Desktop

We can think of our desktops as a stage: a way to make sense of the environment around us, a way to present the world...

Before computer interfaces presented us with folders and folders of files—the visual representations of computer storage that we're familiar with today, the interface was command line-like, stark. Slowly, the interface came alive and presented us with icons, work benches: the desktop was literally a work desktop. Today, this metaphor is alive, but is slowly losing meaning... does the desktop hold up? Or does a new time and new era of ubiquity demand more from out interfaces?

In this surface, we return to how we introduced ourselves and think about a project, intervention, or 'staging' of a landscape on our desktop. We will think not only of a scaping, but also a way to present our desktop and make it come alive — a mix of custom-created software, interventions on other websites, and usage of our default software.

Final: The Screening

To end the workshop, we'll once again offer our computers / selves to the group.

+ Sign up to present here +

Timeline

( 40 minutes )
Working time
( 1-3 minutes )
Presentation time (with 1-2 questions if time allows)

What to consider sharing...

Share something that draws from our thinking about the site / browser / desktop / self!
You can share something that draws from an exercise (intro/site/browser/desktop), either using code or techniques from it, or just draw from our thinking...
It can be from this class, or a project outside:
Something you sketched over the weekend, or maybe a relevant personal project from outside the class that you'd like to push on a bit
Try to focus on a specific technique or idea:
Maybe you want everyone to Airdrop you, or you want to do something 2-channel, or you want to use the working time to record something and then overdub over it...

Foldscape, porpentine

yehwan song, Cry don't cry

Christopher Clary, Sorry to dump on you like this.zip

Dina Kelberman, This Fan May Not Be Replaced You Just Don’t Know The Future

Blair Williams, blairs.computer

Herdimas Anggara, SEDHEKAH NYATUS (Javanese Burial Ritual)

Peter Burr, DESCENT

Chia Amisola, Data Labeler Dream Transcendence

Kevin Chen, kevin.garden

Mark Fingerhut, halcyon.exe: the ride

Mindy Seu, A Sexual History of the Internet

Chia Amisola, Dreaming

How do you present your desktop?

If you're sharing your screen remotely...

Make use of 'audience engagement tools':
Most streaming platforms have chat, reactions, or annotations (where people can mark over the screen)—use these engagement tools to alter what you
Think about your camera vs screen:
Do you want to make use of your computer webcam? Or something else? Do you need to show yourself, or all of your screen? Consider moving away from the usual screen + face pairing...
Build a bespoke website to host your stream:
Instead of streaming directly to a video platform like YouTube, Twitch, or Zoom, you can require people to visit a customized website to watch your stream — allowing you to add another layer of interactivity.

Examples:
Use OBS:
The free and open-source software OBS is usually used for livestreamers — but is interesting in that you can overlay many video feeds, bring in HTML, add graphics, write text, and bring in your screen (or many versions of it). All of these 'sources' of media are brought together as different layers that you can resize, blend, and manipulate.

If you're sharing your desktop in-person...

Use another computer (like your phone or tablet) and an additional channel:
Like how we might display video works, you can use another computer to add another visual channel to your presentation. Maybe it's a projector pointed back at the audience, or on the ceiling, or maybe it's simply offering texture or captions. Or, you can use the phone or tablet yourself.
Use other people's machines as part of the presentation:
Require people to give up their phone as a documentation tool and instead use it to immerse themselves in presentation.

For example, Mindy Seu's 'A Sexual History of the Internet' required people to look at Instagram stories.

Then, you can use something like NFC chips to physically get people's devices on a certain link.
Give someone else control of your computer:
Give someone else your mouse or keyboard... Stage your presentation so someone else (a trusted collaborator, or a complete random) in control of your script, visuals, or supporting media — and work around it.

Recorded presentations

Software to use:
⤷ Your native video recorder (like QuickTime or Snipping Tool)
⤷ OBS
⤷ CleanShot
⤷ Screen Studio
⤷ Cap
Edit it... (yeah):
Overlay effects, visuals, and other layers of information that wouldn't be possible to do live. e.g. Many flourishes in Kayla Drzewicki's 'my cursor goes to detention'