alecmccluredt - Tumblr blog

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I have moved to alecmcclure.com !

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Face Thief

Face Thief is an implementation of Arturo Castro and Kyle McDonald's Face Substitution tool using v4l2loopback for trolling Chat Roulette and video chat sessions. This is done by stealing on-screen faces and superimposing them over your own in real-time.

GitHub

Created with openFrameworks, Arturo Castro and Kyle McDonald's FaceSubstitution and v4l2loopback

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Imposed Structure

The subjectively intuitive action of capturing a moment with a photograph is used as a basis for reflective analysis.  The teleological ambiguity of these moments from the past drives a systematic visual analysis of order (in the form of lines) and patterns within the image, mirroring the way one might derive meaning through objectivity in the form of science and mathematics.  

A personal need for this perceived objectivity and quantitative reasoning manifested itself through this realized exercise demonstrating how strong the desire to derive intelligible meaning from life is, despite our experience of the world being mediated by our individual perceptions, leaving ultimate answers outside our grasp.

GitHub

Created with openFrameworks (including the ofxCv and ofxGui libraries)

Process

Merging Hundreds of Images

Interface

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Mastering Tedium

A terminal-based laundry simulator, Alpha 0.45

GitHub   Download Executable for:  Linux64  Mac64 

SYNOPSIS::

Mastering Tedium is a text-based allegorical game that uses the regular chore of laundry to juxtapose life’s necessity of action with the futility and impermanence of acting for the rational mind.

This mindset is the product of a life deprived of simple everyday pleasures. Games and media often entertain users through engaging these simple pleasures, despite often being considered “a waste of time” or “pointless.”

BACKGROUND::

This project was born out my original brainstorming for a first project for this class (Major Studio 2 at Parsons' MFA Design and Technology program). No idea seemed good enough or worth executing, so I decided to make a representation of the perceived futility of actions from this perspective. The concept of tedium draws upon Pessoa's writings on his own mundane experience of life.

Excerpt from Fernando Pessoa's The Book of Disquiet

"It is said that tedium is a disease of the idle or that it attacks only those who have nothing to do. But this ailment of the soul is in fact more subtle: it attacks people who are predisposed to it and those who work or who pretend they work (which in this case comes down to the same thing) are less apt to be spared than the truly idle.

Nothing is worse than the contrast between the natural splendour of the inner life, with its natural Indias and its unexplored lands and the squalor (even when it’s not really squalid) of life’s daily routine. And tedium is more oppressive when there’s not the excuse of idleness. The tedium of those who strive hard is the worst of all.

Tedium is not the disease of being bored because there’s nothing to do, but the more serious disease of feeling that there’s nothing worth doing. This means that the more there is to do, the more tedium one will feel. "

>Alternative / related explorations

Francis Alys is a Belgian conceptual artist. One of his pieces, titled "Sometimes making something leads to nothing" is a video of him pushing a massive block of ice around Mexico City until the ice shrinks to the size of a golf ball and eventually vanishes. Alys uses this as a theme for many of his pieces. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZedESyQEnMA

"Everyday the same dream" is a browser-based game that explores the monotony of daily routine for a common office drone. http://www.molleindustria.org/everydaythesamedream/everydaythesamedream.html

EXECUTION::

Mastering Tedium was created in C++ and is intended for use in Unix-style terminal emulators. This decision was driven by a desire for a somewhat tired, uninspiring and underwhelming visual medium of familiarity (text on screen).

The user is presented with a description of their surroundings and/or suggestions for potential actions to enter into the space below. Although the user is initially presented with some illusion of choice in commands, the programming pushes the user along a single path regardless of their wishes.

The game is broken up into the following stages:

Home / Laundry Preparation

Street / Path to Laundromat

The Laundromat

Once the game is completed, the player starts again from the beginning, their actions nullified by time and the social demands of personal hygiene.

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Spatial Network

GitHub   Linux x86/64 Download   Web Player (Unity Plugin for Mac and Windows only)

Created in Unity

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Arid Oasis First attempt at a low-poly landscape

Download the .blend file

Created in Blender

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Dynamic Patterns Moving the mouse along the X axis causes the line patterns to shift.

