Universal Basic Income. It's a concept that I never even heard of until recently in class. But is now a subject that I have great interest in. Now I definitely am not fully educated on Basic Income or know if it's even possible. I have a basic knowledge from what I listened to in class, talked to among my peers, looked up onine and talked about to my dad who I have always that had great business sense.
I'm gonna feed you some information about my personal earnings and expenses as it is important to mention to humanise this subject.
What it is in simple/Irish terms is that normally if you are unemployed, you get the dole. If you are over 21, like myself, you could get roughly €160. That is your basic living wage. However, you can give up your dole and get a job. Once you work roughly 17 hours, that will equal to the basic living wage that you would get from being unemployed. Then everything after 17 hours of work, is for you.
What Basic income is, is that you would be able to get the same money from the dole, while working. So your living expenses are covered automatically, and every hour you work, is for extra cash that is there to benefit you. Basic Income is seen as a standard human right and that we shouldn't have to work to survive. That we should work because it fulfills us in many other ways.
It might be seen as we are just being lazy. But here is where it would benefit me. I pay €100 a week to cover my rent. I get on average €120 from working over the weekends. So I get only €20 for myself for working over the weekends when I should be free to do my college work. That being said, I might not even get that much. Plenty of weeks have gone by where I only get €90 because there are just not enough hours in my workplace. Leaving me unbearably tight for money.
But what about the grant? Well I get a very low grant since I have 2 parents and home is close to college. But in fact, I am a son of a divorced family and my father doesn't support me financially and my mom is unable to either. I also don't live with my family, I live separate to them and pay for my own rent, food, etc. So I get less than €35 a week. That is to cover ALL my expenses, (food, class materials, repairs, school tour transport, medical expenses. etc.) Which, by the way, is not nearly enough. I can't tell you how sick I am of eating 60 cent butter and bread for dinner. Forget about being social.
With basic income, I wouldn't have to worry about being unable to pay for rent every month. I could have my social life and not worry about how many hours in work I will get per week. I can decide to work the weekends or spend more time on assignments. I could decide if I want to work to purchase healthier food or pay for bike repairs. I would be no longer jealous of people that are unemployed, and aren't in college, that earn a lot more than I do.
The main issue with this is that taxes would increase significantly. As well as prices of items going up. People could decide not to work, halting production, security, safety, etc. As well as many other issues. However researchers believe that more people will decide to work, knowing that they'll benefit far more by doing so.
Also, speaking future tense, now that we are in an age of 10 or 100 employees being replaced by 1 machine, the difficulty to work and to earn a livable, healthy wage has increased significantly. It is now more important than even to introduce this system before it is too late.
Tuesday, 29 November 2016
Professional Issues in Creative Media Post 7 - How to be an Editor
In this blog post I will be going through the detail and plan of my presentation as well as going through some thoughts of my chosen profession: Editor.
Before editing, storytellers had their own way of mixing and cutting stories together. Novelists had flashbacks, Live theatre had narration and comics could splice scenes together whenever they pleased. But filmmakers were afraid of cutting and splicing film together because they felt that it would just confuse the audience. But by doing so, they realised they could now tell much more complex pieces of story, such as 'The Great Train Robbery' (1903). The earliest form of cutting would be when the cameraman stopped cranking at the end of a shot and then started cranking at the start of a new one, with a different angle. This also allowed for special effects such as George Melies who had his character detonate a smoke bomb at the end of one cut and started filming after the actor left the stage. Giving the illusion that the man disappeared.
Editing has progressed significantly over the years. To get a job as an editor you must have great knowledge in various kinds of editing software and the post production process. You must understand narrative and the ways to create dramatic stroytelling in film as well as the ability to create tension, pace, rhythm and manipulate the audiences emotions. You need to be creative even whilst under pressure and have good imagination. Have excellent communication skills and be able to lead a team. Not to forget, patience, attention to detail and good organisation skills. As well a few other things...
Normally for a standard feature film there would be an Editor and an Assistant Editor. However for big budget films there would also be Second Assistant Editors and Trainees. Normally a good entry point into this field would be to get a job as a Runner (the guy that gets tea and coffee and does little errands for people). Then you can work your way up to being a Trainee, Second Assistant Editor, First Assistant Editor and then eventually - Editor. However, depending on your degree or access point, you could start of as an Assistant Editor or even straight into being an Editor. But don't expect to be hired for any big budget films without any good experience under your belt.
