Doodling - it's not doing nothing.

Another interesting TED talk.
We had a digital strategy meeting yesterday, and it went on all morning and into the afternoon.
Although most interesting and engaging, there were naturally moments when my attention waned. However, on the advice of this talk, I tried doodling.
You know, of course, because I am suggesting you watch / listen to this, that it worked, that my attention was better than I know it would otherwise have been.
So, go on, pull out a pencil and cheap pad, and let the pencil wonder as you listen to this....

What do babies think?

Very interesting TED Talk.
"Babies are the Research and Development team of the human species."

Luvie Awards for BBC World Cup Tracker

The BBC Team Tracker, which I built at Saint@RKCR/YR for the 2010 World Cup, has just been recognized again, this time at the Luvie Awards.

It featured in three categories, winning a Silver in their Sports section, and getting shortlisted in the Flash and Best Practices sections.

Although only shortlists, I am most happy with the Best Practices and Flash results.
Working on the V&A project, I was connected with a good few Golds for work last year, but these Luvie's really reflect upon the work that I did.
Well done and thanks guys!

Best Practices - shortlisted
"Best practices sites serve as an industry benchmark for the most current, innovative, and advanced practices in web development. Sites demonstrating unparalleled excellence across The Academy's six criteria: content, structure & navigation, visual design, interactivity, functionality, and overall experience."

Flash - shortlisted
"Sites that showcase an exciting and interesting use of Flash"

Remember, some things are best forgotten

(or, remembering SB)

I’m catching up with Guardian Tech Weekly’s and just listened to this one which includes an item about “the significance of a Columbia University study about the cognitive effects of Google”, or to paraphrase: the importance of the Internet forgetting things.

This is something I used to consider a lot, in my digital artist phase, and the podcast recalled for me, with surprisingly vehement annoyance, an art project I tried but failed to get off the ground some time around 2000, where I designed a virtual space (it was hoping to be an artwork, so I couldn't just call it a website could I!?), that forgot stuff.
My idea was that I would fill a database with my memories (sounds, images, external links), display them in a virtual space (...on a website), then invite users to rearrange and overwrite them, forming new ideas and associations that would reflect the collective memory of the users.
I hoped it would be fun, playful, and maybe contribute to some reflection about the nature of memory and how new technologies might cause that to change.

The idea was very well received by the funding body I was hoping would help out on the financial side until the friend on the panel who had asked me to submit an idea, but who clearly missed the point, rejected it on the following grounds: 'Why would anyone be interested in your memories?'.

Firstly, thanks for the implied insult that my life to that point was so incredibly dull in your estimation;
and secondly, that was the whole bloody point.
Even the owner of a memory can lose interest in it after a while, and it would be good for it, after it’s moment in the sunshine, to fade slowly into the background, until it was finally, gently, forgotten.

Ironically this whole episode is one of those memories I would like to leave behind but which clearly seems to be stuck festering in a dark, bitter, corner of my mind.

A further irony is that I can’t find any of the emails that went between us at this time, so perhaps the Internet is finally running my project and forgetting my memories...

Barefoot Summer

Until this week, I had been exclusively wearing my VFFs since the snow melted.

As my everyday shoe I have walked to work (and around the office) in them, cycled, walked some trails, and even sprinted across a road or run down a high street when I've been late for something.
So, I feel I have done pretty much everything in them except the running I had hoped to start last year.

This barefoot year started with sharp pains all around the sides and base of both heels. As my foot strength built I found improvement on both sides, particularly on the left. This improvement continued on the left but my right foot still caused me trouble.
Being stubborn, I persevered, concentrating on using my toes, and observing my foot fall to look for problems.
I noticed the more I used my toes the softer I could walk.
In addition I also realised that I had an outside roll on the right foot.
Being careful not to over compensate, I worked to correct the roll and found the side heel pain receding. However, the bottom of my right heel was persistently sore, as if bruised, but showing no bruising.

So this week I am wearing conventional shoes as a rest and the pain is subsiding.
I am hopeful that once the bruised feeling goes I will finally be able to take the next steps towards the running ambition I initially planned over a year ago.

Graffiti or Art?

I recently uploaded some images of SHOK-1s work, fully credited, to Flickr,
including his latest stuff which I was pleased to capture.