GitHub

Created with openFrameworks

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Urban Dreamscapes Photoblog Web Design and Development

Urban Dreamscapes is a photoblog designed with a minimalist aesthetic intended to avoid distraction from the photographic content.  It utilizes a scaling, responsive design that works equally well on tablets and mobile devices.  Content alignment is controlled through a jQuery plug-in and comments are handled through Disqus.  It was developed to be compatible with Tumblr for content management.

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NYC L Train Data Visualization

This interactive data visualization shows ridership increases along the L train from 2007 to 2012.  For the full stutter-free experience with audio, please download the application.

GitHub  Download the Application (Linux, Mac, Windows)

Created using Processing

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digitalClock: Customizable Wall Clock

This customizable wall clock was created in Processing using each digit as an object calling upon the individual shapes required to form that number.

Code on GitHub

Created using Processing

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Digital Embodiment

Despite our lives being increasingly mediated by technology, our sense of body and self remains static and restricted to the boundaries of our physical, biological bodies. Using the phantom limb research of VS Ramachandran as a framework, I’ve created my own mirror-therapy inspired box in which a user inserts their hands, with the left hand reflected not by a mirror, but instead by an easily quantified LED matrix symbolizing digitization. I’d like to express a more inclusive understanding of self, body and possibility, while also questioning conventional ideas of perception.

More information can be found in the associated research paper, "Digital Embodiment: An exploration into the plasticity of one's bodily self and how to represent abstraction as reality" and presentation.  For more details on the code, please refer to this project's GitHub page and the notes within the source code.

Created using openFrameworks, C++, Raspberry Pi, laser cut MDF and Arduino. GitHub

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An Open Future (Essay)

An Open Future Alec McClure

We have entered a critical juncture in technology adoption and involvement in the United States, as has most of the post-industrialized world. Mobile technology in the form of smartphones, tablets and portable computers are becoming increasingly normalized, socially obligatory and commonplace. Our increased adoption and reliance upon these technologies sees an increasing shift in the balance of power from the user to electronics companies. Market-influenced industry practices such as mobile phone subsidies and closed hardware design choices serve to mystify technology, removing user power and encouraging prematurely realized obsolescence. In the following paper, I hope to clarify this problem, how it developed and why it matters, as well as proposing an open-standards design solution on a national and international scale that serves to resolve common problematic industry practices through regulation and incentives in order to shift our culture of technology into something both user-empowering and sustainable. We will then examine the implications of this design solution and potential pitfalls.

Personal computing technology seems to have entered a new age of maturity in the past five to ten years. Smart devices have replaced mobile phones, while traditional laptops and desktops are finding themselves curbside in favor of ultramobile computers and tablets. Students, often being early adopters, offer a glimpse of technology trends. According to a recent study of students at Ball State University, smartphone usage increased from 27% in 2009 to 73% in 2012.1  Additionally, Nielsen estimates that 64% of cell phones are now smartphones, with 81% of 25-34 year olds now using smartphones.2 In an April 2013 study, Gartner, a leading IT research company, projects strong growth in both tablets and ultramobile laptops (ultrabooks, Macbook Air, etc.), while desktops and laptops are expected to decline 7.6% this year (2013). 3

In those traditional computing media like desktops and notebooks, the ability to upgrade was taken for granted. Typical desktops have expansion slots, 3.5” and 5.25” drive bays with standardized universal connections, such as SATA (which held 99% of the market in 2008).4 Hard drives could be swapped in and CD-ROM drives could be replaced by CD burners, DVD-ROM drives or DVD burners in the same machine. These systems comes in sharp contrast to those of modern iPads, iPhones and other smart devices in which not even the battery or storage can be user-serviced. Even though users may not be inclined to upgrade computing components themselves, making such upgrades difficult means that users cannot go to a local store for repairs/upgrades and must instead replace the entire device when one component fails or becomes obsolete. Apple has epitomized this shift and has become the largest seller of smartphones, thin-and-light laptops and tablets in recent years.Since 2012, Apple's MacBook Pro laptop computers have featured ram soldered straight into the logic-board, incapable of upgrades/replacement. The 2013 Mac Pro followed in the MBP's footsteps, with the only user-serviceable part being the system's RAM in a desktop machine, further eroding user freedom. The sales success of Apple's MBP and Air lines have inspired a number of Ultrabooks and other clones mimicking the same closed paternalistic hardware designs. Adding insult to injury, the need to include additional specialized and proprietary connections, such as MagSafe and Lightning Connectors leave consumers at the mercy of the manufacturer's exorbitantly overpriced accessories. Mobile devices mirror this trend of closed hardware, with popular devices such as the HTC One and Apple iPhone having fixed batteries and memory, leaving users unable to modify the most essential components needing almost inevitable replacement.

