There is SO much technology to keep up with, it's mind blowing, really! The comic-related industry is just nuts I tell you. Let's be honest here, we are all geeks that love the ol' 22 page floppy and it shows! There are comic book related blogs, such as this one, comic book related websites, news sites, gossip sites, and more! Comic book creators, fans, and companies Tweeting away like there is no tomorrow, Facebook, MySpace and more! All of it can be VERY overwhelming, and some days, like today, just thinking about the sheer volume of comic book related technology out there makes me a very tired girl. I want to do what Sups is doing in the above picture, just lay down and stare off into space. ( BTW, if you haven't seen the documentary entitled "Confessions of a Super Hero", that's where that picture is from, go rent it NOW. Great, great doc about the guys and girls that dress as Super Heroes in front of Ming's Chinese Theatre. )Sometimes I wonder, is ALL of this necessary? I mean really? Yes, I realize that I too am just as bad, participating in all of the aforementioned comic book related technology possibilities, but I do that more because it's expected rather than really wanting to do it. Maybe that makes me a bad person, or a stupid person to admit it in public, but there you go. I think most of this technology has it's uses, really, but my god, to keep up with it all is a full time job! Between this blog, my own personal email, the store's email, my Facebook page, the store's Facebook page, Moonstone's Facebook page, my MySpace, the store's MySpace, Moonstone's MySpace, my Twitter, and now the store's Twitter: it's a little nutty! I'm not complaining, just pointing out the craziness of it all! Let's break it down, as far as comic-related stuff goes, this is what is out there, do we need all of it?
1) comic book related websites: comic book companies, comic creators, comic fans, comic stores, comic news, comic book gossip, and more! Yep, these are all pretty much standard these days. Everyone in business needs to have a half way decent functioning website.
2)comic book related blogs: every comic news site has a blog devoted to news, many comic creators, many comic book shops, many comic book companies, and comic book industry folks have blogs (such as this one). Are they needed? Again, it does appear that they have their uses. For example, I am able to discuss different comic book related topics, which is nice for folks that may not be able to make it into the shop on a regular basis or don't live anywhere near our shops but want to know what's going on etc. So, damn it, it looks like these are a necessary evil too!
3) comic book related Facebook pages: people SO love the Facebook trend, so I guess that is here for the moment and isn't going anywhere! Does it serve a purpose? Yes, get a message out quick to many folks that are interested in what you have to say.
4) comic book related MySpace pages: I'm afraid MySpace is just about dead. I'm toying with the idea of dumping my personal MySpace page anyway. The shop's MySpace and Moonstone's MySpace still seem to have some activity and I post on both of those pretty regularly (with Jerkules' help for the shop's MySpace page).
5) comic book related Twitter accounts: I just started twittering for myself personally, and it's interesting, but I'm not sure how long I will keep up with, because frankly my life is just not that compelling, lol. Additionally I just starting doing the whole Twitter thing for the shop and I think this can prove to be a VERY useful tool, but time will tell how that goes down.
http://twitter.com/Amazing_Fantasy The whole twitter thing does seem to be a bit repetitive, serving the same function as Facebook, but maybe I'm wrong...
6) email accounts: yes obviously all of us need these, we couldn't live without them! But my goodness, multiple email accounts make for much to juggle, lol! But such is the price of doing business!
Is there a lesson to be learned in all of this? Yes, I need some of that handy dandy software that links all of my stuff together to make it easier to post and the same with all my store related technology based programs!
What do you guys think? Do you like ALL of the options out there for you to keep up with your favorite comic book companies, fans, creators, store owners, characters and more? What is your favorite source for comic book intel? Facebook? Websites? Blogs? Tweets? I'm curious what everyone thinks!
I don't like all the options. Seems the information gets divided between them. I have to check the myspace page to see the list of comics coming on Wednesday on the A & F myspace before Diamond posts it to their website.
ReplyDeleteNot much discussion is made other than that, so I come to your blog to read that, and mind you, twitter is an okay form of getting information out, but it's nothing more than a light blog. So you sum everything up in 160 letters or less.
So, not much there in terms of longer messages. It's okay for short messages, when you're on the go, you're just trying to let your friends or customers know what's going on, but that's the height of it if you ask me.
I dunno. Sometimes I miss goofing around on Windows 3.0.
By the way, may I just say Confessions of a Super Hero is a fantastic documentary, and it's worth looking into? I watched it on Netflix when it was up on it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I look at how I use these tools myself, it breaks down like this:
ReplyDelete1) Other websites and blogs: I have found that I tend to read comic book blogs more than comic book news websites. This may be because I find a lot of the news sites to be too fawning and not honest enough about the medium they are covering. More likely, I just feel like ranting with the rest of the fanboys.
2) My blog: I have a RPG/Comics/Nerd blog that I called A Hero Twice A Month. It is much more successful (i.e., more comments) as an RPG blog then comic book blog. Still, I am trying to put more comic related material out there and increase my exposure to comic book audiences.
3) Facebook: I mostly use this to keep in touch with old friends. I am part of a few comic book and other interest groups on Facebook, but it is not the first place I turn for getting information.
4) Twitter: This has turned out more useful than I originally gave it credit for. Mostly because by following people with similar interests I am often exposed to things I might not have looked up on my own, but that appeal to me. I have occasionally written massive blog posts about something that I first learned about from a random tweet and then researched further.
I like most of the options. Facebook is my favorite, since I don't have to remember to go to any other specific site in order to get news - it just pops up as a status update. I have to admit the only reason I ever go to A/F's MySpace is to see the new comics listed and read the mighty musings of Jerkules, and I have not yet succumbed to twitter.
ReplyDeleteAs for general comics news, I tend to stick to the big sites like CBR and Newsarama, but will occasionally check out some blogs. I try to keep my own comics blog updated, though I must confess it sometimes feels a bit self-centered to think that anyone would actually care about my opinions. But at the end of the day, I love writing, I love comics, and I love writing about comics, so in some ways I don't care if anyone ever clicks over and reads it.
I'm pretty old fashioned when it comes to my comic book news, and that's probably because of a lifetime of nurturing such habits. I don't generally troll comic book sites or blogs, and my religion is swearing off social networking on the internet (facebook, myspace, all that other crap I have no use for.) I only really visit this blog because I like Lori and I like reading what she has to say. I only visit the AF Facebook page to get the weekly announcement of what comics are coming out.
ReplyDeleteI hang out at two video game related sites that are largely forums, Neo-Geo.com and Evil Avatar, for video game news and there is some spill over as many video gamers are also comic book fans. I get a lot of my comic 'news' by osmosis.
But mostly, when I hear something about the comic industry I *generally* talk to Lori and the AF crew when i see them on new comic day or I visit Darren at Suncoast and shoot the shit with him for a while. I didn't even read about the Disney acquisition initially. But I couldnt' turn a corner without being hit in the face with it so I eventually broke down and read up on it.
For the most part, my feeling is that the comic book sites and blogs are great for hardcore comic book fans because it gives them an outlet for their comic book jones. I'm the same way about video games, so I get it. When it comes to comics, I don't need a whole lot more than Previews, Darren and Lori, Paul, Mike and the AF Frankfurt crew.