Good Gnod!
Although meanie Chris has spoilt it now by telling you first, I discovered an interesting little thing on the web a few months back, the Global Network Of Dreams, or Gnod to its friends.
Gnod is an artificial intelligence system constantly learning people�s tastes in literature, music and films, based on the likes and dislikes of what its thousands of visitors have inputted. if you type in an author or band that you like, it will show your choice together with other choices hanging together in a groovy, bouncy, space-age fashion; like so. The nearer they hover to your choice, the more people are likely to like them both, if you catch the drift. Basically, it�s a pretty interesting way of showing how people�s tastes overlap.
Another good side feature is you can play stepping stones; clicking straight off another choice floating nearby. In this manner its possible to play �degrees of separation�. I found it was possible to get from Vladimir Nabokov to James Herriot in only two leaps, and from the Velvet Underground to 2 Unlimited in the same. Eerie stuff.
One criticism I have though, I don’t know how quickly its updated. The position of the hoverers has definitely changed on a few of them since I first looked, but despite me typing them both in again and again (and again); The Smiths and The Fall have yet to share the same page as each other as they clearly should. You may see me doing this as a shameful abuse of the system, but, er, sometimes aesthetics are more important than honesty. Or something.
Other Splinters posts of interest:
Make A Comment: ( 3 so far )
3 Responses to “Good Gnod!”
STML
September 29th, 2005
There may be an element of that, but its not true there’ll all just glued together in one mass. Stick in Catherine Cookson for instance, and she’s surrounded by the rest os the pulp/lowbrow crowd; there’s no overlap with the suspects you mention up top.
And on the other hand my fave Patrick Hamilton only has three people flying near him, and as Chris mentions below, Steve’s fave Blanchott doesn’t even get a look in.
Maybe A A Milne really does have a very eclectic appeal! Not to me I might add……
On yet another hand (how many hands is that now?) I realise the whole process IS very flawed, but its still interesting.
Ben G
September 29th, 2005
@J - AA Milne? You’ll damage those transgressive literature blog credentials y’know…
Chris
September 30th, 2005
The book section seems a little hampered by the fact that only webby people have inputted their faves, leading to a rather tight field… I put in A. A. Milne and I still got Ballard, Burroughs, Hunter S Thompson, Delillo etc.