The finished game...

This is the finished piece of work for e-learning, the children who use it will have to drag and drop words onto the bunnys belly, he will then animate...

It now has sound effects and a soundtrack, that make viewing more fun.

Final piece...

We had some group differneces, however in the end it all came together, as a drag and drog game in an isometric view, its mainly an informatic game... it presents a more interesting way to learn about global warming... if you drag and drop elements onto the targets on the plane, then they will react, and the gasses will increase.

If the gasses reach a critical level then they lose the game, but they can prevent this by adding more plants to the atmosphere.

Doing the re-search...

After having a chat with a masters student, who knew alot about global warming we made some notes, and formulated some ideas about what we were going to do. It was the basic of our re-search:

The main things to consider with the issuse of global warming are...

Methane gasses- industrial processes and cows etc, stays in the atmosphere for short period of time, rubbish dumps- there have to be insulating caps

Nitrous oxide- nos, industrial causes (petrol companies- cant be bothered to extract gas, they just burn it off)

Carbon- cars, industrial uses, exhaust emissions test

Hcfcs- fridges- in correct disposal, stays in the atmos 50,000 years

C02- reacts with the oceans, makes the oceans more acidic – effects the food chains, phytoplankton, solution- plant more trees- trees hold a lot of carbon

Ice caps melting, higher sea levels, increase surface area of deserts

Spain will suffer allot as a result of global warming

the UK will be hotter as a result, however the sea levels will increase because of the melted ice caps.

America – the area where they produce their corn (canvas, Iowa) –Central America – there would be no rainfall become arias

If both the Antarctic and the Greenland melted then there would be a 70 m sea level rise!!!!

The gulf stream has a mix of saline to fresh water and this affects the climate- we get tropical winds and waters – but effected by co2 and increased water levels from rivers – because there is to much water being

Volcanos contribute to global warming

Reduce imitations from polluting countries- Europe, America and china

Emissions tests and laws all managed by the U.N

They can trade emissions targets

Industrial stuff- ones who produce energy are the worst

Photos of my exibit...

The finished exibit....

Concept:

The idea behind my work is an experiment with space, location and dialogue. It is a series of audio, contained within an installation in the Scott building. Each audio track, experiments with memory within a defined space; whilst additionally delving into a satirical consideration of artificial dialogues, the meaning of the term ‘artificial dialogue’. I have aimed to explore connotations and denotations within sound, image and surroundings.

Semacode:

This uses visual tags that can be read with a mobile camera phone, very similar to shock code (something that you may be familiar with already). Using software installed on your phone, it is possible to take a picture of the semacode. The semacode will then be decoded to find the URL (where I have the audio tracks stored). Using mobile Internet technology, you may visit URL or download media.

How it works:

Within the Scott building on the top floor there are several posters put up that have a printed semacode tag on them. Use the software to take a picture of it and download the audio.

Effectiveness:

Originally, when I came to present my work, nobody had semacode installed. The link to download semacode software from my mini site (created for use on a phone), downloaded a zip file. So it didn't work, first off. I came back at the end of the day. When I finally had semacode installed on the smart phone i presented some of my work then. Originally I had wanted to use video on the phone and explore memory within spaces, and to record video within those spaces. However, using audio seem to fit the brief, as I have a collection of artificial dialogues that I pre-recorded. Along with the sounds of what may have happened in that particular space; this in some ways allowed me to be more creative with it and play on people's connotations and denotations of sound and image.

Future potential for these technologies:

I think that this would make advertising, a lot more interactive. People can explore semacode/shotcode to give people more information about things- like on products or places. I think that the combination or gps/internet/music & media is an interesting one. The use of semacode/shot code takes the hassle out of accessing web material online.

I didn’t have much chance to show case my work, so I have included some links:

My mini site: http://www.dynamicmovement.co.uk/mxd-reality (designed for my exhibit, to provide general information)

The union: http://www.dynamicmovement.co.uk/mxd-reality/union.mp3 (originally made to be access via semacode placed outside the student union)- a mix of a friends recoreded voice, a d+b track and out put from text-to-speech recognition software

Fountain: http://www.dynamicmovement.co.uk/mxd-reality/fountain.mp3 (placed on the toilet door in scott building)

Film: http://www.dynamicmovement.co.uk/mxd-reality/pulpfiction.mp3 (famous dialogue, instantly recognisable, yet altered with audio cleaning software)

Untitled: http://www.dynamicmovement.co.uk/mxd-reality/theweatheroutside.mp3 (you walk up to the window, activate semacode, and listen to sounds of hail against the window, whilst looking outside)

Interview: http://www.dynamicmovement.co.uk/mxd-reality/theinterview.mp3n (placed outside and potential interview room, I’ve highlighted the way that people use ‘artificial dialogue’ when in this situation

Eliza: http://www.dynamicmovement.co.uk/mxd-reality/eliza.mp3 (a look at computer, artificially generated dialogue as a script)

Most of these posters up around the scott building also have an image accompanying the semacode- so that, without image, location, and audio the separate elements will not make sense.

