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March 31, 2005
Where we stand
We achieved several IMD and USC “firsts” out there at the kiosk Tuesday. Thanks for everyone's help.
We’re in an excellent position to propose to USC and TrojanVision what to do with the kiosk. They’ve sunk a lot of money into it and want to see it be successful. They’ve also made it clear that they want to work with us and that they're willing to listen.
Our original plan was to have something to show on April 12. If we are doing a temporary “proof of concept,” can we?
Can this proof of concept be the basis for an ambitious longer-term proposal which we complete by end of term?
Posted by naimark at 08:26 PM | Comments (1)
March 27, 2005
composites
found this interesting and a little inspirational.
Posted by brad at 12:37 PM | Comments (0)
March 26, 2005
Kiosk Prototyping
Brad, Jenova, and I worked on two potential prototypes for the Kiosk that we will demo in class this coming Tuesday:
PATCH #1:
The first prototype Max patch captures a still image (using the iSight) every 2 seconds for a total of 2 minutes. We experimented with a variety of speeds and found this to be a comfortable pace and duration. In turn, a single "session" with our future Kiosk-Cam will provide 60 key frames or a 10 second animation (@ 6 frames/second) similar to the stop action video we looked at in class last week. These (QuickTime) files will accumulate and be stored on a local hard drive / database and replayed on the adjacent video monitors.
PATCH #2:
The second Max patch records a short segment of video (approximately 7 seconds) and then loops once over the following segment (again, 7 seconds) of live-recorded video. This cycle continues to repeat, producing a superimposed ghosted image of the live and delayed video.
Both prototypes encourage very different forms of playful interaction.
Posted by andrew at 04:06 PM | Comments (1)
March 24, 2005
assignment for next week (3/29)
First, all 3 groups did a great job coming to 90% convergence around the idea of animation and time lapse. I'm particularly delighted that all 4 listed features were more-or-less absorbed: 1) top monitors as attractants, 2) pass-by participation, 3) realtime payoff, and 4) cumulative data collection.
I propose we simply call the 2 current groups the I (input) Group and the O (output) Group. You know who you are. The I Group is responsible for everything related how participants are recorded. The O Group is responsible for everything related to what the participants see (and hear). You'll have to decide where processing fits in.
The assignment for next week’s class, for both groups, is to present something to show, with the goal by end of class of having a proposal ready to ship (to TrojanVision and Scott).
Posted by naimark at 10:06 AM | Comments (1)
March 10, 2005
Links
Just real quick:
Link to Canadian site
Link to DT article on Kiosk
Posted by jdillon at 11:19 AM | Comments (0)
Proposal on Kiosk
We all know it is inevitable we will need to pitch this idea to at least Don and Gary. I think the sooner we can get through the 'approval process' the better. So I'm reposting the questions I wrote a bit ago to see how many we can get answered in the next few days, with maybe a goal of having the proposal prepared by the time we return from Spring break. I personally think the time has come to make some decisions and stick to them.
Target Audience: USC Students who pass by the kiosk during the daytime/night time. Student who are open and curious. Students who have something to say or want to be heard. Students who are not shy or frightened of approaching new things.
One-liner/Elevator Pitch: We aim to use the kiosk located in the center of campus to capture campus life in the daytime and create a magical performance/experience in the evening, that reflects __________________
Locations used(where): The Trojanvision Kiosk, the quad area in front of the kiosk, with a link up to ZML, _____________
Project Summary:
Defined experience
Benefits to Audience
Goals
Themes explored
Technical Specifications:
Diagrams, explanations, equipment needed (addendum can be Budget)
Posted by jdillon at 11:18 AM | Comments (0)
March 08, 2005
Getting to know the kiosk (who needs a name)
Don Tillman, executive director of Trojan Vision, was kind enough to spend some time with us during class today to talk about the ins and outs of the kiosk located in the center of campus next to Tommy Trojan.
Of particular interest was the story he told about when Trojan Vision attempted a similar project a year or so ago when the kiosk first found its home on campus. Apparently, Dean Daley saw a similar installation in Canada, loved it and thought having a similar kiosk as part of the School of Cinema-Television would be a great idea.
While the administration was a bit more resistant to planting it in the center of campus, the idea eventually became a reality and with a couple of snips, Trojan Vision turned an old ticket booth into the kiosk.
The basic idea was to give a voice to the USC campus community by allowing passers-by to “Say What You Think.” The questions ranged from "Does the United States have the right to make pre-emptive military strikes?" to "What is your favorite Homecoming memory?"
The recorded responses from faculty, students and staff were recorded, sent via a live fiber optic cable to the Trojan Vision studio in the Zemeckis Center and recorded to a hard-drive. Thereafter, they were edited and played during commercial blocks during regular programming.