At the moment any further advances in technology would end up helping the editor and making it easier to create films. However, with IMAX in theaters and 4K resolution TV's becoming standard
home items, an editors attention to detail is now more important than ever. It's very easy for an audience to see a tiny mistake and post it all across the internet so the world can laugh at how crap your movie is for not noticing a little thing. A great example of an editors mistake would be at the very end of the Pirate of the Caribbean movie where you can see a crew member in the background of the ship, wearing a cowboy hat, white shirt and jeans. Clothing that is entirely inappropriate to the timeline of the movie.
Even further, news came out not too long ago where engineers and filmmakers created a computer AI that was able to edit together a scene all by itself. Now before editors all around the world start to pack in their job, it should be noted that there was still a human process in this. First of all a human had to input the style, action and genre for the scene as well as organise all the files together. Then the AI scanned thousands of movies for similar scenes and cut the files into the way the AI thought was best. That being said, it still may not have been the director or the editors vision, and they would still have to make a good few changes to the cuts that the AI have made.
Maybe in the future, AI's can help organising standard film ideas or cuts where the director isn't looking for anything special in a particular scene and just wants the scene done. Or maybe the AI can organise a rough cut/box car cut for the editor and then they can start on the more detailed edits.
That is my prediction.
Before editing, storytellers had their own way of mixing and cutting stories together. Novelists had flashbacks, Live theatre had narration and comics could splice scenes together whenever they pleased. But filmmakers were afraid of cutting and splicing film together because they felt that it would just confuse the audience. But by doing so, they realised they could now tell much more complex pieces of story, such as 'The Great Train Robbery' (1903). The earliest form of cutting would be when the cameraman stopped cranking at the end of a shot and then started cranking at the start of a new one, with a different angle. This also allowed for special effects such as George Melies who had his character detonate a smoke bomb at the end of one cut and started filming after the actor left the stage. Giving the illusion that the man disappeared.
Editing has progressed significantly over the years. To get a job as an editor you must have great knowledge in various kinds of editing software and the post production process. You must understand narrative and the ways to create dramatic stroytelling in film as well as the ability to create tension, pace, rhythm and manipulate the audiences emotions. You need to be creative even whilst under pressure and have good imagination. Have excellent communication skills and be able to lead a team. Not to forget, patience, attention to detail and good organisation skills. As well a few other things...
Normally for a standard feature film there would be an Editor and an Assistant Editor. However for big budget films there would also be Second Assistant Editors and Trainees. Normally a good entry point into this field would be to get a job as a Runner (the guy that gets tea and coffee and does little errands for people). Then you can work your way up to being a Trainee, Second Assistant Editor, First Assistant Editor and then eventually - Editor. However, depending on your degree or access point, you could start of as an Assistant Editor or even straight into being an Editor. But don't expect to be hired for any big budget films without any good experience under your belt.
At the moment any further advances in technology would end up helping the editor and making it easier to create films. However, with IMAX in theaters and 4K resolution TV's becoming standard
home items, an editors attention to detail is now more important than ever. It's very easy for an audience to see a tiny mistake and post it all across the internet so the world can laugh at how crap your movie is for not noticing a little thing. A great example of an editors mistake would be at the very end of the Pirate of the Caribbean movie where you can see a crew member in the background of the ship, wearing a cowboy hat, white shirt and jeans. Clothing that is entirely inappropriate to the timeline of the movie.
Even further, news came out not too long ago where engineers and filmmakers created a computer AI that was able to edit together a scene all by itself. Now before editors all around the world start to pack in their job, it should be noted that there was still a human process in this. First of all a human had to input the style, action and genre for the scene as well as organise all the files together. Then the AI scanned thousands of movies for similar scenes and cut the files into the way the AI thought was best. That being said, it still may not have been the director or the editors vision, and they would still have to make a good few changes to the cuts that the AI have made.
Maybe in the future, AI's can help organising standard film ideas or cuts where the director isn't looking for anything special in a particular scene and just wants the scene done. Or maybe the AI can organise a rough cut/box car cut for the editor and then they can start on the more detailed edits.
