2010

   Assignment #12 (Final Presentations, Mon. May 17th)

• Prepare for final (public) presentations in McCormack theatre (70 Brown St, between Waterman & Angell - use entrance on Fones Alley) from 6pm-9pm on May 17th. Timing will be tight, so please rehearse these in advance to ensure they are under 7 min. (Note: there will be a strict timer with instructions to cut people off who exceed the limit)
• Email myself (and the TA) with the URL for your piece, so that we can compose a launch-page (this will include the presentation order). Be sure to specify any unusual technical needs you may have (drivers, libraries, a specific OS or machine, etc.) Otherwise, it will be assumed that ALL projects will run in a browser (Safari or Firefox) on the Mac, at a maximum applet size of 1024x740 using Java 1.5.
• Prepare all documentation (see Assignment #11 for a list) by May 21st. Documentation is an especially important element of digital projects and will thus contribute significantly to your final grade. As usual, all project elements should be linked from your project's home page on the course wiki. Remember as well that the final project itself must be linked as either an executable web applet or as a web-viewable video (or both).
• Take advantage of these last few days to meet with myself (and/or the TA) for discussion of the presentation itself as well as last-minute polishing...

   Assignment #11 (Due Mon. May 3rd)

• Prepare for final project rehearsals which will occur over the next two classes (sign-up for a date here**). These should be a maximum of 7 min. (there will be a timer), use supplementary materials where appropriate (slides, mockups, etc.), and should be rehearsed in advance. All your materials will be expected to be on the web so that we can share a single computer. If you are running an application or have other un-web-friendly media types, please bring these on a USB thumb-drive or CD/DVD. If for some reason you need to use a specific computer, pls. contact myself or the TA in advance of class and let us know.

• Verify that you have included all the requested documentation from the last week (at least 3 descriptive paragraphs, screenshots and/or images, risk and task lists, a daily schedule, and at least 1 programmatic sketch). This documentation will contribute significantly to the grade for your final project (and thus the class).

   Assignment #10 (Due Mon. Apr 26)

• This week will be dedicated to work on final projects, which will be presented in class on May 3 and May 10 (public presentations are tentatively scheduled for the 17th). Tasks: 1) upload an image (exactly 270x72 pixels) to the FinalProjectLinks page as demonstrated in the example (use the upload button, as described here); 2) post a day-by-day schedule on your web page that covers the remaining tasks (include time for testing, debugging and documentation).
• Don't hesitate to schedule an appt. (with myself or Paul) if you have questions, concerns, or just want some additional feedback...
• Recommended: read through the Processing libraries page here and consider whether any of these can be used to simplify the programming for your final (make sure to scroll down on the page).

   Assignment #9 (Due Mon. Apr 19)

[Planning] In addition to your project description and sketches/mockups, add 2 new sections to the web page for your final project: a 'Task List' and 'Risk Areas'.

• The 'Task List' should list the various parts that will need to be done before the project is finished. This should get you thinking about how to decompose a big project into smaller, more manageable sub-parts, which is an essential skill when doing larger pieces (in art & elsewhere.) Assign each task two numbers from 1-5. The first should be its 'priority' and represents how essential the task it is to the success of the piece (1 means "absolutely essential", and 5 means "might be nice if there's extra time"). The second, called 'difficulty', should represent your best guess as to how long the task will take you to complete. These two #s, taken together, should give you a pretty good idea of the order with which the various tasks should be done.
• 'Risk Areas' should list any parts of the project (taken from your task list above) that either a) could cause the project to fail if not completed and/or b) that you have doubts about how to do. Examples of what might go here include any technical implementations that you are not completely sure of how to do, or any external dependencies that your project requires. Examples here include a) access to resources like dictionaries, texts, or databases, b) equipment needs, like access to a server, recording equipment for creating samples, or other hardware, e.g., for a physical installation, c) any permissions required, say to install a piece in a public place, d) human resources, like participants in a performance, or help from a specialist in some part of your project (e.g graphic design), or e) whatever you might be expecting from collaborators. The goal here is identify as many possible causes of failure for your project plan as early as you can.

[Coding] For this week, everyone should create a working program that implements at least ONE element of your final project. This should both help to clarify your idea for others in the class and be something you'll eventually include in the finished piece. Make sure to pick some part of the project that can be addressed independently (probably something directly from your task list above.) Let me know ASAP if you are having trouble thinking about how to break things up. Add a link to the sketch on your final project page and be ready to present it in class for feedback.

[Writing] This week I want you to reflect on your experience thus far in a short writing assignment. This should be a minimum of a paragraph and a maximum of a page and specifically address the following 3 questions in the context of programming for art.