Both Apple and Amazon are both prime examples of the so-called “walled garden” model in regards to their hardware and mobile operating systems. The proprietors of these “walled gardens” create entire ecosystems with their operating systems and hardware in which they control what sorts of abilities users have and the media they consume. Amazon's Kindle uses proprietary e-book formatsknown as AZW and KF8, which can only be purchased officially from Amazon. In 2009, Amazon ironically deleted the books 1984 and Animal Farm from Kindles nationwide.5 Abuses of corporate power unthinkable in the age before connected, ubiquitous computers are becoming increasingly commonplace. These choices to reign in control over users represents a serious challenge to democratic society and consumer rights.

All apps and media in Apple's iTunes store must be approved by Apple and pay a surcharge directly to Apple for the privilege. With this, Apple has the ultimate powers of censorship for over 20% of the world's smartphones.6 The idea of lock-in is key to such a business model. Once a user purchases software, media or accessories from Apple or Amazon in the proprietary formats necessary to function on their devices, the user becomes invested in that manufacturer's system since they will not port over to a competitive device. The user becomes limited not just in the media they are able to receive and consume, but also in their future purchase choices. This problem compounds over time as the user is now invested over multiple generations of devices. It is also relevant to note that Apple and Amazon previously used digital rights management to control ways in which users could utilize their purchased files.7 Thankfully, both were dropped after waves of controversy. Microsoft also has a long history of excessive control of the Windows environment. They famously faced anti-trust action in 2001 for bundling Internet Explorer with Windows. More recently, they have tried to control prevent users from installing alternative operating systems on computers sold with Windows 8. The feature, called secure-boot effectively locks out the user from leaving the Windows 8 operating system. Walled-garden models of control serve only to empower those corporate giants, control user behavior and censor that which is considered undesirable or not in the business interests of the company.

The mobile phone service market in the US and Canada is an especially troubling segment. In North America, the majority of mobile phone service offerings revolve around 2 year contracts and subsidized phone costs. Customers get an artificially cheap phone for $199 or $99, instead of the full price (around $650 for modern smartphones).8 Instead of profiting off cell phone sales, the true cost is hidden behind monthly fees locked in during the contract. This model comes in sharp contrast to other countries in which prepaid phone service is more popular. This model hinders competition and devalues the technology at play. Instead of holding on to still valuable mobile devices, consumers are instead pushed into upgrading every cycle despite not necessarily needing any of the newest features. It becomes a “bad deal” for the customer who would keep an old phone while renewing a contract, since they would be paying the extremely high costs of monthly phone subscription intended to make back the revenue lost in phone subsidies. Phone manufacturers are able to sell phones with few innovations that consumers don't need, because the service providers hold all the power in this sort of business arrangement. This also creates a culture of consumerism around the latest handset releases, rather than allowing consumers to be empowered to hold on to what they have. This seems especially troubling in combination with the trend of removing the user's ability to replace components themselves. These practices see technology being primarily used as a means of market domination and directing user behavior rather than innovating to become a liberating force in the user's life.

These closed and wasteful business practices also lead to a vast increase in the amount of e-waste. One can easily imagine their own experience with past devices and proprietary cables that have been effectively been rendered useless by newer technologies. With the US being one of only 3 countries in the world to have signed, but not ratified the Basel Convention on transnational transport of hazardous waste, the implications of additional increases in e-waste caused by these business practices is especially alarming.9

With these developments, we are endowed with a moral imperative to design a better future for technology and individual freedoms. This is a future with open standards emphasizing individual liberty to use technology in any way one sees fit and also the ability to choose an environmentally responsible alternative to the system in play. A future in which we consciously choose to design and embrace open-standards will lead to a diffusion of power and the individual agency necessary in a democratic society.

