Deeply Superficial

Web technology is not necessarily a struggle

2009-11-23T13:35:00.001+01:00

If you have any experience in programming whatsoever, the following experience will probably sound familiar: just when you think you understand what’s going on, the results of your coding take an unexpected – and often unwanted – turn.

Figuring out what went wrong is usually a frustrating task. When trying to code, for instance, an entire website (meaning this is probably going to happen more than once) it might take a toll on your overall contentment in life.

What can we do about this serious issue?

Why type new codes when many others have already created wonderful codes for you to alter?

That’s right, most programmers don’t want other people to benefit from the result of their hard suffering. It hence seems like an anti-social thing to use their codes without permission (face it: politely asking them is a waste of time because you already know they wouldn’t want you to use their codes).

Theft is not an attractive solution for those of us that have polite manners.

Using standard templates various (web)hosts offer is a solution to spare the neat ones from huge amounts of dissatisfaction.

The issue here, though, is that these templates are often not customizable and you therefore would have to settle with a rather 1999 looking site. There’s no way those templates attract as much visitors as a siteowner’s unique lay-out that was made for the subject the website focuses on.

Some generous programmers have set up websites filled with (albeit copyrighted) modern-looking themes that were made for you to use.

The problem here is the fact you have to live with lines such as

“CREATED BY BUGzBUNNY*~ @ OURLAYOUTzL00KBezT.COM – DON’T REMOVE THIS TAG PLEASE”

that are (if you’re unlucky) placed very prominently in the lay-out. You’re never allowed to alter the codes, and the neat people among us of course will play by the rules.

...wait, they wouldn’t play by the rules, they’ll just stick with them.

Anyway, I’ve tried it all: unsightly standard templates that you get sick of after about a day, customizable templates that – no matter how gorgeous your Photoshop creations are – still feel dated, and I’ve done it the depressing way: starting from scratch…

But nothing turned out as well as “stealing” other people’s codes and using them to create wonderful sites that resembled what I had in mind before I started.

People with neat manners may justify it by thinking of the web as a communist dream: worldwide common ownership. Whatever anyone puts out there is free to be used by anyone else.

Brilliant. Thank you Friedrich Engels!

!

2009-10-26T13:30:00.002+01:00

I'm so busy working on my "technical knowlegde" there's no time left for nice little visuals to post here.
...I know that sounds rather insecere.
It's true though, some technical things/programmes are slightly bothering me at the moment.
The remaining time's being swallowed by plain laziness and of course other things that aren't blog-worthy (I mean, not a blog of this type. I'm talking about driving lessons and all that)!

Anyway, this is an apology.
And some proof I'm still alive, and I haven't completely abandoned this blog!

See you soon!!

GOTCHA!

2009-10-06T11:27:00.006+02:00

This browser does not have a Java Plug-in.

Get the latest Java Plug-in here.

Processing

2009-10-05T22:34:00.008+02:00

I'm in a TERRIBLE mood right now, because after hours of trying to get this to little applet (it's the chubby frog!) to show up on my page, it still won't work.

Anyway, it is online, so here it is.
Gorgeous, no?

I have classmates that get nicer results in about 3 minutes, whereas this took me DAYS to figure out.

*(&@^#
(@*#^T@%$!!)!!!!!!!!!!!

!!!!!!!!!!! :(

Code used:

PImage a;
PImage b;
int X = -20;

void setup() {
  size(600, 600);  
  a = loadImage("avatar.gif");
  b = loadImage("avatar2.gif");
  
}

void draw() {
  background(255);
  imageMode(CENTER);
  if (X < 0){
  image(a,mouseX,mouseY);
  }
  else{
  image(b,mouseX,mouseY);
  }
  X++;
  if(X>20)
  {
    X=-20;
  }
}

eek

2009-10-04T23:46:00.005+02:00

...I'm posting this anyway.

When I started this I wanted to do "photorealism"...
Instead I only spent 20 minutes on it
I'm so lazy it hurts :(

Just testing....

2009-10-02T16:36:00.007+02:00

THIS THING IS AWESOME!
I just did this little test drawing in Adobe Photoshop to see how my new wacom tablet responds.. Used a big picture format so its response was a tad slow, but it sensed stroke pressure so well!

^{Click to actually see this pic...}

If you feel like you've seen the ugly dude before (in art class, on my deviantart, w/e..), you could be right..
I tend to draw similar faces when testing new material because I make all these different types of strokes whilst drawing it!

2009-10-02T15:03:00.003+02:00

This is the new "Wacom Bamboo Fun Pen & Touch" tablet. I own one since my birthday (Sept 28th), and I love it!

Mine is black though, which in my opinion looks even better!
This is going to be useful.

L'art pour l'art

2009-09-30T14:02:00.006+02:00

I sometimes feel like I tend more towards the artsy side of things, rather than functionality, than some of our courses actually desire.
But then again, I'm perhaps one of these people who would enjoy using technology as a tool to turn creative ideas into reality - for what it's worth...

L'art pour l'art, or "art for art's sake" as the English like to put it, relates to 20th century constructivism.

^{Tatlin's Tower, 1917}

Which somehow reminds me of....

^{Kraftwerk, 1977}

Which does not at all remind me of....

^{M-maybe - Roy Liechtenstein, 1965}

...is this fo' real?