That is my prediction.
Monday, 28 November 2016
Professional Issues in Creative Media Post 6 - Blockchain
Blockchain is a open accessed database that is able to record and store information on transactions
within blocks inside a visible accounting system. These blocks contain timestamps along with links to
other blocks that were previously generated. These blocks within blockchain are supposedly resistant to any form of data modification or hack due to it’s inherent design. By default, once data has been recorded inside a block, the data can no longer be touched/altered.
The idea of blockchain is that, while our money and transactions are already controlled in mass by
governments and banks, they track their money movements by gathering information based on trust
and are secured and protected recognised authority. Our money can still be lost through transactions.
With blockchain, all movements are controlled through data of no physical appearance and are secured and protected through heavy security encryptions and complex algorithms that would make
it uncontrolled by any single authority. However since all money would be handled through data instead of exchanged through hands, a different form of currency would be needed. This would be where ‘Bitcoin’ comes in. Bitcoin is a virtual currency invented by Satoshi Nakamoto, which is an alias for an anonymous programmer/group of programmers. Bitcoin uses blockchain as a public distributed ledger, while blockchain uses bitcoin as it’s units of account.
The possibility and past of bitcoin, as a potential violence and threat, can be seen by going back to one of it’s first and main uses was to buy items on the site ‘Silk Road’. Silk Road is a marketplace site only found on the ‘Dark Web’. On the site they sell guns, drugs, stolen information and illegal services as well as other items that aren’t quite illegal.
within blocks inside a visible accounting system. These blocks contain timestamps along with links to
other blocks that were previously generated. These blocks within blockchain are supposedly resistant to any form of data modification or hack due to it’s inherent design. By default, once data has been recorded inside a block, the data can no longer be touched/altered.
The idea of blockchain is that, while our money and transactions are already controlled in mass by
governments and banks, they track their money movements by gathering information based on trust
and are secured and protected recognised authority. Our money can still be lost through transactions.
With blockchain, all movements are controlled through data of no physical appearance and are secured and protected through heavy security encryptions and complex algorithms that would make
it uncontrolled by any single authority. However since all money would be handled through data instead of exchanged through hands, a different form of currency would be needed. This would be where ‘Bitcoin’ comes in. Bitcoin is a virtual currency invented by Satoshi Nakamoto, which is an alias for an anonymous programmer/group of programmers. Bitcoin uses blockchain as a public distributed ledger, while blockchain uses bitcoin as it’s units of account.
The possibility and past of bitcoin, as a potential violence and threat, can be seen by going back to one of it’s first and main uses was to buy items on the site ‘Silk Road’. Silk Road is a marketplace site only found on the ‘Dark Web’. On the site they sell guns, drugs, stolen information and illegal services as well as other items that aren’t quite illegal.
Saturday, 26 November 2016
Professional Issues in Creative Media Post 5 - Presentation CA & How I should do it...
In class we were given an assignment for a presentation that we have to do based on what specific job that we could possibly do after we finish college. It could be something that we would like to go into, or just any job that is in the creative media field. Our main job is to deeply analyse a chosen career in the creative media field. It must be 7-10 minutes long and it has to be analysed within Irish context. During my presentation, I need to give a clear understanding of this profession to my fellow classmates as well as it's development, how to gain entry into the career and any future prospects.
I am not allowed pick 'film/games/ movies' as a whole because it's far too general. Instead it needs to be a specific career such as 'post production house editor, company web designer, dubbing mixer, gaffer, etc.
My analysis should include the following:
- A very brief description of the historical emergence of the particular role. So I should just quickly mention the importance that this role has played in the past and how the role came into existence as well as it's current popularity.
- An outline of the set skills required and how they can be acquired. For this I'll talk about the skills that are important to have to grant access to this job, as well as whether I can gain the skills through apprenticeships, college, on-the-job experience, etc.
- An overview of the job opportunities within the field as well as the working conditions of the role. So whether there is room for promotion or a much larger job through practice in this field. Also the conditions of the job such as being boxed in a cubicle, having to frequently fly country to country or whether working in the outdoors, etc.
- A description of common access points into the industry. I think that means I have to talk about general/standard ways that people are commonly hired for the job.
