Prior to the invention of the
alphabet, writing systems posed as complex means of communication in which
decoders, or readers, found it difficult to interpret information and meanings
(221). Conventions defining the formation symbols and transmission of ideas through
technological resources, namely publishing technologies, represent a social
force impacting the way texts are understood and used by audiences. It is the
responsibility of professional writers to remain aware of such conventions,
ethical accountability, and socially situated construct and deliver messages by
means that can be accepted by their readers.
Texts must first be
recognized as not only a writing system, but as a technological practice to
connect with readers and engage their comprehension of what is being presented.
During the 9th century in cultures dominated by prealphabetic
scripts, reading was restricted to specialists, lacked a means of achieving
social action, and was difficult to interpret due to an abstract writing
system. Symbols and words served as recognizable discourse in consideration of
those looking to acquire and preserve power (222). Then a shift in
communication emerged as technologies further developed, thus leading writers
to switch from being gatekeepers to publishers of texts.
Innovations allowed writers
to communicate ideas to “others.” However, texts had to be read orally. The
lack of lowercase letters, spaces between words, and punctuation to separate
statements, posed as time consuming and physically exhausting to readers.
Writers reevaluated how texts were transmitted to audiences and instituted
those attributes to permit silent reading, dramatically increasing the amount
of text that could be processed (224). Yet, the traditional method for
producing text by hand was unable to satisfy the demand for literature.
Intellectuals began questioning and providing technological answers in response
to those demands. In addition, readers also required a more advanced approach
for creating their own documents, crossing the boundaries from decoder to
encoder.
Developments including
letterpress printing, the typewriter, lithography, and xerography brought
writing from merely representing a tool for communicating to a social practice
that was technologically founded. Letterpress printing used hand-drawn
letterforms models that had to be built, forced against paper, and fed into
then pulled off a pressed. Although laborious, this innovation established
book-making as commercial rather than an artistic activity (225). The typewriter acted as an alternative to
handwriting for the everyday publisher; it was an artificial machine for
impressing or transcribing letters on paper or parchment (226). Lithography
took publishing to a level of using chemicals to produce text, and xerography
made offset publishing through electrostatic printing (227-232). Each
technology was created to address the increased public and commercial demands of
texts, and counteracted the limited functionality of one another.
Eventually, social practice invigorated
publishing and printing trends and lead to computerized advancements in the
field. Structure then became a new market within itself. Screen-based and
innovative techniques regarding printed texts changed the way information was
communicated and interpreted. Whether embedded or interactive, writers and
readers alike had more control over the different situation for which texts was
used (234-241). Depended upon the situation, texts can be access for extended
reading, such as with printed materials, or for quickly accessible instruction,
such as with software tutorials via screen. Either way, readers of all texts
must navigate to diffuse collections of information (242).
Due to advance technologies
in communication, ideas are more easily available to individuals. Copyright
laws were originally established to institute an ignoble desire for censorship
and protect profits by prohibiting unlicensed competition (255). The new
electronic environment, commonly utilized by the public, has initiated and redefined
intellectual property and copyright laws. Such laws now protect the labor
behind idea development rather than the idea itself. Permission must be
acquired before reciting another writer’s work in most situations. However,
lines that define copyright laws are often indistinct, and issues are frequently
judged per case, rather than on a one-size-fits-all
basis to convict infringements.
Increased public demand of
texts, from writing systems to interpretation to presentation – had greatly
influenced technological advancements throughout history. Developments
represent new and improved construction in response to problems encountered
from traditional technologies. Formerly considered a tool, social practice within
print and electronic arenas initiated a transformation in writing comparable
with circumstances that arise due to informational availability and usage.
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