Dissertation - Inspiration Continued... Fr. Repentium III

This was created by Lisa McEligott, one of the IDC’s own, in 2000. It is an interactive confessional box which combines a variety of elements to evoke the senses - pre-scripted responses and noises, combined with the theatrics of darkness and the intentional smells of beeswax marry together to form a very interesting pice.

Although this one is not does not strictly relate to the interactive design I have outlined above. It still has very relevant aspects to my dissertation such as the ‘reusing’ of an object, the creation of a new piece of interactive design that is already familiar to the users and the creation of an overall interactive experience.

Principles of iMedia Class - My Best Teacher Ever...

During our Principles of iMedia class yesterday, Gabriela asked us to think about our best teacher ever. It didn't necessarily have to a person but could be something else... Hmmm my best teacher ever. Where do you start with something like this? I think there have been many people and events that have guided me towards the path I am on now. At the moment I can think of three distinct people who have influenced and encouraged my creativity throughout my life. The first two people are family members - my mother and one of my brothers. From a very young age, I can remember having reams of paper in our house that a neighbour in the printing business gave us. I have so many memories of painting and drawing at the dining room and we were never repremanded for making a mess. First of all we always knew we had to clean up and the mess was never intentional, it was more of a by product of our creativity. Sure the paint was water based anyway! But secondly, my mother always encouraged our creativity whether it was painting, drawing, paper mache, music or bun making!  

The other family member that really encouraged me to be creative was one of my older brothers. Being the youngest and the only girl can have many advantages (as well as disadvantages too!)  but he really taught me a lot and more importantly, he taught me in a really fun and enjoyable way. Lego featured very strongly in our playtime and really helped me to start thinking in 3D and being creative in a different form.

I did not start to think about using my creativity for anything bar fun until towards the end of secondary school. I had assumed that I would study business or marketing at college but it was with the encouragement of my secondary school art teacher that I realized that I wanted to do something that involved using my imagination. 

For me, the people that I would say have  been my 'best teachers' are the ones that have offered encouragement, gave me confidence in my endeavors, helped me find the fun in learning and inspired me with own creativity in their lives.

Dissertation - The New Me

Interactive Media Masters

For all you interested on more information on the course, follow this link:Interactive Media Masters UL

Dissertation - Nextfest Interactive Video Wall

This interactive video wall looks really interesting. I like that it is simulating something that is completely natural - grass blowing in the wind, yet it is done using technology. I think it works really well in creating a very realistic s

IDC Wiki

The IDC Wiki is another lovely link if you would like more information in relation to the Interactive Media Masters course and also the IDC

Dissertation - Plan of Action

What are the next steps for my Dissertation?

Having learned to work in a certain while I was studying for my Industrial Design Degree,. I plan to work in a similar fashion this time around again. I found the format of research, conceptualization, development, final idea very helpful and it enabled me to work as productively as possible. Obviously there will be times where there will be two avenues being pursued simultaneously such as making sketch models / initial prototypes while conducting research or conceptualization etc. Also, iteration will be a big part of the design process, for instance with prototyping, I foresee many ‘tweaks’ being made!

Another important step that I will be addressing early on is looking into technologies more. I need to understand soon on what is technologically possible in order to create an interesting and successful interactive piece.

The Show & Exhibitions I am currently thinking of visiting are:
Eva, Limerick, March/April 2009
e v+ a presents the work of Irish and international contemporary artists in a range of venues and settings, formal and alternative, throughout the city of Limerick.
NCAD Graduate Show, Dublin, June 2009 TBC
Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology June 2009 - date TBC
RCA Show, London, 26 June – 5 July 2009
Graduate shows includes work by students from the following courses: Animation, Architecture, Communication Art & Design, Design Products, Design Interactions, Fashion Footwear and Accessories, History of Design, Industrial Design Engineering, Textiles. I feel that this could be a worthwhile show to visit.

I plan to write in my blog a lot more often! I feel it will be a lot easier to do this when the semester has finished and I can concentrate fully on my dissertation. I also think it will be easier in that, I am more clear on my area and can start researching and writing it in sections.
I think it will be vital to make sure I understand the users needs in order to preempt their wants and desires and predict the things they did not even realize they wanted. From studying the users I will be able to draw up the brief.

During my presentation, there was some valuable input that other members of the class contributed - both comments and suggestions. Miriam Lohan used a term that I really liked to sum up my idea - ‘Delight not Fright’, I think this gets across the point that the interaction should be natural to the user and not cause any anxiety at not knowing how to use it.
Sharon Le Gear also suggested to me that looking at Danish Interaction Design could be beneficial for me. Sharon also suggested that visiting Casey Furniture Store in Raheen could give me a feel for what is currently on the market furniture wise. She also suggested that it could be a good place to test out my design. I really like the idea of this and will definitely be looking into this.
Another suggestion was to look at Blogjects and see if my piece can interact and contribute information itself. I also really like this idea and think it could be very fun.

