Paper or Plastic?
One of the greatest advantages living humans have over the undead is the ability to communicate. One great thing that spawns from this is protoculture -- the ability to teach. In this, the information age, we are able to share our experiences (no matter how arbitrary) with others through a variety of means.
The means of expression could, hypothetically, become scarce during a large-scale outbreak. This would be a great detriment to our chances of survival as a species if we are cut off from communication, a tool we so desperately rely on for survival. There is, however, the unfailing ability of man to document. Even from the dawn of time, man has retold his encounters in cave paintings.
This brings me to my question.
Which format would be more viable as a means of documentation? Writing or video-recording? (We're operating under the assumption that the documenter stays with only one of the two formats, seeing as how few people tend to watch a movie whilst reading a supplementary novel.) Consider the pro's and con's of each. Will you be able to carry a camera safely? Will you always find time to write? Would recharging the battery be viable? How much of a problem is the language-barrier? Would it be easy enough to carry video recording media? Could you keep all of your papers together?
I haven't been here in a while, so forgive me if this is a tired subject.
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Alice on -
I would write my story down. And maybe even in 2 languages, English and my own's Dutch. But I would need to pack a lot of paper and pens then. And to be even more sure that I can write, like a dozn of pencils and a sharpner.
And to keep it together. I may use paperbinders, or a ordner.
-
Permalink Reply by M on -
I would use paper and pen most definately and write into lined books preferably with hard or leather covers. But presumedly these would wiegh me down, so I'm thinking I'd go through one at a time and when one was down seal it in an airtight/watertight container or bag and deposit/hide it somewhere and mark the position and location on a map/record so I or someone else could one day come back to it. I think, electronic is not reliable enough and I find paper and pen significantly more meaningful and with paper and pen I can express myself in writing and drawing, the language barrier would be a problem either way. But writing would be easier to translate espiecially with drawings, and obviously like with the electronic documentation, battery is a problem, its going to rot away or get destroyed easier is a problem. Paper in the wrong conditions can obviously degrade rapidly, but sealed up properly and it can last for centuries so yeah.
-
Permalink Reply by Ron Salter on -
no question about it, Paper. Camera's require power and require you to stop what you are doing to film, with paper you can write things down when you have the time and are in a safe place. Every bug out bag should have a Rite-in-the- Rain note book and a Fischer Space Pen (they write underwater, upside down, thru grease etc)
-
Permalink Reply by Seneca the Great on -
I have one of those pens! It's fucking sick.
-
Permalink Reply by Seneca the Great on
-
These are valid points. Now, however, consider the immediacy of the media. In order to write, you must find a safe time and place to do this, which means valuable time is lost between the occurrence and the documentation. This grants your short-term memory just enough time to forget the details, some of which might be vital. You can also look at the aspect of human trust. How valid would a written document be to the public eye? Could this piece of writing that you found be propaganda? A trap? Also, would the use of the camera as surveillance be relevant to this discussion?
-
Permalink Reply by Ron Salter on
-
well, if there are zeds around I won't have a camera in my hand , I'll have a weapon. Public eye? After the zpoc there will be no media or public as such to hand this film to. I kind of look at writing anything down as a form of a diary rather than something to past on while I'm still alive, While I'm alive I can just tell people what I need to tell them, if they beleive me or not is their problem not mine. Surveillance....hmmm not much good unless there is someone watching it 24/7 and the battery will run out pretty quick. And for someone to be watching it it will need a remote monitor, again, no power.
Relying on any form of technology in zpoc is kinda pointless, it all requires power.
-
Permalink Reply by Seneca the Great on
-
Maybe not having a camera in-hand, but perhaps one staged nearby, such as mounted on the top of a car, or even a small head-mounted one that could hypothetically be procured from a high-end electronics store.
Also, consider surveillance not as just, 'Hey, there's zombies around the perimeter!' but perhaps, 'Who or what is making that noise?' or 'What the hell is happening to our food rations?' Personally, however, I don't find surveillance to be relevant to the idea of documentation, however.
-
Permalink Reply by M on
-
Well, if you have cameras around the perimeter, then your in a secure/safe place presumedly..... so you can write.... most people are not going to be risking their lives putting cameras around the perimeter, in fact i believe most people will be on the move and therefore setting up a camera every inch of the way would be a complete time waster. Not to mention all the power and weight issues that come with cameras and electronic equitment, its just easier and more resourceful with paper and pen i believe.
-
Permalink Reply by Seneca the Great on
-
True. I'm a writer, so I'm trying to avoid my natural bias by playing devil's advocate.
-
Permalink Reply by Darcie Olivia on -
Communicating is a two way process. As well as contemplating the pro's and con's of writing or filming from the authors point of view, we also have to think about the intended viewee. Will they have the necessay equipment to view our footage? Will they be able to understand our language?
For this reason I would choose to illustrate. Pictures can cross all languages, and there's no compatability issues with memory card models etc.
-
Permalink Reply by Seneca the Great on
-
Hadn't thought about that one...
Now Available!
Call Us
Call the Lost Zombies hotline, toll free, and leave us a message. We may use your message in the Lost Zombies Documentary.
877-ZOMBIE0 that's
877-966-2430
877-ZOMBIE0 that's
877-966-2430
LZ Merch
If you're looking for shirts and LZ gear you can check out our Zazzle store
© 2013 Created by Skot (Lost).