2009-09-29T21:11:00.005+02:00

Chubby Frog

2009-09-29T17:47:00.002+02:00

So the first task in our new "Programming For Creative Technology" course was using processing to create an avatar that responds to the movement of your cursor.
I'm, as the g33ks prefer to put it, an utter newb when it comes to processing, so this will be quite the challenge for me!

I'd LOVE to see this lil' fellow move.
It's just so....me. I always feel like a fat frog-like creature.

Make-over!

2009-09-28T17:31:00.009+02:00

How about a fancy new layout? I was already getting tired of the black.
Made this cool smoke-thing last weekend!

Done in Adobe Photoshop CS4 "Extended".

These just popped into my head:

I mean... colour, make-over..Oh well.

THE WORST WEBPAGE CONTEST

2009-09-28T17:15:00.003+02:00

This will probably be my entry!

Flawless, right?

Together We Create...it's coming!

2009-09-19T18:47:00.005+02:00

Ok, so here's a brief update on what I'm currently working on:

Tuesday afternoon, September 22th that is, there will be an exhibition we (the CreaTe-team) organized, called "Together We Create".
Many awesomely fun things concerning Creative Technology will be presented!
The spectacle will take place in a new lab Twente University built for us - and some others - to experiment (or to "do research" as Some Species Of Intellectuals prefer to call it) in, called the SmartXP-lab.
It's an interesting space.

This is the floor plan as posted by Hylke van Dijk back in January '08.
It's obviously a tad outdated, but kind of shows how the lab was intended to be.

^{Click for proper sized image}

These are some of the things that visitors will be able to see and/or interact in:
- a "walking fridge": a fridge that walks around, stops and makes noises when something is in its way, with beverages inside and on top.
- pong on bikes: that's what it is! Two bikes will be used as controllers for this famous 2-player game.
- RFID shirts will show information about participants in the Creative Technology course!
- Multitouch table featuring videos and pictures concerning Creative Technology. THIS IS THE PROJECT I'VE BEEN WORKING ON!
- "So You Think You Can Tetris": tetris on a dance-mat!

I bet you're curious now!
Well..so am I!

Something to make up...

2009-09-12T23:06:00.006+02:00

...for the online absence.
I'm terribly busy, and I'm not even kidding here!
I'll be spending more time on this blog. Promised!

Here's a drawing I did some time last week, the scan is not completely clear because I cut the paper in a strange size that didn't fit Douwe's scanner.
I name this piece.....

nah, just kidding.

^{(click to see the thing in proper size..)}

Oh yes, I know this is a little sloppy, but the idea was the main focus anyway.
Interpret this however you'd like, "Creative Technology" was the intended topic!

I'm off to clean my room now (it's so bad I have to force myself...). Bye for now, dear people!

Whoa!

2009-09-03T16:42:00.003+02:00

I never thought I'd say this after 2 days of (dare I say rather...well... boring - but in mrs Mader's defense, it's impossible to actually provide exciting lectures of such theoretical study material) computer science classes that I feel like I'm actually starting to get into this... but I do.
I'm still on the fence, obviously. I have never been attracted to computer science in any way, but somehow I feel like I'm actually going to give this a shot at creeping into my life.

I guess there's no other option either, when you want to proceed in Creative Technology...

But what's it all about then?

2009-09-02T17:15:00.000+02:00

After finishing high school I wasn't sure what to do. So many potential paths crossed my mind I completely lost count.

I thought about enrolling in art college because I enjoy creating things that entertain and/or fascinate both other people and myself, but figured the career perspectives were too poor for a person as young and inexperienced as me.

I thought about studying psychology because I'm hugely interested in people's minds and what's on them, but I didn't feel like taking a course thousands of other students have already taken, something that's been there for decades and is a solid thing that is definitely not going to change a bit for the next few years.
My influence on the programme would be pretty much absent and most teachers wouldn't even know me because there are 449 other students taking the exact same classes.
The list could go on....

Then I stumbled upon Creative Technology, a new bachelor's curriculum starting this academic year at Twente University, located in the Netherlands.
The programme consists of study units related to technology, business, creativity and design.
Combining technical and creative aspects in the process of innovation (mostly applications, new media, etc) is - I've been told - the main focus of Creative Technology!
I don't know much about technology, but it's something I would definitely like to get the hang of.
So that's what I decided to enroll in.
It might not be the safest decision I could've made, but I feel ready to try something new and get excited about it!

I want to keep track of what I'm doing and thinking, how my skills develop and I want it to be public.
Please feel free to add constructive criticism! My goal is to improve and get a more refined picture of people's opinions and needs!

Let's start off by explaining...

2009-09-02T16:59:00.000+02:00

I like how yesterday, Anton Eliens - our teacher (or should I say “guide”) of this project called We Create Identity - mentioned Andy Warhol’s known quote:

"In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes."

I can’t remember in which context it was used, perhaps because it got me thinking about how this is already the case, thanks to social networking, youtube, etcetera. But I’m quite sure some people have already expressed similar thoughts somewhere.

Another Warhol-quote I’ve always liked is “I’m a deeply superficial person”.
So I figured, why not name my blog “Deeply Superficial”?
As this has nothing to do with the actual subject of this blog (which I'll explain in a seperate message, naturellement), I decided to add "Sarah Creates Identity" as a subtitle!

Awesome, I took the first leap into BLOGGERSPACE!