Here is a project I finished recently, check it out. I intended this project to be an installation/projection, however I think it’d also make a really interesting screensaver and might create one if I find anyone would be interested in this.
Description:
I’ve been digging into the New York Times data APIs recently for a class I’m taking, and the biggest thing I noticed was that there is no way of getting any images past a 75×75 thumbnail. Furthermore, most stories don’t even have images. So I wanted to see if I could both show the stories that the NYT felt were worthy of finding an image for as well as sidestep the 75×75 tiny limitations and create a unique data stream from this.
ImageWorthy does this by
-Connecting the the Times Newswire API
-Extracting the last 200 stories in real time
-Finding stories that include images
-Loading these images into memory
-Analyzing them for average color as well as value
-Creating halftone images superimposed on a background color that is the average color of all the pixels in the image
-Cycling through these every 15 seconds with simple audio effects based on the average value (lightness/darkness) of the image
stringTheory is an experimental program I made that is not as much data vis as it is abstract data. Using the concept of String Theory (theoretical physics) to visualize my email, the program first shows everyone that has sent me email in the last year as particles within a group of atoms. Each node when rolled over shows the numer of emails this address has sent me as well as playing a tone based on this number. After clicking one of these nodes, that person’s messages are abstracted further as particles (protons & neutrons maybe? that doesn’t quite work yet but its loosely based…) which contain particles of the subject of the email. Rolling over one of the messages displays the message’s subject and plays a tone for each letter, with the timing based on the overall length of the subject and the tone of each letter based on both the message length and a value I’m giving to each letter.
The project uses PHP to collect my email to a MySQL database, then openFrameworks is used to grab a php file which generates XML from the database. This XML data is then used to drive the visuals.
The audio is generated by pushing OSC commands from openFrameworks to SuperCollider. The tones are somewhat harmonious but I’m just getting started with SuperCollider and I’d love to see what I can do with this data once I get a better understanding of the full power of super collider.
Overall I can already think of a lot more interesting things I could do with this but I’m super happy with the results so far….
Flowers made from dog toys and silk flower petals, attached to servo motors. A light (photo) sensor senses the light and the flowers either hid or come out. Inspired by the movie Coraline.
Here are a couple mini projects/experiments with openFrameworks I’ve been working on recently. I think I’m finally starting to grasp the whole code driven audio thing, although its still a bit fuzzy to me as far as music theory and making things that sound really good. I think these could definitely be either revisited or expanded upon in the future (hint: final project?)
Basically I wanted to combine an old school/do it yourself 80’s nerd feeling with the old-school/do it yourself 80’s break dancing/hip hop feel. I also wanted to create something that could be sold as a kit for a very reasonable price and would allow people to create their own custom beat boxes that would be uniquely theirs. I also see opportunity for releasing a line of artist-based boxes, either in somewhat limited quantities or as one-off truly custom units that could be sold for charity.
Beat Boxx is an interactive beat creator and recorder that allows users to lay down digital loops of blips and beeps or perform them live. Through the use of gesture based beat selection, users can choose to either perform live or record a sample and endlessly loop it. Simple and affordable, Beat Boxx is available as both a pre-made ready to go unit and as a user buildable/customizable kit.
Respond//React is a text messaging interface for openFrameworks. Software is written for S60 python on nokia N80 which first connects to a computer via bluetooth serial port and then receives messages and forwards them through the port. The messages are queued in the application and displayed one at a time every 15 seconds. Ideally this project would be presented as a mobile urban projection, allowing users to interact in a large public space.
Here is my final prototype for my LED Time Based project. I totally reworked my project after a lot of user testing, and built everything from the ground up. I spent a lot of time doing the woodwork/templates, and the code as well.
Speak to Me/Breathe is a project that shows communication over time by displaying my incoming email messages in Braille format on a large LED driven interface. The project is both an exploration of Braille as a visual 6-bit binary form of communication vs its normal tactile form, as well as a commentary on information security and encryption. Now that everything in the world is connected through the internet, is any of our data completely secure? By displaying my emails in an encrypted form, they are readily available for anyone to read if they put in the effort to learn and use visual braille. For the most part my information is secure because this is entirely too much work for a lot of people, but those who are determined enough will ultimately be able to read my mail despite the encryption.
