Fall 2015 Weekly Schedule – Introduction to Interactive Media

August 31
- Introductions
- Housekeeping
- Why are we here? What’s the class about?
- Example work, get excited
- Assignment :
  - Observation assignment (to be discussed in class). Write up your observations on the class site.
- Reading :
  - There are No Electrons (pdf)
September 2
- Electricity, breadboards, basic tools of the trade.
- Reading:
  - The Art of Interactive Design Chapter 1
- Assignment:
  - Create a circuit with a switch that doesn’t require the use of your hands. Make a post in this blog about it.
  - Read Digital Input & Output
  - Read Microcontrollers, the basics

September 7:
- show your work!
- Reading
  - The Jump to Universality (pdf)
September 9
- Intro to Arduino programming, digital input/output
- Readings
  - Chapter 1 of The Design of Everyday Things, The Psychopathology of Everyday Things
  - Norman,“Emotion & Design: Attractive things work better”“
- Assignment
  - Expanding on your initial switch from last week, make a program with the Arduino that combines multiple digital inputs and outputs
  - Read about analog output and analog Input

September 14 :
- show your work
- Readings:
  - A Brief Rant on the Future of Interaction Design
  - A follow-up article
September 16 :
- Mapping, analog input
Reading
- Making Interactive Art: Set the Stage, Then Shut Up and Listen
- Physical Computing’s Greatest hits and misses

Assignment:
- get information from an analog sensor and use it to control an LED in an unexpected way.
September 21 :
- show your work
- Reading:
  - Analog Output (note the videos at the beginning)
  - tone
  - servos
  - Graham Pullin, Design Meets Disability
- Assignment
  - Handout : Self Test. You will not be graded on this, but please return it to me next class meeting

September 28
- Analog output, tone & servo
- Assignment:
  - Start your stupid pet trick (Due Oct 5). Show off your knowledge of all things I/O (incorporate an input and output that demonstrates some basic algorithmic processing) . (here’s a great version of this concept)
September 30
- General tips and building tricks
- Debugging
- Assignment:
  - Finish the stupid pet trick
October 5:
- Show your stupid pet tricks
- Reading :
  - Making Things Move, Ch 6

October 7
- Motors, transistors, relays and high current loads.
- Assignment : motor lab, make a motion like a person
October 12
- Show your motor project
- Download Processing
- Read Getting Started with Processing
- Read Coordinate systems and space
October 14
- Drawing shapes, using the cursor to draw
- Assignment:
  - Make a self portrait
  - Watch Casey Reas’ Eyeo talk on chance operations
  - Read
    - Processing pp 127-140
    - Her Code Got Humans on the Moon
  - Suggested Reading
    - Processing Ch 3-7
October 19 :
- show the selfies
- Reading: Lev Manovich
- Assignment :
  - Recreate an old computer art from an issue of “Computer Graphics and Art” Triangulation has a bunch of the old issues of the magazine as pdfs
October 26
- Show your work from the previous week
- Readings : Chapters 24 & 25 of Processing
October 28
- functions& objects
- Assignment:
  - make an art piece or a game using object oriented programming.
November 2
- Show your work
- Reading:
  - Digitize everything
November 4
- arrays & text
- Assignment:
  - Either make some sort of data visualization, or create a generative text output.
November 9
- Show your work
November 11
- In Class: Get one byte going between your Arduino and Processing
- Assignment:
  - Write on this blog a paragraph or two about what computing means to you at this point. Is it adding something to your life? Is it helping you become a better person? What are you getting out of it, what do others get from it?
  - Make a physical controller or physical output for something you have made in processing with serial communication
November 16
- Show controller
November 18
- Image Processing and Tracking
- Assignment:
  - Read Golan Levin’s notes on computer Vision for Artists
  - Using image or video manipulation, alter a photo or live video. Can you track a color for something? Can you incorporate special effects and get the rest of us in the class to say “wow”?
November 23
- Show your image or video project
November 25
- Networking and parsing text (overview)
- Assignment:
  - Start Final Project
November 30
- Talk about project ideas. Discuss feasibility and requirements.
December 7
- Project check-in
December 9
- Final project workshop
- Assignment:
  - Finish Final Project
December 14
- The show