Friday, 29 October 2010

landscape

http://www.theartwolf.com/articles/50-impressionist-paintings.htm

CAMILLE PISSARRO: "Landscape at Pontoise", 1874 - oil on canvas, 61-81 cm. - Winterthur, Oskar Reinhart Collection - view high resolution image

Known as "The Father of Impressionism", Pissarro is, along with Monet and Sisley, the most "pure" of all Impressionist painters, exhibiting in all eight of the Impressionist exhibitions. He is particulary famous for his depictions of rural life of Northern France, specially the town of Pontoise, in which the influence of the naturalism of Jean-Baptiste Corot and Gustave Courbet is evident.


CAMILLE PISSARRO: "Le Boulevard Montmartre, effet de nuit (The Boulevard Montmartre at Night)", 1897 - Oil on canvas, 53.3 x 64.8 cm - London, National Gallery - view high resolution image

While Pissarro is more famous for his depictions of the rural life, he also created a great number of fabulous urban scenes of 19th century Paris. In 1897, he took a room in Boulevard Montmartre and depicted it at different hours of the day, being this canvas the only night scene of the series. "The Boulevard Montmartre at Night" is a sensational impressionist painting, though Pissarro never exhibited it during his lifetime.

[news]Wi-fi trial will let commuters browse internet on Underground

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23892853-wi-fi-trial-will-let-commuters-browse-internet-on-underground.do

Wi-fi trial will let commuters browse internet on Underground
Mark Prigg, Science and Technology Editor
29.10.10

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Commuters will be able to go online at Tube stations for the first time in a groundbreaking trial starting on Monday.

It will mean thousands of commuters at one of London's busiest stations will be able to read their email, browse the internet and even watch live TV via wi-fi hotspots.

If successful, the trial at Charing Cross could be rolled out to the capital's busiest stations within months.

"This will change the way we commute," said Will Findlater, editor of Stuff magazine.

"It's a big step forward for the Tube network, bringing it into line with the rest of the transport system. It will be a real help by allowing people to communicate on their commute."

Boris Johnson has pledged to enable wireless access across the network by the 2012 Olympics.

"This trial will allow commuters to check their emails and browse the net while on the go," said Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor's transport adviser.

London Underground has teamed up with BT Openzone to launch the six-month trial. It will see wi-fi hotspots installed in the ticket hall and Northern and Bakerloo line platforms. Although it will not give access to mobile phone networks, users will be able to use internet services such as Skype to make calls.

BT says other key stations on the Tube network are likely to be brought online before the trial ends.

"The idea is to let people access email, Facebook and even sites like the BBC's iPlayer while they are waiting for a train," said Marjorie Leonidas from BT Openzone.

Plans to roll out the system have not been finalised. "These are baby steps to see if people are happy with the service," said Miss Leonidas.

The move will bring London up to speed with other cities such as Barcelona, Glasgow and New York, where trials are already under way to offer wi-fi and phone coverage underground.Mobile phone operators are developing plans to allow calls to be made on Tube platforms and even on trains.

Richard Parry, strategy and commercial director for London Underground, said: "We hope that our customers will find it useful."

Q&A
How does it work?
BT Openzone has installed wi-fi hotspots on platforms and in ticket halls at Charing Cross. The hotspots let commuters connect to BT's network from underground in exactly the same way they would connect to their home wi-fi. The service will use the wi-fi system already in place at Charing Cross for underground staff.

How much will it cost?
Accessing TfL's website and the “rainbow” status boards will be free. Other services require a subscription to BT's Openzone network of wi-fi hotspots, which is bundled with BT Broadband and mobile contracts with O2, Tesco Mobile, Vodafone and Orange.

When will it be available in all stations?
Boris Johnson has pledged to enable wireless access across the network by the 2012 Olympics. Detailed plans for the rollout have not yet been made public.

What about phone calls?
Mobile phone operators are formulating plans to allow calls on both platforms and trains. No details have been released, although O2 has carried out successful trials on Glasgow's subway system.

Monday, 18 October 2010

The interpretation of Wi-Fi images

Different types of Wi-Fi machines have their economic modes, including citywide paid Wi-Fi hotspots, infrastructure-type municipal Wi-Fi access points, free Wi-Fi connection provided by volunteers, wireless routers in offices and wireless ADSL modems at homes. The economic modes also accompanied with the political operation: people lock their home Wi-Fi access points to avoid others accessing them and Wi-Fi activists help users to share their wireless signal to create community Wi-Fi networks against telecom companies’ high-price internet fee. Wi-Fi houses come from huge cityview to personal view. It broke the illusion of connected city as a whole to a personal independence. Wi-Fi house images create a link between public and private domain. House is the elementary unit to distinguish us from the others and I transformed Wi-Fi access points to house metaphor. Against the overwhelming numbers of commercial Wi-Fi hotspots, these images connect Wi-Fi distribution to personal moving routes to make Wi-Fi access points close to personal experience than Wi-Fi hotspots as shops that provide Wi-Fi connection. Wi-Fi access points are not only the property owned by telecom companies but also the part of human experience. When we see Wi-Fi users as cyborg, cyborg turned Wi-Fi access points to cyborg’s house. The house images convert separate Wi-Fi access points to a hierarchical house society.

House is one of the personal identity. The images construct landscape portraits for interrelated Wi-Fi access points. Popular Wi-Fi access points/hotspots are not the product of technology and telecom companies, they are houses for cyborgs. We are not controlled by the capitalist but we create and live our life in our Wi-Fi houses.