- Insight from a person/people working in the industry already - if possible. So I have to find someone that is in the industry and get advice or details about their job from them. I wonder if I could talk to someone in the general industry and not the specific job that I'l be picking. This part doesn't seem required but I imagine I would get more marks for doing it. My family isn't really in the creative media industry so I don't really have any contacts. I have a cousin that is a successful animator but I'm not sure I would be interested in picking that field anymore. I also don't think he would be able to get back to me in time.
- A prediction of how new technologies will affect the career into the future.
Now this point I find very interesting since I've studied the advance on technology and how it is decimating job numbers and how a thousand people can be replaced by 1 robot that is efficient, cheaper and better for the customers, making you obsolete. Now the interesting part is technology within creative media. How can a robot be creative with no imagine or emotions? Well it's been done before and everyone at some point is replaceable.
In my next blog I will decide on my chosen career and will discuss how I will make my presentation.
I am not allowed pick 'film/games/ movies' as a whole because it's far too general. Instead it needs to be a specific career such as 'post production house editor, company web designer, dubbing mixer, gaffer, etc.
My analysis should include the following:
- A very brief description of the historical emergence of the particular role. So I should just quickly mention the importance that this role has played in the past and how the role came into existence as well as it's current popularity.
- An outline of the set skills required and how they can be acquired. For this I'll talk about the skills that are important to have to grant access to this job, as well as whether I can gain the skills through apprenticeships, college, on-the-job experience, etc.
- An overview of the job opportunities within the field as well as the working conditions of the role. So whether there is room for promotion or a much larger job through practice in this field. Also the conditions of the job such as being boxed in a cubicle, having to frequently fly country to country or whether working in the outdoors, etc.
- A description of common access points into the industry. I think that means I have to talk about general/standard ways that people are commonly hired for the job.
- Insight from a person/people working in the industry already - if possible. So I have to find someone that is in the industry and get advice or details about their job from them. I wonder if I could talk to someone in the general industry and not the specific job that I'l be picking. This part doesn't seem required but I imagine I would get more marks for doing it. My family isn't really in the creative media industry so I don't really have any contacts. I have a cousin that is a successful animator but I'm not sure I would be interested in picking that field anymore. I also don't think he would be able to get back to me in time.
- A prediction of how new technologies will affect the career into the future.
Now this point I find very interesting since I've studied the advance on technology and how it is decimating job numbers and how a thousand people can be replaced by 1 robot that is efficient, cheaper and better for the customers, making you obsolete. Now the interesting part is technology within creative media. How can a robot be creative with no imagine or emotions? Well it's been done before and everyone at some point is replaceable.
In my next blog I will decide on my chosen career and will discuss how I will make my presentation.
Wednesday, 16 November 2016
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 13. Testing out the Controller.
My prototype controller is finished. I made it out of an old article I read. The finished model will be white and coloured and sized better. But now I could finally test out my buttons and see if the whole thing works. I've only ever tested out the first button I made. I left the rest to see at the end. So I fitted in all the wires and I've been talking about making this controller to my housemates and they know I've been freaking out for the past month because I didn't know how to do it, so they all decided to watch and see what happens. If I am able to type out, 'wasdfg', then it works perfectly. Here's what I expected:
1. Either it to freak out and create a lot of spaces <-- like this...
2. It to type out: 'wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwawa'.
3. Or simply do nothing at all.
I made it very clear to my housemates that if it doesn't work, I'm handing it up as is, and that I just want to get rid of it and hope for a pass. So I plugged it in and immediately looked at the screen waiting for it to freak out. But nothing happened. So I was like, 'Okaaay... good start'. Then I started pressing buttons.
Here is what happened:
Button 1: Worked perfectly fine.
Button 2: Wouldn't work.
Button 3: Had to press very hard but works.
Button 4: Worked perfectly fine.
Button 5: Had to press a bit harder but worked.
Button 6: Thought it didn't work but the wires just fell out. Worked fine, just had to press low.
So I was ready to leave it but then I got so agitated that the 2nd one didn't work. So I kept working. I cut open the sponge because I thought it wasn't working because the hole in the sponge might not have been big enough. But after I cut it open, it didn't seem to be a problem. I assumed the wires weren't properly exposed. So I snipped off the top and remade it. So I plugged it in and tada!