Personal and mobile computing will need to return to modular and user-changeable designs. Designs in which users are able to choose which parts they desire, which parts they need replaced and from whom to purchase such components, will increase the longevity of devices, save consumers money and prevent unnecessary e-waste. Modular designs should emphasize backwards and forwards compatibility for maximum usability and lifespan of components. In order to encourage these modular designs, governments should require hardware manufacturers to retrieve and handle their own electronic waste, discouraging the development of devices with planned obsolescence. A recent example of such a modular design is the much-publicized Phonebloks design by Dutch designer Dave Hakkens. Anthony Leather, of Forbes, described it with the following:

“It’s essentially a very similar concept to the way we upgrade our PCs. Most components in a PC are designed to be backwards and forwards compatible. For example, if you bought a sound card ten years ago, it’s likely it would still work fine in most modern PCs. Power supplies too are rarely upgraded and it’s only the very core components such as the processor and motherboard that you might want to swap out every few years. Phonebloks works on the premise that everyone is different and has different needs from their smartphone too. You can add extra storage to many smartphones now, but you can’t upgrade much else – certainly not the camera, processor or the screen.”10

The popularity of the concept spurred Motorola to create Project Ara, another attempt to build a modular smartphone.11 With the weight of a company as large as Motorola, it's easier to be hopeful for the future of modular mobile devices.

Complementing these modular designs of the future should be common, universal cable and accessory interfaces. In the United States, we've seen some benefit to the very successful common External Power Supply specification in the European Union. It stipulates that a common Micro-USB cable be the charger of data-enabled phones.12 As a result, Micro-USB has become standard for Android devices and many other smartphones, allowing users to easily migrate between devices without the need for new cables and accessories. Mirroring this action in North America will help further this user-friendly environment.

Similar to the common cable interface, the future also demands a move away from proprietary formats like AZW and KF8 in favor of universal and open standards. One can look to Adobe's Digital Negative (DNG) format for a glimpse of the future. Adobe developed DNG as a response to the fragmentation of digital raw image formats captured by digital cameras. The majority of large digital camera manufacturers use proprietary formats which must be reverse engineered in order to be opened in software such as Photoshop, Lightroom or Gimp. To make matters worse, each camera model typically has its own sub-standard which must also be reverse-engineered. This fragmentation means users may be unable to open photos that use long abandoned standards in the future. DNG is an open alternative to the closed model and each DNG version released is forwards compatible with future DNG versions.13 DNG-inspired open file format standards which are transparent and usable should replace the majority of current proprietary formats in which only the original creator holds the source code and keys for access.

In its broadest definition, open source software is software in which the code is transparent and openly available, enabling any user to utilize the software in any way seen fit, rather than being limited to the developer. Most open source software utilizes the GNU General Public License, which stipulates that software can be shared and modified so long as it remains free.14 This licensing scheme helps foster trust and encourages users to control, modify and personalize their own experience with the software with no fear that someone else will profit off their work. From this perspective, every user has equal potentials for control over their experience as the developer. This ensures the dissolution of hierarchy and democratization of software.

Open source operating systems and software should become the standard for smartphones, tablets and traditional mobile computing devices in the future. With such open systems, the user will never be walled in or restrained by hardware/OS manufacturers. Governments should embrace GNU/Linux operating systems to help fuel the market for development and prepare the culture for the shift. An example of such government support is in the recent actions of Munich's municipal government giving out free copies of Ubuntu (the most popular distribution of Linux) in response to Microsoft dropping XP support, abandoning XP users in the process.15 In addition, many governments have moved towards the adoption of open-source operating systems for their computers, including the governments of Kerala (India), Munich, France, China, Iceland and Venezuela.One can easily project this model into the future, allowing users to become increasingly familiar with open-source operating systems and Linux environments. Regulations will also be needed to ensure that all computers and mobile devices are not hardware locked, enabling any user to install any OS on their personal device. Users would not only be able to install Android or Linux on any device, but also Apple's OS X or iOS. The separation of hardware and software is necessary to ensure user freedom.

Another way to ensure users are left with usable devices long after they would have otherwise been discarded is to require developers to release the source code for certain classes of software after a certain number or years or after they end development and support. This will promote longevity by allowing third party developers to continue to support operating systems and software with the newest features that are not hardware dependent. It also ensures users aren't abandoned with devices made obsolete simply because manufacturers want to push new ones.