• What was your most notable 'breakthrough' moment thus far; e.g., when you learned some concept you'd been having a difficult time with, added a new technique to your process, or pushed a specific piece to a new level?
• Describe a moment (or decision) you wish you could take back. Perhaps a task that now seems simple on which spent you an inordinate amount of time, or some choice you made on a piece that lead you down a dead-end.
• What's the most important thing that you feel you have NOT quite learned/mastered yet. This could be a specific technical concept, some part of the 'making' process on which you feel stuck or frustrated, or something you find lacking in one or more of your works.

   Assignment #8 (Due Mon. Apr 12)

• Continue to work on your final projects. If you haven't already, create a webpage for the project and add a link to it here. This page should contain (at least) the following elements:
  • The author's name(s) and a (provisional) title
  • 3 paragraphs of descriptive text organized according to the following headings: 'overview', 'technical', 'conceptual'; the latter referring to the larger ideas/themes/questions that the project addresses
  • At least one piece of explanatory media; a mock-up of the user-interface perhaps, or a process, system, or data-flow diagram. These can be hand-drawn sketches, images (Sketch-up, Photoshop, etc.) or short procedural demos (Processing, Flash, etc.) that demonstrate your thinking/process.
• Next steps (for those who are ready): a) create a working program (a Processing sketch) that implements ONE element of your final project b) add a 'task-list' and 'risk areas' to your project's webpage (for more detail on these items, see last year's assignment #10 here).
• Recommended: A short video demonstrating live-coding with ruby, midi, and textmate
• Recommended: The longer video, Is Evolution an Algorithmic Process?, which contains a more in-depth interview with Karl Sims about the creation of his evolutionary creatures (the video we watched early on in the semester)

   Assignment #7 (Due Mon. Apr 5)

   Assignment #6 (Due Mon. Mar 22)

   Assignment #5 (Due Mon. Mar 15)

   Assignment #4 (Due Mon. Mar 8)

   Assignment #3 (Due Mon. Feb 22/29)      

• Read the P. Galanter article: 'What is Generative Art? Complexity Theory as a Context for Art Theory', which should directly inform your group project described below.
• Watch this video by Kenny Goldsmith (discussed last week) on so-called 'Conceptual Writing.' (Due 2/29)
• Create (with your partner) a work of generative literary art using one of the types of systems mentioned in the Galanter article. The constraints for this assignment are as follows:
  • Text must be the primary visual element. Other visual media (images, video, etc.) should be used only as a means of framing or contextualizing the textual.
  • The text should not only be decorative, but should make linguistic (and hopefully literary sense). To be more specific, it is NOT Ok, for example, to take a flocking system and simply substitute random letters or words for the points.
  • You should however feel free to use an existing generative simulation (there are MANY on the Processing website) as a starting point from which to develop your piece.

• Publish a short description (at least one sentence), a 'thumbnail' (250x100), and a link to your sketch under your name on this page, no later than Monday at 4pm. Though you have two weeks for the final version of this assignment first iterations are due next Monday (Feb 22) by 4pm.
• Misc: make sure you have your copy of Hartman's 'Virtual Muse'. To get a head start, begin by reading chapters 1-3...

   Assignment #2 (Due Mon. Feb 15)      

   Assignment #1 (Due Mon. Feb 8)

2009

   Assignment #12    (Due Mon. May 4)

In next week's class (May 4) we'll do a practice run-through of final project presentations (following the order on the final projects page.) Each of you should prepare (and practice) a 5-min presentation of your project. This can be a performance, a show-and-tell, or even a short-introduction followed by video documentation (here's a nice example from a previous course.) Except in special cases (let me know ASAP), all project materials should be available on the web, so that they can be run from one computer, which will greatly reduce the amount of setup time between presentations.

Public presentations, as mentioned, will be held from 6:30-9:30pm on May 11 at McCormack Family Theater, 70 Brown St. (this is in the alley between the LitArts and English buildings.) The setup will be, as in class, a projector, computer w' internet, and audio. If anything else is required (including a specific operating system) , please let me know ASAP. For those interested, John Cayley and Justin Katko's digital writing classes will present their work from 4:30-6-30pm. Following the presentations we will have a little end-of-semester gathering at 151 Benefit St. (at South Court) which is a short walk from the theatre.

   Assignment #11    (Due Mon. April 27)

As we are getting down to the wire (~10 more days!) this week will be dedicated to work on final projects. The only deliverable will be to post a day-by-day schedule on your web page for the remaining tasks BY FRIDAY end-of-day. This should not take very long, but will be important as you manage your remaining time (Note: grading-wise, this will be considered a FULL assignment.)