All 6 buttons fully functional! ;)
1. Either it to freak out and create a lot of spaces <-- like this...
2. It to type out: 'wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwawa'.
3. Or simply do nothing at all.
I made it very clear to my housemates that if it doesn't work, I'm handing it up as is, and that I just want to get rid of it and hope for a pass. So I plugged it in and immediately looked at the screen waiting for it to freak out. But nothing happened. So I was like, 'Okaaay... good start'. Then I started pressing buttons.
Here is what happened:
Button 1: Worked perfectly fine.
Button 2: Wouldn't work.
Button 3: Had to press very hard but works.
Button 4: Worked perfectly fine.
Button 5: Had to press a bit harder but worked.
Button 6: Thought it didn't work but the wires just fell out. Worked fine, just had to press low.
So I was ready to leave it but then I got so agitated that the 2nd one didn't work. So I kept working. I cut open the sponge because I thought it wasn't working because the hole in the sponge might not have been big enough. But after I cut it open, it didn't seem to be a problem. I assumed the wires weren't properly exposed. So I snipped off the top and remade it. So I plugged it in and tada!
All 6 buttons fully functional! ;)
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 12. Finalizing the design.
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 11. Small. Simple. Easy. Modern.
After much consideration I decided that a simple approach may be the best approach. Something that is cost effective, easy to move/use and doesn't take up a lot of space. If this was ever to be properly developed, I would create this controller out of sleek plastic material. But for now, I will just make the cover out of standard A4 paper and superglue. This controller design is similar to a keypad that sits on the table and is easy to understand. The buttons would be in order as they are on screen and would be colour coded to increase your understanding of the controllers as well as giving the pad a little style to the design. I am still deciding upon the strum mechanic but I am pretty sure that I will be going with a small pad controller that would be played using your other hand.
I was playing around with a few names for the controller. I have settled on 'PlayTop'. It's a mix between 'Play Pad' and the fact that it sits on 'Top' of your table/desk/counter. The only issue with this controller is that you wouldn't be able to play this on your lap or holding it in your hands like a standard console controller.
Further details in future blog posts.
Tuesday, 15 November 2016
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 10. Glove scrapped. Back to basics.
Now that my buttons are created, all that's left (which is the bulk of the assignment), is to make the controller. In the process of making the buttons, I believe that making a glove controller just isn't in my best interest for the following reasons:
1. Although I've made my buttons quite sizable, I still think that they are too bulky to fit inside of a glove controller.
2. As well as that, there are a lot of movement in the design of my controller, which I believe will lead to easy 'wear and tear' of my buttons. It would be silly of anyone to make a controller that would only last a couple of playthroughs.
3. My glove controller hinged on the idea that there would be 4 buttons and the 5th would be the strum mechanic. But since I need 5 buttons with the sixth being the strum mechanic, my design just falls apart. I thought maybe if I just have a button on each fingertip and press them against the table, I could have the strum mechanic be on my left hand which would bang against the table with your fist clenched. Leading the strum to be more like a kick drum. There is just 1 big problem with that idea...
4. A fellow student had already created something quite similar to this new idea of mine and he had already shown it off to the other classmates. And since he fully created his while I was still creating my buttons, I believe I would be marked down for copying, even though that wouldn't be the case.
However I didn't think it was worth it to fight against the idea of plagiarism, so in the end, I and dropping the glove controller idea and returning to the drawing board.
Here's what I'm thinking. I dropped the idea of the table top controller that looks like a keyboard/drum pad because I thought it was to simple and easy. But nowadays all people are making is simple and easy to use controllers. As well as the fact that User Experience has show that the majority of players aren't interested in physical gimmicks such as six-axis or motion controller. Maybe I should move on to something simple, small, basic and modern that is also easy to use. Sure I might not get marks for creativity, but I can back it up with statistics and ease of use... as long as it works...
1. Although I've made my buttons quite sizable, I still think that they are too bulky to fit inside of a glove controller.
2. As well as that, there are a lot of movement in the design of my controller, which I believe will lead to easy 'wear and tear' of my buttons. It would be silly of anyone to make a controller that would only last a couple of playthroughs.
