Drinking from a Fire Hose.
In 1965, Gordon Moore stated “the number of transistors per square inch on integrated circuits had doubled every year since their invention” this observation evolved in the 70’s to become “the processing power for computers will double every two years “ or Moore’s law. It might not be 100% accurate but most agree that it feels true. The use of the term Moore’s law has been lifted from computer science to account for the rapid progression across all areas of technology.
Buckminster Fuller coined the term “ Knowledge Doubling Curve” he suggested that in 1900 the sum of man’s knowledge doubled every century and by the late 40’s it was happening every 25 years, When I was in elementary school it was every ten years, in high school it became every 5. Today it’s every 13 months and with Artificial Intelligence and access through the internet it’s predicted that the sum of human knowledge could double every 12 hours. That’s a lot of TED talks to sit through.
In the production industry, the amount of new information, techniques and technology is staggering. The introduction of New Capture, Support, Lighting, Image processing and Distribution innovation is head spinning. How do you keep up? If you’re lucky enough to be working on regular basis time becomes a precious commodity. Most of our days go well past ten hours, then there’s the commute, family time, keeping up on current events and hopefully a little sleep. Being a freelancer working with multiple crews allows a lot of information to be cross-pollinated but what if you’re staff or in a small market that does not have a lot of early innovators?
You need to keep your knowledge base current or you’re walking yourself out of the business.
NAB, Cine Gear and product seminars have always been a great place to learn about new products and technology plus they provided the added benefit of networking but even those can’t keep up with the pace of innovation. Trade publications, On-line tutorials, Message boards, Blogs, Internet journals and Apps are available but how much time do you dedicate to them. The only way to drink from a fire hose is to divert little sips from the plume. Break it down into smaller bits and consume when you can.
Like all good habits you need to incorporate your knowledge updates into life without becoming obsessive. Make a list of the journals, message boards and blogs you like, then create a schedule to visit each one. Three days a week I spend 15 minutes over coffee checking out journals like Creative Planet, H.D. times and Phillip Bloom’s blog. If I see something that requires a deep dive I’ll circle back the next day to reread and absorb that information. Every night before I pick up a book I’ll check out a message board and any digest emails from the news groups I belong to, again if something requires a closer examination I’ll write a note to myself to follow up on it on a day off. If I can relate something I read to a client’s need I’ll drill down with a visit to the manufacturer’s web site, other blogs and I’ll try to find video on YouTube and Vimeo to see controlled tests and operation tutorials.
You need to stay current on technology and where it fits into your workflow if you want to be relevant in your market. The amount of information being thrown at us every day can be paralyzing but if you make a habit of breaking it down into smaller bites you can stay on top of it.
See you at NAB!