These open-standards will also necessitate when and how users upgrade their mobile devices. Further consumer protection laws should be passed that prevent phone manufacturers and mobile service providers from hiding the true cost of devices and allowing the user to upgrade or keep their current phone with no penalty, as the current model does. Consumers will also be able to shift and change carriers at will, encouraging competition among service providers and a more efficient system.

Although the implications of these changes seems like an overall positive influence, it is also important to consider possible pitfalls and negative consequences. Too much market regulation may prevent companies from entering technology markets, leading to negative economic conditions. Proprietary software companies may also need to shift their business models to remain competitive with open source alternatives. The transition may be hard for large companies like Microsoft and Apple to maintain their profits in this new world. As software prices are driven down, they may need to focus on profit models based on supporting software, as many Linux distributions have. Another potential issue is that software prices may be driven down by time mandated source releases and competition from free software, with the users not receiving or being able to take advantage of the benefits. There is some risk that the only benefactors will be third party developers and nothing will trickle down to typical users, making the system less efficient. There is also the risk of fragmentation of options, leaving technology far more cryptic and difficult to use for the average technology user. This can be seen in the various forks of open-source projects. The risks are certainly real, but the goals of remaking society warrant the risk.

All these proposed changes are working towards a massive cultural shift, in which we, the users, are able to reclaim technology as a tool for making our lives better, fostering agency and individual freedom, rather than technology being produced simply as a means of large scale control and profitability. We have seen the ways in which large technology companies and service providers have used their hardware and software as a means of control, against the interests of users. Resisting cynicism, we must look to social media campaigns and the power of the collective in popular revolutionary actions like the Arab Spring. The only way to overcome those as powerful as Google, Apple or Microsoft is by realizing our common needs, joining our voices and advocating for a future that is compatible with our ideals. Grassroots public awareness campaigns should serve to increase political and market pressure on the powerful. Endorsing open standards and open source software with a focus on transparency will help us dismantle hierarchical power structures, democratize technology and spur innovation. Our future demands a shift away from our current path, characterized by most users eagerly awaiting staggered releases from distant administrators, to one in which the user is also the creator, carving their own future.

References

1Marc Ransford, “Majority of college students own smartphones, but dislike those ads,” Ball State University, February 26, 2013, http://cms.bsu.edu/news/articles/2013/2/students-embrace-their-smartphones

2 “Smartphone Switch: Three-fourths of recent acquirers chose smartphones,” Nielsen, September 17, 2013, http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/newswire/2013/smartphone-switch--three-fourths-of-recent-acquirers-chose-smart.html

3“Gartner Says Worldwide PC, Tablet and Mobile Phone Combined Shipments to Reach 2.4 Billion Units in 2013”, Gartner, April 4, 2013, http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2408515

4“Serial ATA: Meeting Storage Needs Today and Tomorrow,” Serial ATA International Organization, https://www.sata-io.org/documents/SATA-Rev-30-Presentation.pdf

5Brad Stone, “Amazon Erases Orwell Books From Kindle,” The New York Times, July 17, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/18/technology/companies/18amazon.html?_r=0

6“Android and iOS Combine for 91.1% of the Worldwide Smartphone OS Market in 4Q12 and 87.6% for the Year, According to IDC,” February 14, 2013, http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS23946013#.USuIPVrF2Bg

7Bobbie Johnson, “Apple drops DRM copy protection from millions of songs,” The Guardian, January 6, 2009, http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2009/jan/06/apple-drops-itunes-copy-protection

8Erik Berte, “Are Carrier Subsidies Hurting Innovation and Driving Up Moble Phone Costs,” FOXBusiness, May 22, 2012, http://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/2012/05/22/are-carrier-subsidies-hurting-innovation-and-driving-up-mobile-phone-costs/

9“Parties to the Basel Convention,” Basel Convention, http://www.basel.int/Countries/StatusofRatifications/PartiesSignatories/tabid/1290/Default.aspx

