We have all used different forms of technologies before. Phones, laptops, radios, microwaves, lights. There is a huge variety of different technologies but all of them with a set function. So why not find a new or different way to use our devices, maybe even combine them in a way never thought of before. This is what the second skill is all about: Being more creative and ground-breaking with ideas and the way we find solutions.

In the workshop we looked at some examples for interactive design:

Chris O’Shea who among other things created a giant television for the Royal London Hospital with interactive games  on it. Woodland Wiggle is a permanent installation at the hospital which helps children benefit from the healing powers of art and play. More about this project here.

Hellicar and Lewis worked on a project called Divide By Zero which was an interactive dance performance. Using computer vision they were able to capture the dancer in real time and project generated visuals in response. More here

Toy Hacking in this example making a battery-powered toy react to tweets. In this case they use a circuit board that connects to a computer so that they can pull data of the internet and use it to control things back in the real world.

There are many more things we looked at which were just as impressing and interesting as the 3 projects above. Another site that is worth checking out is Digital London. We also looked at examples of work in flash and processing. And now it is our turn.

Our task: to create a 6 page pdf-file demonstrating our own idea for interactive media choosing one of the following:

• making simple music
• the death of newspaper/books
• personal security
• the digital doctor
• toy hack
• I protest