I was suprised to get a message from him the following day asking me to take down those latest photos. He said he wasn't ready for the work to be seen, and that anyway he would like to show it first. This seemed reasonable, so I took the photos down and let him know.
All very nice and polite.

Afterwards, however, I started to think...
This is work painted on a wall in clear site of a public road. I hadn't sneaked into his private gallery and stolen images of a secret work.
So, what right of control does a graffiti artist have over the public taking and sharing photos of their work?
Speaking to graffiti artists on the Parkland Walk, it seems their attitude is that they paint for themselves and are perfectly accepting that the work is captured or over-painted by others.
This seems right to me.
It would feel different if it was a private space, but it isn't.

I will not be putting the images back on Flickr as that would feel petty, but I may not bother putting any more SHOK-1 stuff up at all.
Wouldn't want to offend him again...

So artist rights, or public images. What do you think about graffiti?

HDR Test

I was intrigued when I first heard about High Dynamic Range (HDR) photography, in part by the rich images, but also by the controversy it raises.
HDR images are composites from multiple exposures that draw out high- and low- lights in a single image. This produces a result that is nearer to what the human eye can perceive (as opposed to film or a camera sensor), but the result can look a little odd because we are not used to seeing this range in a photo.

So, I had to test this with my new camera...
...but Photoshop, my editing tool of choice, didn't support my Panasonic camera's RAW format! Dull.
However,  I knew a solution would present itself so I took some exposure bracketed images to use when I could.
A recent update to Adobe's Camera RAW software has answered my need, and I have finally managed to make my first HDR image:

HDR result 

Here you can see the three exposures that were merged:

Over exposed - bring out foreground / dark detail

Standard exposure

Under exposed - bring out highlights / sky detail

I am really pleased with the result.
This view from our holiday cottage in the Scottish Highlands was beautiful, but the light contrasts were so great that a single standard exposure just didn't do it justice.
I think this HDR image does a much better job.
What is your opinion?

You can find a good technical wiki article here, and some beautiful HDR images here.

The Internet of Things

I have just started looking at programming physical interfaces, using a technology called Arduino.

Armed with my starter kit (suitable for ages 10 years and up), I have made LED lights blink (and even dim!), motors whir, and a small servo turn back and forth, controlled in my final experiment by a bendy bit a plastic (a flex sensor).
It's great fun, but now I want to make a variety of physical scenes, hook them up to the internet, and allow the world to control them by websites, tweets, Flickr uploads... and on and on my fantasies go.

All this is yet to come but is part of an attempt on my part to get a better understanding (and play with), the Internet of Things.
Simply, this is a term coming into currency that describes how physical objects in our lives are becoming increasingly connected. An example is that (if you have the right equipment), you can program your TV via your phone, whilst you are out. But this is going to be a world of smart devices where communication will go in both directions - your fridge will know when you are low on milk and text you whilst your out, reminding you to get more.

There was an interesting BBC Radio4 talk by Russell Davies on the 21^st September where he discusses his thoughts about this.
He also wrote a blog entry about what he had intended to say.
In his talk Davies quotes Clay Shirky, and it resonates deeply, so I leave you with it here:

"creating something personal, even of moderate quality, has a different kind of appeal than consuming something made by others, even of high quality"

Fungus the photo-man

I have been annoying Nadine for a few years now by spoiling walks in the country by turning them into opportunities to regularly stop and admire / photograph any fungus that happens to be minding its own business within the sphere of my eye's beady gaze.
To make it all worthwhile (at least from my perspective), I am going to pop a selection of these photos up onto Flickr, where other fungus obsessed snappers can find them and thence bore their partners / lovers / friends.

I made a start today, uploading a few fungus from our front yard, Hampstead Heath, and from the woods near Shin Falls in the Scottish highlands.

Don't forget to keep checking for updates!

Fruit Picking

On the August bank holiday we went fruit picking in Enfield, of all places.
There is a PYO there called Parkside Farm, which won the PYO Farm of the Year 2011.
We had a wonderful day in the countryside, and picked some amazing produce.
The cupboards are now groaning with jars of Strawberry and Raspberry jam which Nadine has whipped up.