Mixing audio

Now im 100% sure what i want to do, ive started mixing some tracks using MAGIX audio cleaning lab - software that lets you alter audio...very time consuming, and ive encountered various technical difficulties- such as noise on dialouge recordings etc...

Definatly want to change the idea now!....

I have given it a vast amount of thought and have come to a conclusion.

I have to change my idea as i realize now that it is out side the scope of my technical abilities, and its highly un-likely that ill be able to get any help with that side of things.

Also the artistic value of this idea is minimal. I want to do something more artistic. The biggest restriction on my creativity is coming up with the final idea before I’ve even started, ive found it hard to get inspired with it as, its restricted to the confines of the brief.

Some other ideas that I have come up with are a program were every letter of the key board would print a whole word on screen, so depending on what order you pressed the keys it would generate a different poem…this is inspired by the concept of ‘cut up poems’ – randomly selected words or sentences to produce songs and poems.

This idea requires learning object orientated action script- which hopefully I can do…

Another idea is inspired by ‘proof of life’, 2005, by moon na – an installation at the Tran-medial arts festival in Berlin. In this there was a TV screen, and some seats…the images on the tv screen were showing the room, -almost as if it were a cctv camera in the room…it played in the idea of the sign of life being a voice in the background. Its confusing at first as it seems like footage shot in the same room you are sitting in and nothing else- its plays on the idea of memory within a space.

Another inspiring piece of work was and installation called ‘against god by water pistol’ also at the Berlin arts festival- where there is a flat speaker directly over head, with a tv screen in front of you. The image on the TV screen is a girl standing in the rain and aiming a water pistol back up to the sky ….the speaker over head make you feel like your more in the scene – as if it were an umbrella above your head.

These last two I find to be very interesting concepts…id like to take these ideas further…however I am not sure if it has a social use- other than art…

If possible id like to make an installation, involving a arm chair and speakers built in…also that it may record sound or video, and play it back intertwined with existing footage- so that space my have memory…also I wish to utilise technology in a way that makes the experience different from others- similar to the idea of overhead speakers, possibly let users upload there thoughts, feelings, comments or music…this ties in with my original idea of a generative art form in terms of radio.

My main problems are whether its social impact is great enough, and whether it is supposed to be a coding based project.

The heart....

Jack has been concentrating on the heart, and dragging and dropping labels onto it...this is working at the moment, because we have two separate flash files, we need to somehow merge them together

So ive started animating....

The image that you see here is from drawing the bunny out in flash, the idea is that you can drag the words onto the bunny and it will react with an animation, its been alot of work so far just drawing everything out.

The file has a preloader so that the user knows how much its loaded as a percentage.

The Mind map

The game...

Although it appears that we cannot join groups with Kate, me and jack decided to go ahead with the idea of drag and dropping items…

After learning a little more about action script we have found how to drag and drop items onto a movie clip and have it react some how.

We have yet to discover how we are going to tally up the Childs score.

We will have information- that will be animated followed by a game- where the child ha to label items – the heart for instance. This fits in with repetition and recognition learning techniques.

We are yet to decide on whether to have separate scenes or separate swfs, if its separate swfs, then we will link them together using xml and flash buttons. However if we do this then it may be hard to tally the Childs score at the end. We have decided that we will represent the ‘score’ as rings or ‘fruit’- there fore making it more like a game than a test.

➲Mixed reality: "If these walls could talk?!"

The main concepts within my work:

• Memory
• unconventional/interactive narrative
• mixed reality -- virtual and actual world
• a new media experience
• experimenting with the use of space and location

After experimenting with the Idea further, I have got shot code and the alternative- semacode to work from a nokia n91- although I’m not keen on its design (small buttons, awkward navigation etc) it does work when you have installed shot code and semacode applications.

There is also a problem with streaming film. I uploaded several different files to the Internet is ready to download. However, the Nokia didn't seem to recognize the file formats, and instead read it as a note. After talking with Chris speed; I thought maybe it was best to stick to audio instead; however this does interfere with my original idea.

I have accessed website and been able to download audio to the mobile phone.

I want to call it: “if these Walls could talk” as a kind of digital exhibit. This experiment involves ideas of mixed reality-I want to incorporate some physical elements, such as objects and written word. As well as a digital aspect of shot code/semacode, WAP, new phone technologies and file formats.

The shotcode and semacode will be physically printed out, perhaps on stickers. And place the different locations around the University. Hopefully with some implied storyline.

The user would have to gave to each of the locations to take a picture of the shot code and be sent the file via the Internet. They would then listen/watch, the media whilst going to the next location.

In terms of the narrative and surroundings I could base it on a day in the life of myself. Being as I will be working with audio now, this means that the audio quality will have to be better… I will have two mixed tracks, using audio editing software. I want to involve some real sounds such as footsteps or rain, or birds chirping etc… and pre-composed audio tracks (ambient music)… this reinforces ideas of nature and technology and how the two may be intertwined. For instance, the mixed reality of hearing footsteps through headphones, usually a very natural sound that is overlooked… hopefully the user experience will be as if they are in a mixed reality world.

I like the idea of flashbacks or memory within the space/location- something may have happened in that space before, and had been recorded and played to someone else at a different time.