Dissertation - Research Methods

For my research, I would say I started out like most people with researching on the internet. From here, I started to move towards papers, and books. Other research I am planning to conduct, will depend on the stage of the project I am at.

We have come across so many useful papers in our two semesters here already that I feel are relevant to my project and am also coming across discussions on a daily basis that I am finding interesting for my area. With some of the papers that I felt were not as relevant such as Cultural Probes, I still found it usual as it helped me rule out research methods that were not relevant to my work.

I would like to get my information from as varied areas as possible. So not only do I plan to continue looking at papers, reading books, conducting internet research etc but i would like to visit exhibitions and shows that could be relevant or inspiring. I hope to visit a number of exhibitions and shows based in Ireland and the UK. I feel these could help to inspire me and start to get the creative juices flowing. One in particular that I would like to see is is the fashion exhibition by Hussein Chalayan.

Currently the Design Museum in London is exhibiting work by Hussein Chalayan, a British Fashion Designer. Chalayans exhibition includes designs using innovative materials and incorporating technology into his designs. Certain items use LEDs, aircraft materials that change shape by remote control, and lasers to create light shows. I am considering going to see this to in order to get inspiration, see these materials in a working form.

Other qualitative research that I am planning to carry out will include participant observations and how they react to the interactive system. Participatory design will be the approach I shall be taking when it comes to designing, I feel it is important that when one is design for people that people are actually included in the process and consulted in order to get a more appropriate solution. Keeping a video diary to record these interactions where possible could be quite useful in order to capture people physical reaction to the objects as it will give an indication to their feelings whether positive or negative. I also feel that informal interviews should be run in parallel to compliment the relaxed approach to gathering information. As the design intended is suppose to be enjoyable / relaxing and for home use, I do not feel it would make sense to have really structured and rigid interviews etc.

Throughout Semester Two’s Principles of Interactive Media module, I have found that the group seminars have been very helpful to me and my dissertation. With particular regard to the last one we participated in, Loraine Clarke’s seminar on Tangible Interfaces. This has been particularly relevant and I will be looking into the area more.

Dissertation - Challenges

Presently I see my biggest obstacle as being the electronics and programming side of the project. The reason being, this is something I have just started learning since coming to this course and feel that this is where I will need the greatest amount of help. Either I’m going to have to learn to love and understand electronics quickly or befriend someone who does know this stuff!

In relation to the other areas of computing such as the 3D modeling and animations etc, I do think they will possibly a bit time consuming and in some ways a bit difficult but achievable at the same time.

Another area where I feel I may need help will be in the physical modeling stage. While I do feel confident working with machines such as lathes etc, it will be more the access to these machines that I feel will be necessary.

Dissertation - Skills

Skills that I think I will need for my dissertation (apart from keeping a bucket load of patience!) are so far:
3D Modeling
Image Manipulation
Animation
Computer Programming
Electronics
Physical Prototyping

More specifically program wise, I think I may be using software such as:
Solidworks, 3D StudioMax, Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Java, possibly PureData and Processing. Currently, I see there being a need for using Arduinos in my project so then Processing could come into it.

I have also been looking into Papervision3D - a really interesting real-time 3D engine component which can incorporate 3D models into Flash. You create 3D models in 3D Studio Max (or other programs such as Maya or Blender). Then use a plug-in to create a file that contains information on your 3D model’s set-up, textures and animation. Finally, you can use the Papervision component to import your 3D model into Flash CS3. While I am not sure if I will need this in my actual prototype or not yet, it would be very interesting for presentations to show the capabilities of what the design will be able to do.

I don’t see this list as being complete and I think I will be adding to do it, the further into the project I become and depending on how the idea takes shape.

Dissertation - Technology

Technologies I am interested in looking into more for this project are to do with heat, noise / sound detection, motion / movement and pressure / load sensing. I like the idea of using naturally occurring triggers to setoff reactions. I don’t want to disrupt daily living so I like the idea of using peoples ‘discarded motions’ or using actions that are already occurring for another purpose such as walking, sitting etc.

I like the idea of using noise levels / chatter to set off a lighting event. For instance, if there is only a few people in a room talking quietly then the lighting could be very different if it is filled with people laughing and talking loudly. the light could be brighter, stronger, a different colour or more intense.

I also like the idea of using music as the sound trigger. For example if a retro record player was hooked up the a lighting installation, depending on what ‘record’ is played affects what lighting display occurs.

I would like to be able to use one of these as a trigger to cause a reaction that would possibly be visualized in light using combinations of its intensity and colour.

Dissertation -Scenario of Use

I see this design as being an everyday item that would be integrated seamlessly into the twentieth century home. This product should not be intrusive or obvious in someone’s personal space. It should enhance the home, to create a relaxed environment. The interactive piece would be aimed towards the whole family and I feel it could be something they could all interact with together. Another scenario I could even see it being used in, is a home with young professionals in it. I see this design not as a disposable piece of furniture but something that grows with the family.