The Nervous Dental Patient
The creative folks at Spontaneous Art asked me to help create an interactive art piece for the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art. The idea was to create a game in which people had to extract candy from a large mouth with braces. The player had to use a pair of tongs to carefully dislodge candy from the braces without touching the tongs to the braces. If the player did touch the braces, they would hear a loud squeel from the mini amplifier hooked up to the circuit and the player’s turn is over.
My job was to create the circuit. I decided to use a circuit similar to my LTX Theremin. To make the circuit act like the ‘Operation’ game, I snipped the negative battery lead and connected one end to the braces and the other end to the tongs. If the tongs touch the braces, the circuit is complete and the sound is heard.
The game came together beautifully. It was great to work with such talented people and to see an idea evolve into a success.
Created and performed by Natalie Berry, Dan Blades, Melissa Dettloff, Emilia Javanica, Chris Sandon, & Trevor Stone.
Video edited by Trevor Stone
]]>I was asked to perform a live set for the fine people at the 2006 convention. On stage, I used my trusty Machinedrum, Virus A and Pioneer mixer to create this live set.
In web design, content must be made accessible so that it is usable by people with disabilities. All of us will have some type of disability at some point in our life, either long term or short. So designing products and services to be accessible is beneficial to us all. In the following review, I examine the Elektron Machinedrum’s level of accessibility.
Last semester I gave a PowerPoint presentation on the accessibility of the Machinedrum for my Designing User Experience II class. The class focuses on web usability, including users with disabilities. Picture me standing in front of the class, PowerPoint projected on the screen, Machinedrum in one hand, mini guitar amplifier clipped to my belt, explaining the basic techniques of creating a pattern from the point of view of a person with no eyesight. The presentation went well and the findings from my research I feel are worth posting.
The Machinedrum and the General Public
For the general public, the Machinedrum is an extremely flexible instrument. In my setup it takes center stage. It’s a powerful drum machine that also controls and syncs external modules through midi commands, processes external sounds, and plays back programmed songs and patterns. It is great in a live situation and sounds like nothing else out there.
Pros
- Provides an alternative to producing music on a computer
- Popular TR-style sequencer
- Full midi capabilities
- Large array of programmable features
- Individual outputs
- Tough construction
- Buttons and knobs are clearly labeled
Cons
- Very few retailers in the US
- High price tag
- Red LCD is small and hard on the eyes
- Some screen information is unclear
The Machinedrum and Individuals with Disabilities
There are many human conditions that are disabling. The main types of disabilities considered in this inspection are visual and mobility.
Visual conditions include color deficiencies and low vision or blindness. Also consider a situation where someone may be operating the machinedrum in a low lighted place such as a bar or someones’ basement. Mobility conditions include tremors, paralysis, wearing a cast and stiff joints among many others.
Pros
- Buttons and knobs are large
- Buttons are springy
- Patterns can be programmed in grid record mode
- Solid, well built and can take rough handling
- External midi controllers such as drum pads can be used
Cons
- Data Entry and volume knobs are stiff
- Function key combinations require two hands
- Edges are hard and corners are sharp
- AC adaptor connection is unstable
- Navigating and interacting with menus is difficult
Color Deficiencies
Individuals with color deficiencies perceive the difference in some colors differently than the majority of the population. When labeling a control panel for example, the colors used must be suitable for these individuals.
Examples of the Machinedrum interface as seen by people with color deficiencies
Examples of the Machinedrum LCD display as seen by people with color deficiencies
Blindness
Pros
- Hands-on controls
- Logical layout
- Pattern mode is simple
- Sounds are edited individually
- Some functions have shortcuts using the Function key
- Comes with preset sounds and patterns
- Can use midi controllers
- Headphone jack
Cons
- Advanced functions are located within menus and require the use of the LCD screen
- LEDs are used to indicate bank group, sound selection, scale length, record mode, etc.
Improvements for Blindness
- Provide braille numbers or raised surfaces under drum keys
- While sequencer is stopped, provide audible cues when keys are pressed to indicate song or pattern mode, record mode, current bank group, and in which parameter menu the user is currently in
- Provide an undo button for live recording
A laid back environment with great people who came to relax and listen to the ambience provided by A Setting Sun and myself, as well as more spectacularities by unnamed and unrequited artists and visionaries so immersed in their scene, they can’t even be reached for a comment here. Much thanks to Jon for making it all happen.
[audio:../../../music/softmarm.mp3]
If you missed the show, that’s alright. You can hear my set right here anytime.
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