With less than six days left in the Second Annual CBLDF Fund Drive, we've had five people notify me of their new membership, renewed membership, or donation. Which means that we need just 5 more people to support the CBLDF at the $25 level (or higher) to meet our goal.
It's been slow going so far, but I have confidence in you--my readers--the heroes--that you can make this happen!
(If you're looking for another way to support the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, there are still a couple of days left to bid on the original art from the WildStorm vs. Aspen challenge--proceeds go to the CBLDF!)
Monday, 19 December 2005
Marvel's Dot Bomb
I have to say that I'm rather unimpressed by Marvel's new Digital Comics feature.
Representing on screen comic books originally produced for the printed page has a variety of challenges, but they boil down to two:
1) How do you present a page (or a two page spread) as the whole element, while at the same time allowing readers to zoom in close enough to read the words?
2) How do you handle navigation?
Marvel chose to handle problem one by allowing readers to zoom in on individual panels, making the words legible but leaving the pictures pixelated. They handle problem two by offering a large menu of confusing navigational options. It's a rather frustrating experience.
Contrast this with the now-defunct CrossGen Comics far superior Comics on the Web, where users could use the tab key to cause successive word balloons to zoom up to a redable size, and navigation was done with simple keyboard commands. CrossGen also had other features, such as the ability to get rid of the text entirely, or turn off the computer coloring and view the pages in raw inked black-and-white form.
This is Marvel's second try at offering online versions of their comics, and I think that it's actually worse. Hopefully the third time will be the charm...
Representing on screen comic books originally produced for the printed page has a variety of challenges, but they boil down to two:
1) How do you present a page (or a two page spread) as the whole element, while at the same time allowing readers to zoom in close enough to read the words?
2) How do you handle navigation?
Marvel chose to handle problem one by allowing readers to zoom in on individual panels, making the words legible but leaving the pictures pixelated. They handle problem two by offering a large menu of confusing navigational options. It's a rather frustrating experience.
Contrast this with the now-defunct CrossGen Comics far superior Comics on the Web, where users could use the tab key to cause successive word balloons to zoom up to a redable size, and navigation was done with simple keyboard commands. CrossGen also had other features, such as the ability to get rid of the text entirely, or turn off the computer coloring and view the pages in raw inked black-and-white form.
This is Marvel's second try at offering online versions of their comics, and I think that it's actually worse. Hopefully the third time will be the charm...
New Library Comics: Week of December 12, 2005
Here are the comics we got in for our library collection last week:
The education of a comics artist : visual narrative in cartoons, graphic novels, and beyond /New York : Allworth Press ; School of Visual Arts, c2005.
Hatfield, Charles, 1965- Alternative comics : an emerging literature /Jackson : University Press of Mississippi, c2005.
Kondo, Yuko. Too fat can't fly and other stories /Corte Madera, Calf : Gingko Press, 2004.
Kramer's ergot 5 /Corte Madera, Calif. : Gingko Press, 2004.
Marcel, Swen. David : La Finca /Koln : Mattei Medien, 2004.
Mills, Scott. Trenches /Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions, c2002.
Prince, Liz. Will you still love me if I wet the bed? : a comic /Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions, 2005.
The education of a comics artist : visual narrative in cartoons, graphic novels, and beyond /New York : Allworth Press ; School of Visual Arts, c2005.
Hatfield, Charles, 1965- Alternative comics : an emerging literature /Jackson : University Press of Mississippi, c2005.
Kondo, Yuko. Too fat can't fly and other stories /Corte Madera, Calf : Gingko Press, 2004.
Kramer's ergot 5 /Corte Madera, Calif. : Gingko Press, 2004.
Marcel, Swen. David : La Finca /Koln : Mattei Medien, 2004.
Mills, Scott. Trenches /Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions, c2002.
Prince, Liz. Will you still love me if I wet the bed? : a comic /Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions, 2005.
Christmas Covers - December 19
For each day of December until Christmas I'm featuring a Comic Cover Advent Calendar. Just move your mouse over the image to reveal today's special Holiday comic cover. Click on the image to get a larger version.
Tom Palmer paints the cover to Marvels 1985 adaptation of Santa Claus: The Movie for Marvel Comics Super Special #39
Come back tomorrow, and every day this month, for a new Christmas cover.
Just 6 more 'get-ups' until Santa!
(Bad holiday movies getting you down? Cheer up by listening to Yet Another Music Radio for our Holiday Music 2005 mix for over three hours of seasonal songs.)
(And don't forget Polite Dissent's comic cover advent calendar; Love Manga's advent calendar manga give-away; or my own CBLDF Fund Drive.)
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