more maps, progress (the non-visible kind)

finished authoring the space, and started creating the database. I've got one entire day done, and about 200 db rows at this point, which is frightening.

so the phone version is basically all working, except that I haven't completed uploading all the lo-fi mobile-optimized filez.

it's been a complete pain creating all these rows manually, and keeping track of not only the file names, etc., but also the time of day and day of week, along with the node that each file is attached to. So I've been having to be very careful that my naming scheme is working, because it's the only way I can make any sense of any of this.

the map stuff is coming along ok. I screwed up our printer trying to print on card stock tonight, but I'm going to try again tomorrow.

tinseltown 2.0

cool article on thefeature.com about our very own interactive division. lots of good quotes from profs Bleecker & Ito.

link

Remember Get Smart?

So apparently Shaq has put a cell phone in his size 8000 shoes to "field encouraging calls" from his wife during a game.

Is this necessary? I think at least certain spies would feel that it was. Hello, chief?

link via slashphone

another reason kcrw is awesome

KCRW embraces podcasting -->

KCRW General Manager Ruth Seymour explains: “KCRW sees podcasting as a further extension of the radio station. The programs on our website have proven to be as popular as they are on the air; so it makes sense to allow more people to hear them, especially with the portability that podcasting offers – it’s KCRW To Go.”

http://www.laobserved.com/archive/003141.html

friends don't let friends lose their mobile phone

interesting story on bbc today saying that 1/3 of people in the UK feel that if they lose their mobile phone, they will lose their friends.

I wonder if Paris Hilton feels this way.

feedbeep

RSS --> SMS Feed

http://feedbeep.com/

Mackbot Johnson

web referencing

here's a question:

blogs are built on the idea of linking to other web pages (although if you listen to the news these days, they are all journalists...)

so, when does a blog meme become //public knowledge// so to speak. for example, in typical scholarly work, I think the rule of thumb is that if you see an idea / thought / proven fact referenced in at least 3 other books, that more or less means the idea is in the domain of public knowledge and that you therefore don't really need to reference an author (although you certainly may choose to do so).

what is the weblog equivalent? if I see something posted 30 times, should I still feel disposed to reference where I found the link?

vimeo

"like flickr for video"

http://www.vimeo.com/

there's some kind of cool things about this service. I love the idea of editing together an "automatic" movie based on tags. this potentially has a good community vibe, although I think they should just fold this into flickr, and add the generated movies. Anyway, here's another reference, tripp.

unreal engine --> music production suite

tadar.game music

from their 'internet' site:

'Game Music' threats a video game space as an environment for music production, sampling, processing, and performances. It searches for an ideal situation that will overcome and disseminate all of the hyper-governmental power embedded into the video games.

"Game Music" and "Game Music Processes" are music releases produced by altering the sounds of the weapons from the 1st person shooter Unreal Tournament 2004. All of the recordings are made by playing the video game. The music and the production environment are available under copyleft license at http://tadar.net.

cool stuff... I like the idea of reappropriating music. it's something i'm struggling with a little bit with my project, trying to walk the line between composer of 4 minute folk songs and a much more user-created mix of musical fragments into something that would destroy my 'intended' composition. so it's a good place to be i think. sampling and mixing / power to the peeps.

personal link

use this, me

http://jewelboxing.com/

map it

here's the mas o menos finalized map for the culver city project.

basically, this images reflects how each day of the week is layered upon a base map via transparency.

so each day will show a suggested path through the space. I think the current idea is to print out about 20-30 of these fancy transparency maps, and provide downloadable, cheaper ones for mass distribution, depending on how the event goes.

In bad news, my engineer is driving me nuts and stressing me out.

itunes mix of location33 music

Just let iTunes mix together 20 minutes (ok, 18.5) of music from my "forthcoming" thesis project.

Get It Now (to use verizon-lingo)

this is part of what will amount to about 2.5-3.0 hours of music to be embedded in the downtown culver city area.

in other news, had a good meeting with John Richa, the head of the IT dept. at Culver City Hall. Looks like we're going to do some sort of event in early-ish May, pre-graduation, so I think that will be fun.

In other news, the daily show last night was the funniest I've seen in weeks. But when did blogging become a journalistic thing only... it's all in the news these days, but the definition has seemed to stray far from the justin hall (a student at this very dept. who you might have seen or met) version.

hm.

Seamful - GPS Wifi Game

Seamful game, dev'd in scotland, looks super cool. This is a reblog post cause I'm in class...

Players travel around a designated area collecting digital "coins" (which appear all over the map, including in places not covered by the 802.11b wireless network) and uploading them to get points. To gain these points, players must upload the coin to the server, by pressing the "upload" button on their PDA in an area where there is 802.11b coverage. If players attempt to upload coins in an area not covered by WiFi, the upload fails and they loose all the coins they are carrying.

Only by understanding the boundaries of the network, and the effect of signal strength on their ability to upload coins, and thus score points, will players be successful in winning the game.

The "Pick Pocket" feature of the game allows a player to steal coins from other players nearby. The player has to be inside network coverage, and use the GPS to get within 10 meters of another player (also within network coverage). By pressing the "Pick Pocket" button, they can grab any coins the victim is carrying but has not uploaded yet.

Plus, scattered around the map are "Mines". If a player moves to within 10 meters of a mine, it will detonate and the player’s PDA will be temporarily disabled.

via near near future

google maps

another step in web domination.

http://maps.google.com/

Blinkenlights

control classic arcade games on buildings using your mobile phone as a controller. They did this at brown when I was there with an n64 controller, but the mobile interface is totally cool. Lights/Games/Architecture convergence.

link via near-near-future