10Antony Leather, “Phonebloks – A Customizable Smartphone That Could Revolutionize The Industry,” Forbes, September 17, 2013, http://www.forbes.com/sites/antonyleather/2013/09/17/phonebloks-a-customizable-smartphone-that-could-revolutionize-the-industry/

11Sam Byford, “Motorola reveals ambitious plan to build modular smartphones,” The Verge, October 29, 2013, http://www.theverge.com/2013/10/29/5041336/motorola-project-ara-modular-smartphones

12“One Charger for all,” European Commission, http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/rtte/chargers/get-technical/index_en.htm

13“Photoshop CC / In depth : Digital Negative (DNG),” Adobe, http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/extend.displayTab2.html

14“GNU General Public License,” Free Software Foundation, June 29, 2007, https://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html

15Marshall Hanorof, “Germans Give Out Linux to Windows XP Die-Hards,” Tom's Guide, September 17, 2013, http://www.tomsguide.com/us/germans-windows-xp-ubuntu,news-17558.html

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Project Natasha

Project Natasha is an autonomous mobile "being" driven towards light based on two photosensitive resisters in place of eyes.  For ideal viewing, set the resolution to 720p or higher.

Created using Arduino

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FRENCH TOAST WARS

JavaScript Canvas Animation (I take no credit for the artwork in this animation)

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Essay - On Photographic Resonance

Photography grew out of an innate human desire to capture experience and memory. The camera, as a photographic tool allows us to record memories in a visual format using light-sensitive material stored on paper or in digital files. Cameras and their photographic products have become so pervasive to the point of becoming a natural extension of human memory and communication. We take for granted that we can capture visual experience in a way that can be recalled later.

Photography, something that was once an extremely strenuous, skill-demanding and intentional process involving heavy equipment and long processing times has now become as easy as Instagram. Cameras have become ubiquitous, as have photographs. Since cameras have been integrated into our phones, most of us carry around at least one on our person at all times. We are constantly bombarded by photographic images, with the only break being when our eyes are closed. This ease and pervasiveness has given us the ability to think and express things in visual ways with amazing clarity.

The camera's success is owed to the importance we humans place on preserving memory. We preserve memory for ourselves and others. We preserve information in the form of internal and external (artificial) memories to maintain our attention at command, while also being able to examine and return to an idea or moment at will. When we press the shutter, we issue a command to STOP and save a visual state from that moment. The moment lasts as long as the button or shutter is depressed. Sometimes, we take photos to capture motion that we fail to see. In giving ourselves the power to stop time, we become super human in our ability to see a moment that lasts 1/8000th of a second or less, a moment far more brief than the individual frames our eyes are purported to see before persistence of vision starts blurring them together (usually stated to be between 1/10th and 1/25th of a second). Eadweard Muybridge's 1878 photographic experiment showing a horse's gallop with all four legs simultaneously off the ground, immortalized the power of this new technology. In giving us this ability, the camera enables us to transcend our own limitations and approach the infinite.

We also use cameras to examine things critically. We take photos that act as visual cues for thought, clarification and focus. While reading a newspaper or magazine, seeing photos helps us connect the abstract text with our ideas of the meaning held within that text. We confirm or adjust our ideas according to what we see. These photographs can also be used to manipulate or control thought, as in propaganda. Understanding this ability gives us great social powers, to control or resist control.

Perhaps most importantly, we use cameras to capture beauty, emotion and feeling. Our cameras capture memories of our daughter's first birthday, the wildest party we've ever been to and that magical one-of-a-kind sunset in which the whole world seemed drenched in beautiful, warm light. With representations of these moments at our disposal, we feel privileged in the ability to communicate and express these emotions to others. We also feel free to use these photographs as reference points to relive those moments that would have otherwise been lost in the vast sea of the unconscious.

Photography resonates with us, because it taps into our natural human desires for preservation, clarification and expression. The camera helps us both enhance and transcend our natural capabilities of both memory and vision. This ability feels so empowering because our perceived deficiencies can be improved upon and new abilities assumed.

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Major Studio 7x7 Presentation

"If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out that it has no meaning: just as, if there were no light in the universe and therefore no creatures with eyes, we should never know it was dark. Dark would be without meaning."

C. S. Lewis

  Download: ODP PDF

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Scrapyard Challenge Results (with Madhav Tankha and Gabrielle Patacsil)