   "Writers don't own their words. Since when do words belong to anybody?
    'Your very own words,' indeed! And who are you?"
--Brion Gysin

   Assignment #10    (Due Mon. April 20)

[Planning] In addition to your project description and sketches/mockups, add 2 new sections to the web page for your final project: a 'Task List' and 'Risk Areas'. Due by 3pm on 3/20

• The 'Task List' should list the various parts that will need to be done before the project is finished. This should get you thinking about how to decompose a big project into smaller, more manageable sub-parts, which is an essential skill when doing larger pieces (in art & elsewhere.) Assign each task two numbers from 1-5. The first should be its 'priority' and represents how essential the task it is to the success of the piece (1 means "absolutely essential", and 5 means "might be nice if there's extra time"). The second, called 'difficulty', should represent your best guess as to how long the task will take you to complete. These two #s, taken together, should give you a pretty good idea of the order with which the various tasks should be done.
• 'Risk Areas' should list any parts of the project (taken from your task list above) that either a) could cause the project to fail if not completed and/or b) that you have doubts about how to do. Examples of what might go here include any technical implementations that you are not completely sure of how to do, or any external dependencies that your project requires. Examples here include a) access to resources like dictionaries, texts, or databases, b) equipment needs, like access to a server, recording equipment for creating samples, or other hardware, e.g., for a physical installation, c) any permissions required, say to install a piece in a public place, d) human resources, like participants in a performance, or help from a specialist in some part of your project (e.g graphic design), or e) whatever you might be expecting from collaborators. The goal here is identify as many possible causes of failure for your project plan as early as you can.

[Coding] For this week, everyone should create a working program that implements ONE element of your final project. This should both help to clarify your idea for others in the class and be something you'll eventually include in the finished piece. Make sure to pick some part of the project that can be addressed independently (probably something directly from your task list above.) Let me know ASAP if you are having trouble thinking about how to break things up.

[Writing] This week I want you to reflect on your experience thus far in a short writing assignment. This should be a minimum of a paragraph and a maximum of a page and specifically address the following 3 questions in the context of programming for art.

• What was your most notable 'breakthrough' moment thus far; e.g., when you learned some concept you'd been having a difficult time with, added a new technique to your process, or pushed a specific piece to a new level?
• Describe a moment (or decision) you wish you could take back. Perhaps a task that now seems simple on which spent you an inordinate amount of time, or some choice you made on a piece that lead you down a dead-end.
• What's the most important thing that you feel you have NOT quite learned/mastered yet. This could be a specific technical concept, some part of the 'making' process on which you feel stuck or frustrated, or something you find lacking in one or more of your works.

   'An original artist is unable to copy. So [s]he has only to copy in order to be original'
-Jean Cocteau

   Assignment #9    (Due Mon. April 13)

• By now you should have decided on a final project idea to pursue. For next week, continue to develop your project concept by further refining your idea to the point where you can present it to the class. Each project *must* have a web-page of its own with a description (1 paragraph min.) and at least one piece of explanatory media. These will likely be mock-ups of the interface, which can be useful both for your process and in conveying your ideas to others. Mock-ups can be hand-drawn sketches, images (Sketch-up, Photoshop, etc.) or short procedural demos (Processing, Flash, etc.) If you want to get a head start, prepare a programmatic sketch of some part of your project. Add a link to your project web-page here BEFORE class.

• Watch this video by Kenny Goldsmith on so-called 'Conceptual Writing', and be prepared to discuss some segment that particularly interested you...
• Read this article on 'Regular Expressions in Java'. Then do the coding assignment here. This should be turned in (via email to myself and the TAs) by 4pm on April 13.
  Another regex article for those looking for more explanation...

'Believe it or not, I can actually draw' -Michelangelo

   Assignment #8 (Due Mon. Apr 6)

Prepare the final version of your N-Gram project to be presented in class and post a link here. This is not just a clean-up of your first iteration, but a significant revision that explores new ground (Both iterations are required.) Take into account the feedback you received in class and/or on the list (if you didn't get to present in class, feel free to post your project to the list now.)

Remember to include full documentation in the form of an HTML page with links to BOTH iterations of your projects. Additionally, there should be (at least) a one paragraph description of the piece, instructions, and at least 1 thumbnail for the class website (250 x 100 pixels). Note that the link you post on the course website should go to your HTML page, NOT to the applet itself.

CHECKLIST
   A link on the course website (here) to your HTML page with:

• Your title
• Links to BOTH iterations of your project (with appropriate background colors for your applets!)
• Your project description (at least one paragraph) - remember to mention any external sources you've used (texts, libraries, inspirations, etc.)
• Screenshots (at least one, 250 x 100 pixels) plus any relevant sketches or mockups from your process
• Links to all source files (please link to any server code as well, e.g., php files) - these can be also be put on the individual applet pages
• Instructions for use - these can be also be put on the individual applet pages

No flash-drives, CDs, or verbal URLs will be accepted in class. Projects not posted by 4pm on Monday will lose one letter grade.

