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Underground > Comic Books >

Format

pointless and uncalled for

11:39 / 29.06.03

Just read the paper-based copy of the Jenny Everywhere comic last night.

As Flyboy pointed out to me it does seem intrinsically better to have it as a tangible article in the standard form than to have it as an on-line entity. Although as an author he does have a greater attachment to the finished product than I, I do agree with him very stongly on this matter.

So how do you feel?

Is it better to download and scroll or pick up and turn?

11:43 / 29.06.03

sorry but that's a total non question. the latter, obviously. slogan: 'we accrete'.

All Acting Regiment

20:32 / 29.06.03

The whole point of "a comic book" is that it's there for you to have in front of you and read. I think. A "webcomic" is nothing more than a jpeg on a website, albeit a great jpeg full of ideas and aceness. If you had a really good printer and print it off well that's good, but why not save on cartridge and buy the real thing?

On the other hand, you normally don't have to pay to see a web comic; it's less corporation-run than a traditional comic(forgetting handily abouyt the microsoft browser you're using to view it), and etc.

20:49 / 29.06.03

Um, what paper-based version of Jenny Everywhere is this, then?

21:11 / 29.06.03

I can't stand reading things online, and soon lose interest if the thing I'm trying to get through is too long. Despite Scott Macloud's (sp?) messianic urges towards web comics, I have to say that i prefer the printed form in almost every way (except for price, which admitably for a poor student is a big one).

21:39 / 29.06.03

I think web comics only work in a short 3 or 4 panel form. This can work really well in installments such as the 'When I am King' comic (It's called something like that ...can't remember at the moment). Otherwise you're left with a large Jpeg to read as Chris pointed out. Not that much fun in that. People really need to start exploring the possibilities of the internet. It really can be an interactive comic. You don't have to be tied down to such a linear form. A detective comic where clicking on the knife on the bed will take you off into a whole different narrative for instance. Of course what we're getting into is a game really. I imagine that as the technology improves and becomes easier and cheaper to use that will be what we'll start getting Silent Hill as scripted by Morrison and drawn by McKean. Of course it's not a comic then is it. Again as technology improves and we can have PDFs that can download in seconds and print out as high quality glossy pages we've got a Napster situation. Which is good as well but then we're back to paper and back to comics. Really good for the small pressers. I think i've managed to talk myself into it being a good idea again. Um...it's a good idea and not. I'll go back to my extra strengh cider now...

Dan Fish - @Fish1k

13:28 / 30.06.03

Technology bods have predicted that electronic magazines and newspapers are in the foreseeable future (prototypes have been doing the rounds on chat shows etc). This means that downloadable images will soon be able to be read on the loo/displayed on t-shirts/etc.

I think it is this revolution that McCloud is looking forward to. When we all own $50 'news-sheets', and can download comics that we have bought with micropayments, and store them on our personal web-servers, then web-comics might begin to replace print.

This all sounds like science fiction at the moment, but then look at mobile phones in the past five years.

13:44 / 30.06.03

I'm assuming you just printed it out from the site?

pointless and uncalled for

18:39 / 01.07.03

Not me, no I was handed a copy by the almighty Flyboy himself.

I apologise, I was expecting that with all of the techniks around these days then there would be more opposing view, which would allow me some insight into t'other side of the coin.

Regrettable Juvenilia

09:05 / 02.07.03

Just to clarify: Nelson and I have had a bunch of mini-comics printed with our two strips to date contained therein. Details to follow in another thread.

I'd never want to disparage online comics in any sense. I think they can be a great way for creators who don't have access to other forms of publishing and/or distribution to get work out there, and for readers to discover new talent immediately (there's a big difference between reading or hearing someone say "check out xyz, available if you write to soandso publishing!", and seeing a link you can click on there and then).

All that being said, there's nothing like holding a printed comic in your hands if you wrote it...