Michael Wesch, the opening keynote at IDEA last week, introduced two new videos he produced. He’s now made them publicly available.

A Vision of Students Today

Information R/evolution

We have audio from every talk, and slides from many of them, free for download. Enjoy!

Day 1

Peter Merholz’ Introduction. Slides (PDF), MP3

Linda Stone. No slides, MP3. Questions and answers MP3.

David Guiney, Designing Across Multiple Media for the National Park Service. Slides to come, MP3
David Guiney, Addressing the Challenges of Designing for the National Park Service. Slides to come, MP3.

Dave Cronin, Art for the public: supporting a visitor-directed museum experience. Slides, MP3.

Jake Barton, Interaction Design in a Physical Space. Slides (PDF), MP3. Jake also showed a few movies during his talk: Building Timelapse movie. Jetblue booth movie. Timescapes sample chapter movie.

Ian White, The Design of Data. Slides (PDF), MP3.

Ali Sant, TRACE: Mapping the Emerging Urban Landscape. Slides to come, Part 1 MP3, Part 2 MP3.

Day 2

Stamen Design, Project Work. Slides with no movies (7.37 MB PPT), Slides with movies (164.78MB ZIP), MP3.
Fernanda Viegas, Democratizing Visualization. Slides (PPT), MP3.
Stamen and Fernanda Question and Answer. MP3.

Dan Hill, The New Media. Slides (PDF), MP3.

Next-Generation Libraries panel:

• Deborah Jacobs, No slides, MP3
• Ed Vielmetti, No slides, MP3
• Paul Gould, Slides (PPT), MP3
• Question and Answer. MP3

Robert Kalin, O Advantageous Interfaces! Slides (on Rob’s site), MP3.

Bruce Sterling, Closing Keynote. No slides. MP3.

Dan Hill (BBC & Cityofsound.com) gave what might have been the greatest unintentional experiment in mass communication at the conference - his fantastic slides hinted at many interesting crossover ideas, but was unfortunately combined with a sound experience that left most of his utterances incomprehensible. I was seated 5 rows back, on the far side stairwell from the podium, but despite my attempts to relocate to beter audio conditions, couldn’t make out most of what he said (And afterwards I learned I wasn’t alone). Between a low range podium mike and his informal delivery, many of his words didn’t make it intact to my ears.

But that said, I’m far more intrigued to get my hands on his slides than any other material at the conference. So what follows is an extrapolated recap of what the ideas that reached my ears (or were invented for my by my little brain).

Key points:

• Interactive media is out of the designers control. But can a designer design with an out of control medium?
• Other media has paths we can follow. He offered several fascinating examples from music, including George Crumbs spiral orchestral score - a design pattern Hill applied to both the lost TV series as well as interaction design.
• Urban planning - (He scored points for refering to LeCorbustier’s work as insane but beautiful, a sentiment I share). Explored how these models of interaction can be borrowed from for digital works.
• Composers vs. Performers. He offered that design for interactive, social systems demands thinking more like a composer, who’s work is interpreted by others, and designers, who’s users make use of the spaces for their own aims. He suggested that co-creation is a better model for designers that the designer as solo-artist many are trained to have.

If Hill makes his slides available, and I hope he does, it’s definitely worth a thoughtful look. Even without consistently comprehensible audio, I found many layers of ideas in his carefully designed deck.

Dan also wins 10 presentation award points for the best historically relevant audio/visual aids: including a rare LP of one of John Cage’s experimental works on LP.

-Scott Berkun

It’s unfair to play favorites, especially on a conference blog, but Barton’s talk about his Local projects work was my favorite so far, hands down. He packed a summary of various conceptual, creative and interactive gems, into a single talk, blending ideas from NPR’s this american life, to Alan Lomax’s global jukebox, with the magic of generous experience design.

Most of the projects shown were variations on the theme of connection: finding ways to help people connect with each other through some kind of technological mediation: sometimes paper and pen (Memory Maps), sometimes videocamera (JetBlue), and other times a table and a microphone (StoryCorps). Many were mobile (thus the Lomax reference), enabling them to serve a unique kind of cultural purpose, traveling to towns and villages where exhibits this clever, and reflective, rarely arrive.

Its clear the folks at Local projects are doing some amazing work: I just wish I knew where there next project installation will be so I can check it out in person.

-Scott Berkun

Drawing from work in both strategic and operational areas at the BBC in London, I’ll explore some of the ways big media companies are approaching the new media landscape. Far from being marginalised by Web 2.0-style operations, I’ll argue that broadcast media can be reinvented to take advantage of both its traditional strengths and the new environment it finds itself in. I’ll highlight the course we’re plotting between between the top-down, fully-articulated, designed, broadcast models and the fully-participative, emergent, vernacular, open-ended, networked models. Essentially believing there is some value in both, and lots in their potential fusion. This will include examples of strategic work defining the design and navigation principles around the next generation BBC website as well as tactical steps towards this, drawn from interactive products and services made at BBC Radio & Music. This will include using hosting music festivals in Second Life, explorations of ‘Lost’ mapped onto graphical scores, spurious relationships between urban planning and designing media systems and tricks for getting design ‘into the boardroom’.

Amidst a sea of stars, a personal highlight for me with IDEA is having the National Park Service contribute. David Guiney sent along the outline of what he plans to discuss. I thought I’d share it to tantalize you!

Session 1:
Communicating the Stories of our National Parks
Complex Information and Diverse Media Solutions

The National Park System

• Natural areas — e.g.,Yosemite NP, Everglades NP
• Historical and cultural areas — Gettysburg NMP, Cabrillo NM
• Trail parks and systems — Lewis and Clark Trail, Blue Ridge Parkway
• Recreation areas — Lake Mead NRA, Gateway NRA
• Special sites — The White House, Statue of Liberty
• The NPS Message Project

The Palette of NPS Media and Programs

• Personal services
• Events
• Signs
• Wayside exhibits
• Museum exhibits
• Historic furnishings exhibits
• Publications
• Brochures and handbooks
• Park-produced publications
• Bookstore sales
• Web sites
• New media
• Audiovisual programs
• Theater programs — new Selma to Montgomery film excerpt

Session 2
Communicating the Stories of our National Parks
The Challenges for Media Professionals

» NPS Innovations in Park Media— Harpers Ferry Center
The Center was established in 1970 to bring media specialists together in one place to share talents and resources. What have we learned from this experiment?

» Centralization (HFC, regions) vs. local control (parks)
In the mid-1990s the NPS shifted power from central offices to parks, making it more challenging to effect develop and enforce national standards in media. Who should set the media standards?

»Government model vs. business model
NPS media professionals are asked to work more like contractors in the private sector, but remain under the constraints of a bureaucracy. How can media planners, designers, and producers thrive in this sometimes contradictory environment?

» Insular model vs. partnership model
NPS sites have always been islands of government real estate within a secure boundary. Now we are more and more dependent on partners and volunteers to greet visitors and develop media. Are park rangers and NPS designers on the way out?

» Information (facts) vs. interpretation (minds & hearts)
Facts have lost favor in the NPS, with more energy going toward relevance and making emotional connections. What is the proper balance between information and inspiration?

» The virtual vs. the real
There have been reports that visitation to parks is declining, perhaps because many people, especially the young, are preoccupied with computers and digital media. Should the NPS be offering lots more digital and virtual experiences, or should we be focusing on providing opportunities to see and appreciate the real things that make up our natural and historical heritage?

Dan Hill, producer at BBC Music and Radio Interactive, is scary smart. If you want a peak inside his never-facile brain, I suggest his recent post, “Movements in Modern Media.” Warning: not for the faint of mind.