Comments on: Computers As Social Performance Instruments

By: Tim Boucher

Tim Boucher — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 22:46:02 +0000

One motivates creativity, cooperation and community, and the other limits people to the rules of the game. As long as we can step away and play other games, then itâ€™s still in the first category.

I like this

By: mars

mars — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 22:35:31 +0000

You’ve got me there.

I guess I meant something like, using a particular game to make social life more interesting and fun vs. centering social life around a particular game. One motivates creativity, cooperation and community, and the other limits people to the rules of the game. As long as we can step away and play other games, then it’s still in the first category. I’m thinking of TV for an example of a “bad game.” TV doesn’t require interaction, doesn’t really provoke cooperation and sort of fits the community part if everyone you know watches the same programs. A lot of our media-oriented activities are like that; I think we’re going in the same direction with this, in that maybe the same technology could be used to create something that allows for creative cooperation with other flesh and blood human beings. But maybe not. Maybe there’s no way to make that as fun, creative and interesting as breaking out a guitar for your friends. I don’t know.

By: Tim Boucher

Tim Boucher — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 16:05:37 +0000

What is living except participating in social games?

By: mars

mars — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 00:08:59 +0000

Wouldn’t that be participating in social games to the exclusion of, er, living though? Is there a difference beyond moderation?

By: Tim Boucher

Tim Boucher — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 23:19:59 +0000

I’m also reminded of PKD’s Perky Pat layouts…

By: mars

mars — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 23:14:53 +0000

You’re right that most entertainment/electronics/stuff doesn’t facilitate well to social interaction. I wonder how much of that has to do with the prevalence of TV and radio. Have we gotten so used to seeing someone talk at us, that when we’re near anything with speakers and a screen, we kind of “lock down” into “private mode”? Only music and video games come to mind for electronics-media-tainment socializing, music and game playing having already been pretty much staples of human socialization anyway.

I’m kind of frustrated/fascinated by how I can’t really think of anything around this, beyond turning the TV/computer/PlayStation off, which I’m kind of fond of anyway. But I do vaguely remember this arcade game that required like three or four people to play. Each player would operate a different “Station,” and have a totally different function in the game, and the only way to get anywhere was through cooperation and synchronizing all the different tasks into one aim. Single player games were impossible, so if you didn’t have enough people with you, you’d have to go around trying to convince random strangers to hop on. Maybe I dreamed that, but it doesn’t matter anyway; I like the idea of media that requires other, actual human beings to be there, also participating.

By: Tim Boucher

Tim Boucher — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 14:06:20 +0000

Nah, I was just playing around with navigating YouTube on the Wii and that was much closer to what I am talking about.

Made me see a lot already actually, but I’m gonna get into it more soon.

By: Inestimable

Inestimable — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 03:59:06 +0000

That sounds like a typical hangout night with my friends as well, so I can definitely sympathize with the annoying “back of the head” show-and-tell moments.

My first thought was “double-sided monitors.” Obviously, they’d have to make them so you could turn off the other side so you’re not constantly broadcasting your info, but I feel like these should already exist.

You could probably set up a dual-monitor configuration and duplicate your desktop on the second monitor, having it face away from the computer. Hmm, that gives me an idea…