Slabs, Sofducts and Bespoke Objects

An Emerging Landscape in The New Ecology of Things

An updated, illustrated, and edited version of this post was published in the JohnnyHolland.org magazine about Interaction Design.

http://johnnyholland.org/2011/05/19/the-new-ecology-of-things-slabs-sofducts-and-bespoke-objects/

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With the Apple iPad launched and scores of other tablets and e-readers hitting the market, I think it’s important to step back and look at the larger trends. We’re in the middle of a major shift towards ubiquitous computing, cloud based personal storage, and tangible interaction. It’s a shift away from the generic computation typified by the “personal computer,” which never really achieved the individuality or specificity implied by the term “personal.” In short, we’re experiencing the emergence of The New Ecology of Things, where a network of heterogeneous, smart objects and spaces create opportunities for a more personal and meaningful landscape. This is what I’d like to explore:

• Where we’ve been and how the personal computer has made us soulless
• Where we’re about to be #1 with the emergence of digital slabs
• Where we’re about to be #2 with a new form of design that’s a hybrid of software and product
• Where we may be going and the future of the designer in an era of bespoke objects

Read more…

Tags | affordance, design, interaction, new ecology of things, productive interaction, tangible, ubiquitous computing

NETLab Toolkit gets new website

The NETLab Toolkit has a new website: http://netlabtoolkit.org. The old site was on a free wiki service that’s being discontinued, and we decided that this was a good time to reorganize and improve the content.
For those of you unfamiliar with the toolkit:

The NETLab Toolkit is a free system for tangible interaction sketching and production. It enables novices and experts to quickly integrate hardware, media and interactive behaviors for products, installations, and research. It integrates with micro-controllers including the Arduino, and through its Flash widgets provides a drag-and-drop environment for hardware and media sketching with no programming required.

There’s also a new version of the Widgets on the download page with these new features:

• Arduino support now requires Firmata 2.1 which comes with the Arduino 18 software
• Insert widget now has data logging features
• Added IfThenElse widget

If you have been using the Arduino with a previous version of the widgets, you’ll need to update your Arduino with the newer Firmata released with Arduino 18.

Please send us your feedback on the new website on our contact page.

Tags | arduino, net lab, toolkit