Paper Work

Finally the ‘paper’ work is over. I complete and submit all of my essays and now all that I wait is the results. Having that out of the way I can focus on some of my drawings. The prototype will help me out to make my images, keeping constant proportions of size and length.

The Drawings

I have to change some of my drawings to fit the length of my prototype drawing and make it a bit sharper since it is a small size, so the viewer understands what it is about. By creating my prototype it help me a lot to develop new ideas of the processes of the creation of my images and my drawings.

Methodology

I believe that I have successfully complete all of the MADA 2 requirements. Even thought I am not the person who enjoys the writing part I am must say that I enjoy writing and researching for my PGPD and my essays. I didn’t just enjoy writing the papers but mostly I benefit from the processes. The methodology that I follow was very constructive and productive, and it will help me to develop my final presentation and project without any doubts.

I spent this week working on my prototype. I am using swish max and Photoshop cs3 at the moment and after effects cs3 for some modifications. At the moment you can see what it’s working and what to expect to come

Working on site:

1) Music Mixer – you can enable any off the three music pieces. You can play the music many times over each other and on itself or you can disable anyone you like or all. (just try it by pressing 2-3 times a single music piece)

2) Drag and drop images – you can drag and drop the image anywhere you like. I decide not to put borders since this gives more freedom to the user and makes it a ‘real’ non-linear interactive site

3) You can change the colour of the background to feed the mood you like

4) The info button is working if you hover over it

To come:

1) the left and right button to scroll images

2) more images

4) complete info

5) reset button

6) and I will change the music pieces to a non-copyrighted

Press on the link to view my prototype(1.8mb).http://dot-studios.com/prototype.swf

We needed to write about the changes that our initial proposal from MADA1 took place. It is very interesting to see the changes that your project is going through time. This is what makes the process interesting and unique. It is the evolution of your idea, an idea that you keep working and working for so long to make it better. Research is the main factor to success behind this process, this evolution.

The inspiration you take from the research and the input of your tutors and the surrounding that makes your project exceptional and attractive. Personally I am very happy that my project ends up to be an interactive storyboard side, rather a short animation story.

What makes me pleased is the fact that I end up doing something more challenging than my initial idea, and the fact that I found a new and more unique way to present my sons thoughts and stories.

Before I move on to my final interactive side I need to present to my tutors a prototype of my final project first, so this week I worked on my layouts that I made for my interactive side some time ago (http://dotworld.wordpress.com/2007/10/10/2w24-web-structure/) and on my prototype side that I present on my video (http://youtube.com/watch?v=bJMIV3gW0Ho)

I have work more on the structure rather the design, since more or less I have my design ready. My major concern is the technical and the scripting part of my side. I have never got so ‘deep’ into scripting, so this is a big challenge for me.

Work! Work! and more work! This week I spent most of my time at work. I had one major project at the place that I work that involved a huge amount of 3d animation and rendering. The project was about the upcoming presidential elections in Cyprus.

Even though it was a ‘heave work’ week I found some time and I worked on my prototype. I made some research of scripting in Swish and I have tried to find the best way to create ‘drag and drop’ objects.

onSelfEvent(press){

startDragUnlocked();

}

onSelfEvent(release){

stopDrag();

}

The above script is the best script that I came across for a drag and drop command. Now I need to try it to see how it works online.

I spent this week, mostly writing my discussion paper. This paper it has the same theme as my PGPD paper with the only difference being the fact that we needed to discuss about what is our personal believes with supporting quotes.

My paper was about Video Games and Art, and more specifically if we can consider Video Games as art.

Even though they are many people to believe that video games should consider as a simple ‘entertaining’ process and nothing more. Some others say it should consider as a craft since it has ‘skills’ involved.

The majority of people of course, just like me; they believe that video games are not just art, but the most advance form of it. It is a form that involves all the forms of art like painting, compositing (music), lighting, photography, cinematography, drawing and many many more. The only thing that someone may wonder and argue about video games it is about how good or bad the art it is in these games.

Today I had my second tutorial for MADA 2 with Andy. It was a brief and right to the point. We talked about the turn that my project got – from 3d animation to an interactive storyboard, the openness to the project and how positive it is.

He also explained to me what we need to present by December and that I also need to explore the presentation of my work – so explain how I see my work in the final show. I am still not very clear how I will present my work, but I don’t see any other way, but have it online and people just mess around with it, I guess that is the interesting part; the freedom of people messing and interact with my project. Interacting and messing around exactly as a child brain works. A child of the age of five he will just drag images from his brain and then he/she lay them down to create his fantasy story. This openness and interaction I want to pout in my project.

PGPD

 Finally, I have finished my PGPD. Even though it was a time consuming process I finished my paper on time and within my schedule. My paper is about if we can consider video games art. I compare other forms of art like music and films with video games to come to the conclusion that video games are the most advance form of art.

 The Research

 The main outcome of this paper was to learn how to ‘research’ and I must tell you that I have achieved this in a great amount. Since day one I am gathering materials that I was sure they where going to help me in my MADA, and they sure did. I found my self going back, since the first time PGPD was introduced to us, and finding info on several parts of my paper.

 The Outcome

I am very satisfied with the outcome and my final paper. I am sure I have achieved all the requirements, and I have produced a fine research paper; A paper that for sure can give me the tools to proceed with success to my next goal which is a PhD degree.

The Presentation

Another one presentation is completedJ. This week I spent my time by working on my MADA2 presentation. In this presentation I have included my aim, context, research and the prototype of my final project. 

To complete this presentation I worked on photoshop, after effects, premiere, soundforge, particle illusion, painter and swish. It took me about 4days to complete it.

You can view it at youtube at http://youtube.com/watch?v=bJMIV3gW0Ho

PGPD

I had to finish reading my books and takes notes for my PGPD paper so I can finish it as soon as possible, so I can start with my presentation and my essay.

My Project

I had to make some more testing with the quality and the size of my images that I am going to use in my final project. I think I have reached to a descent point where quality and size are ‘affordable’ to my final project. See below one of the images I am going to use as it comes to size in kb and the quality. So the size of the image (that will show in my storyboard) is 36.5KB and dimensions 266×140. I end up with these calculations after some testing for my final site with dimension 800×640. See below some testing.

Here u can see how I end up with dimensions

Here  is the working file in jpg form (size 599kb and dimensions 720×576)

…and here is the final image I am going to use for the storyboard (size 36.5kb and dimensions 266×140)