origin). adding ":D -> giggles" wouldn't be hard ... )
But just what does a "gay cowboy" sound like?
That's kinda hard to explain considering it has to be done in text, and most of how I think a gay cowboy would sound is in my head as well
Edit: On a side note, if you past the "HTML" link into your post after clicking the HTML button in the top bar (to the left of the subscript button) then people can play your audio recording in the thread, without haveing to tab out. More elegant that way, yes?
To ZombieBabies: I barely noticed the distortion in EE's post, and even listening for it on a second run-through it wasn't that bad, in my opinion. As with EE, I'm no audiophile. I'll only complain about distortion in the event that it ruins my stunning rendition of Walkin' in Memphis.
It wasn't terrible, no. It's just something I notice due to various job functions.
Yes! I absolutely agree; I read footnotes at the moment that they're referenced, viewing them as a way of keeping the sentence uncluttered rather than actually delaying the revelation of the information. Reading them aloud in that way would defeat that purpose, and while waiting until the end to read them is a bit goofy it's pretty damned fun to hear these disjointed thoughts read off one after another.
Yeah, it was really fun to hear them at the end. Perfect for the Tavern, too.
Yeah, so far I'm seeing a pretty balanced spread on the pros and cons, with the biggest con being that I might look silly, and honestly that one lost its bite for me a long time ago. Worst-case, I'm wearing my idealistic oddity just a bit more on my sleeve and some anonymous netfolk dismiss me as a weirdo. Best-case, it catches on like footnotes and zie/zir did and I feel like I've contributed something fun to forum discourse. Also, recording replies aloud to text comments makes me feel like the Doctor in 'Blink'. Wibbly wobbly, timey wimey...
Oh yeah, the cons really aren't that big of a deal. It's something I'd possibly consider doing were I able. Possibly ... cuz I really, really hate my voice. ;)
I think that I just might try it on as a regular habit. Walk around in it, see how it feels. Thanks everyone for your input.
Cool. I'd like to hear some of our other members, too.
heyyyy how about this joke.
my japanese girlfriend dumped me but its ok know why?
I estimate you intend to use a recent Gilbert Gottfried joke.
Since I currently do not have a network ready, phonetic communications device equipped, you will have to suffice with a program that will read this text for you from the computer you humans are manipulating.
But just what does a "gay cowboy" sound like?
That's kinda hard to explain considering it has to be done in text, and most of how I think a gay cowboy would sound is in my head as well
Well then buckaroo, why don'tcha getta mic an' get loud then? It ain't like ye don't know 'ow, 'eh?
(and if that flash widget don't work: link to audio)
But just what does a "gay cowboy" sound like?
That's kinda hard to explain considering it has to be done in text, and most of how I think a gay cowboy would sound is in my head as well
Well then buckaroo, why don'tcha getta mic an' get loud then? It ain't like ye don't know 'ow, 'eh?
(and if that flash widget don't work: link to audio)
Best reading so far... by far...