3. My glove controller hinged on the idea that there would be 4 buttons and the 5th would be the strum mechanic. But since I need 5 buttons with the sixth being the strum mechanic, my design just falls apart. I thought maybe if I just have a button on each fingertip and press them against the table, I could have the strum mechanic be on my left hand which would bang against the table with your fist clenched. Leading the strum to be more like a kick drum. There is just 1 big problem with that idea...
4. A fellow student had already created something quite similar to this new idea of mine and he had already shown it off to the other classmates. And since he fully created his while I was still creating my buttons, I believe I would be marked down for copying, even though that wouldn't be the case.
However I didn't think it was worth it to fight against the idea of plagiarism, so in the end, I and dropping the glove controller idea and returning to the drawing board.
Here's what I'm thinking. I dropped the idea of the table top controller that looks like a keyboard/drum pad because I thought it was to simple and easy. But nowadays all people are making is simple and easy to use controllers. As well as the fact that User Experience has show that the majority of players aren't interested in physical gimmicks such as six-axis or motion controller. Maybe I should move on to something simple, small, basic and modern that is also easy to use. Sure I might not get marks for creativity, but I can back it up with statistics and ease of use... as long as it works...
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 9. Button Problem Solved.
I brought my five buttons into class and showed my lecturer the issues that I've been having. He had to pull apart one of my buttons to figure out the issues. He saw the problem and then helped me figure out the solution.
1. The hole in the sponge should have been a proper chuck that was cut out of it instead of the small cut/rip that I had made. The reason for this is so the that there is enough room for the 2 pieces of tin foil to connect, but not too much space that they are always connecting.
2. The sponge should have had a bit of superglue around the top and bottom of it so the it would stay properly attached to the tin foil. The sponge in not needed for the connection process but it adds a springiness that makes it a button.
3. Along with the double sided tape, there should have also been a small bit of superglue to attach to the wire to stop it from being easily pulled out.
4. The wire needed to be more exposed by ripping off the plastic around the tip of the cable. This allows the wire and the tin foil to easily conduct electricity and the tin foil acts as a much larger connection rather than just the tip of the wire. If the two pieces of tinfoil, (with the wires attached), are connecting, it gives the same effect as the tip of both wire connecting. Just on a larger scale.
I knew that the wire had to be exposed but at the time I though that having the very tip of the wire exposed would be enough.
5. The second wire that goes into the makey makey board needs to connect to Earth.
And just to be clear, the cardboard at the top of the button is just there for stability for your fingers.
I went home and I re-created all 5 of my buttons, as well as a sixth for the strum mechanic, and even made them smaller. I felt as though I was advancing my buttons in the same way the engineers make microchips smaller and yet work better as years go by. I play tested them and they work perfectly. I just hope they stay that way by the time I demonstrate them.
1. The hole in the sponge should have been a proper chuck that was cut out of it instead of the small cut/rip that I had made. The reason for this is so the that there is enough room for the 2 pieces of tin foil to connect, but not too much space that they are always connecting.
2. The sponge should have had a bit of superglue around the top and bottom of it so the it would stay properly attached to the tin foil. The sponge in not needed for the connection process but it adds a springiness that makes it a button.
3. Along with the double sided tape, there should have also been a small bit of superglue to attach to the wire to stop it from being easily pulled out.
4. The wire needed to be more exposed by ripping off the plastic around the tip of the cable. This allows the wire and the tin foil to easily conduct electricity and the tin foil acts as a much larger connection rather than just the tip of the wire. If the two pieces of tinfoil, (with the wires attached), are connecting, it gives the same effect as the tip of both wire connecting. Just on a larger scale.
I knew that the wire had to be exposed but at the time I though that having the very tip of the wire exposed would be enough.
5. The second wire that goes into the makey makey board needs to connect to Earth.
And just to be clear, the cardboard at the top of the button is just there for stability for your fingers.
I went home and I re-created all 5 of my buttons, as well as a sixth for the strum mechanic, and even made them smaller. I felt as though I was advancing my buttons in the same way the engineers make microchips smaller and yet work better as years go by. I play tested them and they work perfectly. I just hope they stay that way by the time I demonstrate them.
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 8. Creating the buttons.
