The Digital Dark Age Cometh!

Does everyone remember floppy disks?

This morning, the top trending topic was the warning issued by Vint Cerf, vice-president of Google, that we must create tangible back-up copies of all our digital works or else we may lose everything, every memory in a "digital Dark Age". So I read about the pressing issue of this topic from various sources and Cerf is not warning everyone about another Y2k or an immediate danger to all of our digital files. Instead, it is a warning that our technology will continue to evolve until the methods we use to save our digital files may go obsolete.

This issue directly influences webcomics and the method we have used to save our files. It should be a reminder that we should not only save our comic files on internal and external hard drives, USB sticks, and online servers. One of the suggestions to keep all of our digital files forever is to print paper copies of our written works and photographs as a reminder to future generations of what we have accomplished before they are inaccessible forever. Although, printing all of our comic files is a double-edged sword because it would destroy a lot of trees and paper is not guaranteed to last over centuries of wear and tear.

When I was actively updating my comic, I used to keep a physical binder of a printed copy for each page so I could read it like a book and the cost of colored laser ink added up. I also have moved a lot since that time and having to carry around boxes of paper is not the ideal. I prefer to simply carry around an external hard drive to hold all my files.

The idea of a Digital Dark Age is interesting to me because websites are not around forever and one day the Internet as we know it today will be vastly different. If we continue to save everything we have ever drawn, all the pictures we have ever taken, and all the emails we have ever written in a digital-format. Then we risk having all of those important memories quickly disappearing at the click of a button.

Then I remember that a human life lasts for about a century, at most, and that the simplest memories that mean the world to us might just be half a blink of an eye for a future descendant. I would really not want to leave boxes filled with a sentimental paper trail for the future generations to weed through and possibly discard. So I take a drink of hot tea, think about the Lorax, who speaks for the trees, the real loser in this whole printing fiasco, and I think about all the memories that are important to me and back-up my digital files in the most current format.

Important Note: Please remember to back up your webcomic files in various formats and hard drives as a safety measure. It is just a smart thing to do, even without the danger of a digital Dark Age.

HAPPY PRESIDENT'S DAY (USA), CARNAVAL, and FAT TUESDAY!!

Denizens! Attention! Published

The Duck's very own creative genius MadMindInk of the gorgeous webcomic, Denizens! Attention! has just published a paperback version of her comic and it is for sale.

http://www.lulu.com/shop/lesya-blackbird-ink/denizens-attention/paperback/product-22045248.html


"To escape their suffocating home life, Alicka and Winston get themselves sent to Winterkill Boarding School for Juvenile Delinquents. Winterkill turns out to be not what they expected, but just as they are settling in, their safe haven is threatened. The Great Dragon, who guards the worlds has abandoned his duty and the world sphere is in grave danger. Something must be done."
Price: $35.00


QUACKCAST

What about BODY SHAPE? - Quackcast topic, please contribute.
This week's topic discussion is going to piggyback on the topic on Body Shape in webcomics that ozoneocean and Banes discussed in Quackcast 205, but this time, they would like everyone's contributions!

Oz and Banes would love to know what YOU think about bodyshape in comics! Ones that YOU draw, read, or have just seen. Time is running out, so get those contributions in the forum posted by this Friday, February 20th, at Midnight (PST)

http://www.theduckwebcomics.com/forum/topic/176795/

MILESTONE


KAM would like to announce that his comic The KAMics hit its 1525 page milestone last Friday. Congratulations on your page count mileage, KAM!

Link: http://www.theduckwebcomics.com/The_KAMics/

.::.
What's Quacking?
Do you have any original art to contribute to our stock image database, announcements, community projects, ideas, news, or milestones to report? Please leave general comments below or send a PQ to kawaiidaigakusei. Email me at kawaiidaigakusei(at)gmail(dot)com.