September | 2008 | Ryerson New Media Documentary

Archive for September, 2008

Lab 2: Max/MSP (part 1)

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Jitter, Max, MSP, Programming on September 30, 2008| Leave a Comment »

Applicability of computers to image making.
- Networking as we’ve seen with Web 2.0
- Interactivity/Response/Behavior
- Analysis
- Immersion
- Multimedia/Convergence
Applicability of computers to Documentary
- Discussion
Examples:
- We’ve already seen works by Sharon Daniels, David Carr, and Kent Bye.
- Text Rain: Camille Utterback
- Milk Project: Esther Polak, Ieva Auzina, RIXC
- Interior Design: Ashok Sukumuran
- nijuman no borei (200000 phantoms): Jean-Gabriel Periot
- Khronos Projector: Alvaro Cassinelli
Programming
- When working with blogs, photos, and video so far we’ve been able to make use of ready-built applications which allow us manipulate images. But what options do we have when we want to go beyond the limitations the software, to do something unconventional. Probably we are going to need to extend the software, or if necessary build our own. How is that done? By programming. In a nutshell a program is set of instructions for handling various situations, written in a language that the computer can interpret. All computer languages are in essence the same. They handle the various inputs and deliver the conditional outputs.
- Quick overview of digital/binary, assembly, C/C++, high level languages.
Max/MSP Overview
- Graphical programming is a method of quickly building powerful software. Graphics represent blocks of code which perform specific functions. Software is designed by connecting the blocks into chains that execute a sequence of tasks (think rube goldberg machine). This innovative programming paradigm has been embraced by the media arts community for its ease and dynamics…in other words, one can create highly customized applications without the difficulty of directly writing code. Additionally, developers of the software have geared it towards multimedia development. There are a large number of components for generating and processing sound, video, graphics, and text.
- Libraries: MSP, Jitter, SoftVNS
- The original creator of Max, developed an open-source equivalent called Pure Data (Pd), which tends to be slightly less user friendly.
- See the wikipedia entry for details on the history of Max/MSP.
- To purchase a copy of Max or obtain a free 30-day trial go to the cycling74 website. Please note, it is recommended that you wait to install the 30-day trial on your personal computer until the latter half of the semester when we begin working on the final projects for which you will need Max. For now, use the copies available on campus.
Basic Programming Concepts
- Modes: Edit and Playback (ctrl + e)
- Objects – Object Menu
- Messages
- Numbers
- Arguments
- Patchcords, Inlets and Outlets
Example: Hello World, Calculator
Support
- Help Files
- Documentation/Manual/Tutorials
- Forum
Example: ‘Movie’ Object

Copy/Look at Help file (play around for 5 minutes)
Frame access with numbers: easy way to manipulate video
Load different clips

Common Objects

Bang
Metro
Toggle
Counter
Math operators
Random/Drunk
Mouse/Keyboard Interaction

Example: Add Objects to Movie
Video/Graphics (Jitter/SoftVNS)
- Basic Concepts
- Input
  - Live Video
  - Video Files
  - Graphic Elements
- Output
  - Live Video
  - Video Files
  - Generative Graphics
  - Text
Audio (MSP)
- Basic Concepts
- Input
  - Microphone
  - Audio Files
- Output
  - Live Audio (multichannel)
  - Audio files
  - Generative Sound
Example: Add Microphone to Movie – Move it by blowing it
Processing
- Filters
- Compositing
- Analysis
- Mapping (one medium on another)
- Generation
Assignment: Develop a creative application with movie

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Prelinger Archives

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged archives, film, public domain on September 30, 2008| 1 Comment »

The Prelinger Archives are an incredible resource for finding films that are in the public domain. You can download and manipulate and redistribute to your heart’s content.

Click the picture.

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Posted in Uncategorized on September 29, 2008| Leave a Comment »

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10.3 (better render)

Posted in Uncategorized on September 29, 2008| Leave a Comment »

Hey dudes and dudettes!

This is just a higher quality render of my microdocumentary ‘10.3′ that I finally got up here… The other one was a tad too fuzzy!

Since I hadn’t originally attached a statement to it when I first posted, here goes a short one:

Footage of American sprinter Jesse Owens from the 1936 Berlin Olympics (in Leni Riefenstahl’s film Olympia), shot off my old Toshiba, is married to an interview given by Owens some 30 years later. The difference between Owens’ interpretation of that moment and – the very well known – historical interpretation/significance was really interesting for me.

See you tomorrow!

marC

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words of wisdom from a Ryerson student

Posted in Uncategorized on September 29, 2008| Leave a Comment »

No, no, not me! I have no wisdom to share. But Janis Cole does. She’s one of the students in the first year of the DocMedia program, and has just had a manifesto published in P.O.V. magazine. Never heard of POV? Shame on you. Never heard of Janis Cole? Well hurry up and buy the magazine then! She has a lot to teach us all.

Rick M

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