I finally got a one on one with my lecturer on how to create buttons. It took me a little while to figure it out but now I not only know how to make a button but I also understand it. My lecturer showed me the materials I would need and also gave me a Makey Makey board, which is a small and simple circuit board that let's you easily connect your creations to your computer for you to either see if your creation works and also let's you play games using your creation. There are many different ways and variations to go about making a button but I will go through the process of the one I've created, which also seems to be the most DIY of them all.
First of all, you start with a sponge. Cut a square piece off roughly the size of the top of your finger. Then you cut a hole within the sponge. You then place a piece of tin foil on top and then on top of that, some double sided tape. Then you attach the Cat5e Network Cable on top of the tinfoil. Finally you put a piece of cardboard on top of the wire. You do the same on the other side of the sponge. Then you connect the opposite end of the wire into whatever key in the makey makey board that you wish the button to connect to. (Such as W,A,S,D, Space, etc.)
On my first attempt making all five buttons, I encountered a few issues, such as the buttons falling apart, the computer thinking I'm constantly hitting the spacebar as well as just not knwing where the second wire goes into the makey makey board.
In my next blog I will talk about the changes I made when creating the buttons as well as the reasons for all the pieces of the buttons.
First of all, you start with a sponge. Cut a square piece off roughly the size of the top of your finger. Then you cut a hole within the sponge. You then place a piece of tin foil on top and then on top of that, some double sided tape. Then you attach the Cat5e Network Cable on top of the tinfoil. Finally you put a piece of cardboard on top of the wire. You do the same on the other side of the sponge. Then you connect the opposite end of the wire into whatever key in the makey makey board that you wish the button to connect to. (Such as W,A,S,D, Space, etc.)
On my first attempt making all five buttons, I encountered a few issues, such as the buttons falling apart, the computer thinking I'm constantly hitting the spacebar as well as just not knwing where the second wire goes into the makey makey board.
In my next blog I will talk about the changes I made when creating the buttons as well as the reasons for all the pieces of the buttons.
Wednesday, 9 November 2016
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 7. Difficulty.
I am at the stage now where the sketches & concepts are done and now I have to get on with making the actual controller. After the controller is finished, I have to make a video of the controller in use. Along with that, a 600 word written document on the process and evaluation of the project.
The main issue I am having at the moment is that I don't know how to make the actual controller. I don't know what parts to buy, I don't know the details of constructing the device, etc. I was unable to attend the classes where my lecturer was going through the process of creating the controller. Therefore I am struggling to know what to do. I never have an issue with projects in which I completely understand what it is that I am doing. But due to this being entirely new to what I usually do, I feel like I am stuck in limbo. I will have to be late handing up the project and put more detail into the prep work and leave the project in next week after I've talked to my lecturer in more detail.
The main issue I am having at the moment is that I don't know how to make the actual controller. I don't know what parts to buy, I don't know the details of constructing the device, etc. I was unable to attend the classes where my lecturer was going through the process of creating the controller. Therefore I am struggling to know what to do. I never have an issue with projects in which I completely understand what it is that I am doing. But due to this being entirely new to what I usually do, I feel like I am stuck in limbo. I will have to be late handing up the project and put more detail into the prep work and leave the project in next week after I've talked to my lecturer in more detail.
Thursday, 3 November 2016
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 6. Motor Control with Dyspraxia
The reason why I would like to stick to the glove controller is because it will help players with their motor skills. The reason why developing motor skills is important to me is because I have dyspraxia. Dyspraxia is a motor and speech disorder and from a very young age it affects the signals received to the brain. Making your reactions slower and skills such as playing an instrument, skateboarding, etc, take a lot longer to learn and develop. If caught very early on, it can be a lot easier for a person affected with dyspraxia to practise their co-ordination skills. Gaming has helped the younger generation considerably in this aspect. Since I had a lot of trouble moving the right finger in the right way, it was very difficult for me to write, draw, type, etc. I was given exercises where I would have to tap my pinky finger to my thumb, all the way up to my index finger and back again. That's where I was given the idea for the controller.
Although it might be difficult for some people to use the controller, that would just mean that they should keep trying and keep practising until they get it right or at least, get better. Not just for getting better at the game, but it can also increase the player's co-ordination for typing and playing guitar, as well as other things.
That is why I am going to stick with the glove controller until I get it right.