Perhaps the most probable element of this whole process, according to Tillman, was that the campus community didn’t really interact with the kiosk. On a good day, he said that they would have seven comments. On a bad day, one or two. This is of obvious importance to us as we try to figure out what is going to make the campus community responsive enough to interact with the kiosk.
While it was disheartening to hear that the campus community truly didn’t connect with the kiosk, the good news is that we did learn the attempts of the first go around, which will help us as we move into the production stage of reinventing this thing, which I think we should affectionately name.
Another wonderful bit of news came from Gary Campbell, who is part of the wonderful engineering team at the Zemeckis Center. Campbell gave us a tour of the kiosk and ended on the note that if we need any tech support of behalf of the engineering team, do not hesitate to ask.
For more information, including technical information, please visit the USC Annenberg Center's"Trojan Vision Interactive Kiosk" website at http://www.annenberg.edu/kiosk/.
Posted by ashley at 07:49 PM | Comments (1)
Kiosk Specs
more to come...
Posted by brad at 06:30 PM | Comments (0)
March 07, 2005
Night Time is the right time...
Here's what we discussed in our meeting on Saturday:
We still want to go ahead with textured/moving screens and rear projection.
As for content we decided on:
- Having some standard set content and having free form content based on what input we get during the day. Then a program could draw images from a set folder and create a random images pattern including the video and the created content.
- We also thought about adding a 'live performance' aspect to the piece. There were two suggestions for doing this, having us actually at the kiosk working on laptops to--in real-time--generate images, or have a live video feed of us at the zml 'actively' running around and creating images, DJing the experience, etc.
The general idea is we would use the content from the day to do google image searches, or drawings or whatever we were inspired to do, then put this information into a program that would mix it as we are creating it.
Posted by jdillon at 04:21 PM | Comments (0)
Kiosk Daytime Scope - Exterior Illustration
Posted by andrew at 10:45 AM | Comments (0)
March 06, 2005
"Daytime Team" - 03/05/05 Mtg. Notes
The following is a summary of the 03/05/05 KIOSK “Daytime Team” meeting; please read and comment:
Input Station (single station):
• Records Video and Audio of individuals (on at a time) @ Kiosk.
• Camera and viewing monitor will be place inside Kiosk (behind glass).
• A “Light Box” with face/head portal will be placed on the SS shelf.
• A curtain and/or curtain may be placed behind the station to control background.
• The curtain may be an evenly illuminated green screen, to isolate subject in post.
• The participant will see him/herself in a monitor with visual guide (iToy-like).
• Monitor will show “RECORDING” and countdown clock.
• Start & Stop Buttons will give participant control up to 30 seconds in length.
• Hardware will include A Basic Stamp, computer (G5?), and hard drive array.
• Software will include Max/MSP/Jitter, BS2, & other necessary control (TBD).
• We may want to video capture/digitize immediately and/or automatically.
• Organization of video files/assets will be extremely important.
• Aesthetics may be a hybrid of past & future.
• A microphone (TBD) will be placed in the “Light Box” to record voice.
Information & Daytime Displays (2 on either side of input station):
• Explanatory signage to describe the purpose and give directions.
• Posted video release statement(s).
• Possibly suggest how to show options for anonymity.
• Not providing virtual or real masks (discussed, but decided not to in the end).
• Post Invitation to the nighttime display.
• Question OF THE DAY visible from outside (not a survey or too specific).
• Video screens display captured video (immediately following capture).
• Video screens display previous night’s content.
• Recording light (similar to Carson sound stage) may flash on booth.
• Possibly prop and/or decorate interior to relate to theme of the day.
• Other video assets will be handled by “Nighttime Team.”
This week's DELIVERABLES:
Jenova: Research Software & Hardware needed for capturing, compressing, storage, etc.
Susana: Information, question, motivation, release, topics, etc.
Brad: Will attend nighttime mtg. & start 3D model of Kiosk & surrounding area.
Andrew: Summarize & post meeting notes. Design sketches of input station.
Posted by andrew at 09:16 AM | Comments (8)
March 01, 2005
Notes from Daytime Nighttime
DAYTIME
3 themes concepts for questions:
Leave a message for the campus
Wish for the future
Open Mic (podiums in a town square)
Faces, Audio, Video
They see their Face or Mask/Avatar
IM student are first guinea pigs!
Every 15 minutes is a new message but at night there is a representation of the day’s collection.
Time Limit
Buttons: Face/No Face Voice/Keys
NIGHTTIME
A group experience that everyone can share
Projection:
Rear projection on screens hanging off of Kiosk
Play with texture and movement (fans) Screen Sculptures
Raw state vs Mixed State
Raw States, projected on addtl panels with a grid of the faces, displaying one face at a time (Julia Roberts EW cover)
Changing based on audience
Ambient light on concrete and trees
Mixed State
A Dream of a Future
Tim Burton, Danny Elfman, Carnival Cirque de Soleil
“We’re making up a story of the future”
Posted by jdillon at 08:34 PM | Comments (0)