Recommended Reading: Notes on Post-Modern Programming by Noble & Biddle (Optional)

   Assignment #7 (Due Mon. Mar 30)

WRITING
Submit three short proposals (1 paragraph each max) for your final projects. These should leverage ideas/techniques from the course, and can be variations on a single theme, or 3 completely separate projects from which you will choose. Primary criteria are originality, cohesion, and communication -- make these works say something both personal & resonant to an audience. Due in my email by 3pm 3/30, no exceptions.

READING
Read this short article (1 pg) on Cellular Automata, and Langton's Lambda parameter, representing the scale from order to chaos, which came up in both sections. Then experiment with the CA applet here.

Recommended: For those interested in generative techniques, the following video 'Is Evolution an Algorithmic Process?' is quite good, including a more in-depth interview with Karl Sims about the creation of his evolutionary creatures (the short video we watched in class.)

CODING
Complete first iterations of your N-Gram projects to be presented in class on the 30th. Your piece should be finished to the point where it can be fully demonstrated (as opposed to described), and useful feedback provided. Your goal should be to gain as much insight as possible from the class as to future directions for the piece (preparing specific questions you'd like answered will be helpful in this regard.)

Note: as usual, remember to check for updates to Processing, RiTa, and any other libraries you're using when starting a new project.

   Assignment #6 (Due Mon. Mar 16)

In addition to the reading below, this will be a catch-up week. However ALL previous assignments must be turned in by 3pm Monday, at which time we will begin our next set of projects.

      Pending Assignments:

Unless you have made special arrangements with me, no further assignments (from the list above) will be accepted after Monday, March 16.

The full set above, in combination with your participation, will be used by myself and the TAs to give midterm grades as follows:

    Warm-up & CharCounter   20% each
    Grammar Projects        40%
    Participation           20%
      (in class, labs, & on the list)

If you're not sure whether you've turned something in, please check the recent-work pages (linked above). If you sent work and it is not listed, or you have a reason why you need more time for any of the assignments, let us know right away...

READING: Ch. 5 from Hartman's Virtual Muse. Pay particular attention to the 'Travesty' program. This will relate directly to our 2nd mini-projects (beginning next week). Think about how word-based (as opposed to letter-based) n-grams might look/work. How might we use such data in an artistic context? Come to class with at least one project idea representing an answer to this question.

   Assignment #5 (Due Mon. Mar 9)

   Assignment #4 (Due Mon. Mar 2)

   Assignment #3 (Due Mon. Feb 23)

   Assignment #2 (Due Mon. Feb 9)       (sketches posted here)

   Assignment #1 (Due Mon. Feb 2)

           UPCOMING ASSIGNMENTS       (to start thinking about)

2-3 MINI-PROJECTS'   (2 weeks for each, chosen from below)

Recombination Based on our discussion of recombination and the examples we've looked at, create a recombinant literary work. While you are free to choose any form, one of the 3 poetic forms we'll discuss (haiku, sonnet, sestina) is probably a good place to start.

Grammar-based generation Prepare a sketch to present that uses your own grammar. (technical details to be discussed in lab). Find a way to use this technique to make something creative/personal/expressive. First iterations should use only the basic context-free grammar. Discuss any limitations you encounter in your presentation.

Feature Analysis Prepare a sketch to present that uses feature extraction to generate new literary content. Features that may be extracted via the RiTa library include: word, pos, stress, syllables, and phonemes (technical details to be discussed in lab). Find a way to use this data to make something creative/personal/expressive.

Text-mining Prepare a sketch to present that uses the web-scraping and text-mining techniques we've discussed to generate new literary content. Try to take advantage of the rapidly changing nature of web data sources to create a work that evolves over time. If you like, use the web-parsing, and sentence extraction components in the RiTa library (also RSS). Find a way to use this data to make something creative/personal/expressive (Note: this sketch can be submitted as an application (test, zip, and email).

Ontology-based generation (Wordnet) Prepare a sketch to present that make creative use of an ontology (a hierarchically structured lexicon). WordNet is a good choice here (see the Rita.WordNet library) but there are other options: Verbnet, Framenet, Propbank, OpenCyc, or even del.icio.us. Find a way to use one or more of these resources to make something creative/personal/expressive. Include in your presentation any limitations in the data sources you selected.

                  =======================================

FINAL PROJECTS

Final projects should build on core concepts in the course. These will be presented formally in the last week of classes in an 'artist-talk' format complete with documentation on all stages of the process (initial ideas, sketches/images, storyboards, recordings, prototypes, writing, etc.) you will be required to hand this in as part of the final project.)

Remember to consider the use of color, space, image, animation and sound (samples, text-to-speech, or recorded voice) as means to extend the range of the piece in an organic/cohesive fashion.

Although project are due at end-of-semester, it is highly encouraged that you start right away and take full advantage of of all course resources...