Instructor: Marcele
This is a write up for Interaction Lab SP18 Recitation on Final Project Process on Apr 26, 2019.
My groupmates’ projects
Plastic recycling game
This is a game about recycling plastic bottle lids. The Earth will be depicted in Processing. A physical model of the Earth will be manufactured and connected to a motor. The player score by aiming plastic lids and throw them into three rings. As the player scores, the Earth rotates. The player wins when one full rotation is achieved.
One of the suggestions we gave was to make the full rotation easier to achieve. Initially the creator decided he was going to have three rings of 1 point, 2 points, and 5 points, and the full rotation be 360 points. That was at least 72 throws. Too many. We recommended to make it 30 points total. He agreed.
It shows that interactive experience has the potential to change people’s habits. If this installation is generalized, then more people would develop the habit of recycling. It is interesting because in this sense interactive physical computing can be deployed for public goods.
Guess this picture
This game involves three players. As the image displayed on a screen gets more and more clear, the players compete to see who will be the first to guess the content of the picture. The content could be a person, an object, or anything physical or abstract.
I think it is a good game for ice-breaking and bonding. If it is on End of Semester Show, it will be popular. As you compete with other players, you can gain an understanding of what they are familiar with. The technologies this project requires are also interesting. Mastering visual computing is essential for the creators to make the guessing process fun and dynamic.
Multi modal musical experience
Inspired by other artists, this creator wants to combine music and light to manifest an immersive musical experience for the user. The sound and the graphics will be dynamically generated, so every try will yield a different experience.
We reminded the designer to focus on the overall aesthetic of the project. I think it will be an enjoyable project that makes people reflect on what real-time artistic computing is like.
Interaction
We did not specifically discuss what interaction was, but basing on our project designs, it was clear that we understood interaction in different ways. Although the general ideas apply, but we focused on different aspects. Some wanted to make a fun game, and others wanted artistic expression or experience.
Feedbacks I got
I got feedbacks from the group and Rudi.
First, the sound quality has to be good. This is true. I will look for a good sound library and learn to synthesize sounds dynamically.
Second, originally I was thinking about providing ethanol wipers for the users to clean the mouthpiece before they use it. However, an apparently better idea was proposed by them: use disposable changeable plastic mouthpieces! They are 1 kuai each on Taobao, so I gladly adopted this idea.
Finally, Rudi referred me to Aven and Sam’s interactive GuQin project. I will discuss my project with Sam for feedback and advice.
These are high-quality, practical feedbacks that will influence my project. I exchanged feedback with Tristan after the event.