Visual Networking

Visual literacy, "the ability to interpret, negotiate and make meaning from information presented in the form of an image," is a powerful force in human evolution, and with the acceleration of communication enabled by computer networks, it is changing the way we work, live, play and learn.

As a platform for all forms of communication, the computer network is the driving force behind a new human network of collaboration, creativity and community, connecting people to people and people to content across time and space. A key catalyst of the human network, the visual aspect –-"the poetry of visual information," (as described in Visual Explanations by Edward Tufte)-- now prevalent on the network, is allowing people to connect in dramatic, new ways.

The key technology that is revolutionizing visual networking is streaming digital video. The ability to convey information and express oneself with moving pictures and sound or live video, and deliver it faster and farther than ever before, is taking the art of storytelling to a new level. Visual networking is having a remarkable affect on human communication and collaboration, and is a source for innovation in business, healthcare, education, and entertainment.

Visual Networking, the marriage of streaming digital video technology and social networking - has resulted from increased access to the Internet and greater network bandwidth, the use of standard protocols and formats for moving data, and the availability of inexpensive end-user devices. This has enabled streaming media and video content to be transparently created, customized, stored and delivered on a single, integrated, converged, wire-to-wireless network. Now, voice, video and data on the computer, telephone, television and mobile devices are extending and enriching the user experience. This new experience is enabling more choice, better navigation of content, faster and more personalized interaction, and higher quality, more intuitive functionality.

The duality of visual networking - subsuming entertainment and communications, professional and personal content, video and other digital media, data networks and social networks is a logical extension of the human network concept. The human network, a social structure of individuals connected through technology in the form of e-mail, shared digital imagery, wikis, blogs, podcasts and instant messaging, is enabling "unprecedented collaboration in commerce, art, sciences, health and education."

Video by its very nature is highly experiential, making communications more compelling, informative and memorable. The emotive power of the moving image in the form of streaming digital and audio content is having a transformative affect on applications delivered on the network. These applications have changed video content from long-form movies and broadcast television programming to a database of segments or "clips," and social network annotations. But it is the personal application, not the time, place or device that now drives the content. As video content becomes pervasively available, end-users gain control of what they watch, where and when they watch, and on which device they watch it. And the generation and distribution of content takes on a new dimension with Web 2.0 applications - participatory social-networks or communities that facilitate interactive creativity, collaboration and sharing between users.

Emerging consumer applications that integrate video content creativity with web delivery efficiency can hasten the revolution in communications towards immersive, social networking. Search engines, web portals and e-commerce have made networks viable and popular with individual users, but as visual networking continues to enrich the user experience, applications that enable new user communities, content discovery, high quality personal teleconferencing and entertainment-oriented operating environments are fostering new kinds of human interaction and commerce.

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