Although it might be difficult for some people to use the controller, that would just mean that they should keep trying and keep practising until they get it right or at least, get better. Not just for getting better at the game, but it can also increase the player's co-ordination for typing and playing guitar, as well as other things.
That is why I am going to stick with the glove controller until I get it right.
Tuesday, 1 November 2016
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 5. Sticking with the Glove.
I like this concept because it removed the issues I had before. There would be a lot less strain on the hand and you would be able to strum at the same time that you are clicking the buttons. However, this concept goes down the drain if this project requires the strum mechanic to coincide and be pressed at the same time with the four buttons. There is a reason why I am dedicated to the glove controller as it increases your motor skills. I will go into more detail in my next post.
Physical & Pervasive Interfaces Post 4. POWER GLOVE! ... Sort of.
Professional Issues in Creative Media Post 5 - They Terk Ur JERBS!!!
This week's class consisted of us going to the screening room about watching a documentary about the history, making of & future of the internet, as well as touching upon artificial intelligence among other things. In another class we were watching this video called, 'Humans Need Not Apply'. It's a very interesting video and also quite disturbing when you think about it. The idea that almost every job with a human worker can be replaced with an robot seems very real and is likely to happen soon enough. I have read many other things relating to the future of mankind's connection to A.I and the more bleak future of A.A.I (Advanced Artificial Intelligence).
But I want to could about normal robots for a second. The kind that makes our lives easier and gives us a faster and more comfortable experience in almost all aspects. But there is a problem that you can see happening very soon. What happens when 100 workers are replaced by 10 machines and 1 worker to maintain and overlook the 10 machines. That's 99 workers out of a job so that we could all have a more comfortable experience. It's already happened in so many places. Most noticeably Amazon drones and carriers replace the need for so many stock workers and deliverers. Again with Tesco where we see 1 worker standing in the corner keeping an eye on roughly 8 self service tills.
It's not just jobs. I mentioned in class that there is currently a population crisis in Japan at the moment. Schools and hospitals are closing everywhere due to the lack of people in the area. According to the researchers, people nowadays are having 1 child per couple, Whereas to maintain a steady population, a couple must have 2 children. A survey was conducted with over 7,000 japanese residents ages 20-39. There are more detailed figures but roughly 37.6% of Japanese people aren't interested in sex or relationships.
There are several reasons but a study shows that the main reason is because of the amount of virtual boyfriend/girlfriend game simulators and sex items that are commonly sold around Japan is staggering. Japanese sex laws are a lot more loose than western laws and because of this, sex is very easily sold, especially since the legal age of consent is 13 years old, opposed to the usual 18.
Because of the high rate and many forms of relationship/sex simulators, a lot of Japanese people are now uninterested with a standard relationship or sex, causing the population to decrease.
So there you go. Robots. Taking our jobs and now taking our wives. Oh the humanity...
But I want to could about normal robots for a second. The kind that makes our lives easier and gives us a faster and more comfortable experience in almost all aspects. But there is a problem that you can see happening very soon. What happens when 100 workers are replaced by 10 machines and 1 worker to maintain and overlook the 10 machines. That's 99 workers out of a job so that we could all have a more comfortable experience. It's already happened in so many places. Most noticeably Amazon drones and carriers replace the need for so many stock workers and deliverers. Again with Tesco where we see 1 worker standing in the corner keeping an eye on roughly 8 self service tills.
It's not just jobs. I mentioned in class that there is currently a population crisis in Japan at the moment. Schools and hospitals are closing everywhere due to the lack of people in the area. According to the researchers, people nowadays are having 1 child per couple, Whereas to maintain a steady population, a couple must have 2 children. A survey was conducted with over 7,000 japanese residents ages 20-39. There are more detailed figures but roughly 37.6% of Japanese people aren't interested in sex or relationships.
There are several reasons but a study shows that the main reason is because of the amount of virtual boyfriend/girlfriend game simulators and sex items that are commonly sold around Japan is staggering. Japanese sex laws are a lot more loose than western laws and because of this, sex is very easily sold, especially since the legal age of consent is 13 years old, opposed to the usual 18.
Because of the high rate and many forms of relationship/sex simulators, a lot of Japanese people are now uninterested with a standard relationship or sex, causing the population to decrease.
So there you go. Robots. Taking our jobs and now taking our wives. Oh the humanity...
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