8 bits of PainKiller

Finally finished. Just don't make me sit and watch it with you. My voice kept giving out.

I really want to make this for my graduation

I've been waaaaaaaaaay behind on the blog, but i've got plans.
I want to make http://sites.google.com/site/gradcapmod/ for my graduation and program the infamous art of Er the Mooninite for it. Also, trying to learn Supercollider. This Friday...it's the PAINKILLER 8bit cover I've been working on. I'll try to record the result for the internets. that is all for now as there is much to be done.

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Result: Digital Rain

I finally have a completed piece based on learnings of computers and electronics. I used a computer program that I co-wrote with a Hive76 member to generate a simple pattern of an abstractde water droplet rippple. I projected it through glass (and plastic) and onto a reflective surface which created patterns on it, the floor, the wall, and the glass. special thanks to Alithia Gorski, photo major extraordinaire, who was able to take these photos in a pinch when my primary photographer wasn't there. if she didn't help me, I doubt I would have been able to document this.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/49283819@N03/sets/72157623723157483/

also, here is the code for the program for any/all i:ntereseted:

float x = 20;float y = 20;
void setup(){ size (600, 600); noStroke(); smooth();}
void draw_circles(float x, float y){ background (0); fill(255); ellipse(300, 300, x, y); if(y>100) { fill(0); ellipse(300, 300, x-100, y-100); } if(y>100) { fill(255); ellipse(300, 300, x-200, y-200); } if(y>300) { fill(0); ellipse(300, 300, x-300, y-300); }}
void draw(){
x+=2; y+=2; draw_circles(x, y); if(y>1000) { x=0; y=0; }}

Confirmed: Baby10

So I can confirm that this works.

-The pins that go to CV out control voltage.

-The pulse out pins are like gate trigger.

-To have X steps in a sequence, connect to the next pin in the order of outputs. so for an 8 step sequence, connect it to PIN NUMBER nine

there's this project I came across http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZILOQ14x5E&feature=related

linx and resources here:

http://www.hackerfoundry.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=22

http://www.elby-designs.com/avrsynth/avrsyn-about.htm

http://www.electronics-lab.com/blog/?p=2969

Upd^te: it seems the all "teh" parts for this project are available here:

http://www.elby-designs.com/shopping/enter.html, courtesy of above Elby Designs.

Pulse Czech

In my quest to make a lo-fi synth percussion rig, I found out about, and now want to make this:



Also I learned that:

*In a circuit diagram, a single IC may appear in several times, but is identified by [an individual IC number] / [total number of that IC in a diagram]

*looking at where the leads go, there may be a number indicating which pin of that IC it is connected to

*Some circuits have a "+V", a "-V". and a Ground. DON'T PANIC!...This means (for batteries), one battery goes in with with the "+" lead going to "+V", a different battery battery goes in with with the "-" lead going to "-V", and the not-yet-connected batteries' terminals both go to ground.

*Just as some things require 2 different voltages, sometimes they need to have 2 different polarity

*If you are, say, building a pedal that is taking in +9V from a wall wort but needs +4.5V, and -4.5V, you will need to build a stage that splits the voltage and converts it from +9v to the two different ones.
THIS IS THE TRUTH

Mostly this post is just affirmation that I'm still alive, but up to come is a re-entry into Processing, and trying to make art with large PCB board etchings. It's the most electrically inspired work I've reall done in a while.

Losing my Religion

8static.com
this saturday
I try out an 8-bit REM cover

be there

Pic related

hung out with the geeks at the Hive last night. It's fun to listen to people talk about code, language, platforms, logic and programming and feeling totally lost in the discussion. One day I'll be in there talking about it with them, but for now I enjoy it aesthetically. Listening to English and being perfectly ignorant to the content. I'm finally getting the help I need... one member helped me begin breadboarding the diagram and when I finish work, I'm gonna fire it up and see what happens. Also, the source's blog is really cool.

More Instruction Than You Can Shake A BankStick At...

For anyone interested (and reading this) I would highly recommend joining me for Hive76's 5-session weekly course on electronics. It look's like it's gonna be really good, and unfathomably economical. Speaking of low-cost instruction, I was recently shown MIT's archive of college courses available on transcript and even lecture-long video! To me, this show's an already highly-regarded university's dedication to making knowledge accessible to anyone. So here's that good stuff. Finally, there's this little read someone sent me. it's an essay on the commonalities of hackers and... painters.

Boom chick

This is the Schematic for a DS7, a drum synthesizer module. basically, when you activate a trigger, it makes very basic noises- all analog. The Papareil Synth Labs page has some more info, but basically someone took apart the original commercial version, figured out how to rebuild it, then made the information public. I just got all the parts on Wednesday, and hopefully, with the help of the fine folks at Hive76, I'll be making noises in no time.

Sculpt Shire: laminate chair parts

Here are some pieces I glued up and laminated for a project. I thought they looked cool while they were being molded so I posted them.

Self Portrait

Coming at you it SIXTEEN BITS

I bought a SEGA Genesis a few days ago for $5 and I've been in search of games for about a week. those who know me should also have figured out that it's not just for fun 'n games... The Genesis/MegaDrive console hosts an FM synthesizer chip called the YM2612 that has, for a while, been successfully hacked and used for music. Many have used flash cartridges...SEGA compatible blanks that can be loaded with new information via programming port... to store and play their files. But a cheaper and seemingly easier alternative has come to my attention. What's stopping me is a) the distances the hardware must travel b) haven't tested my Genesis yet. so We'll see.






































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fresh beats

Check out this guy who makes his own synthesizers and puts them in tupperware containers


http://www.adachitomomi.com/

Blipfest Day... 4?: Facundo tore my clothes off and made me dance

I woke up on the couch at my hostel with my friend from breakfast the day before. I checked out, ventured into the snow of the city. Really interesting from my perspective watching everyone dig themselves out. I walked through a frosty Central Park (I was warm enough to take off my jacket) and spent a couple hours trudging through the snow. It was a different place than the day before. Very beautifull. lots of families. more relaxed than I had been in weeks or months. I had a falafel and moroccan tea - another of many firsts - and caught the train to Pianos for more chiptunes. Facundo, who I think booked everyone, picked some great artists. He also forced a margarita straw in my mouth (that's what she said) and it all went down from there! I wound up getting my own, a whiskey and a scotch before the night was done.
I ran into Glomag there who offered me a floor which allowed me to stay for the after-after party in Brooklyn. He led a group of us there on the train and there we were. I met one of the last players at Pianos, C-Trix and, as it turns out, he's hi-fi audio geek like me. We talked about turntables and production techniques with his computers- very cool. Highlights of the night were a 7-person Billy Joel cover chiptune chorus and Animaniguchi. Next morning, a co-couchsurfer treated me to coffee and donuts as I was headed home. In a small twist of fate, I once again ran into SKGB on the Chinatown bus, so I had some company for a few hours before I went home.

SOLID WEEKEND

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Blipfest Day 3: I survived the pit at Bitshifter's set

I tend not to use the word "epic" when describing things that are awesome. It is a word often overused for things that are not that exciting. This trip was EPIC. I got to see a bunch of demoscene-based videos, followed by a intro-to-hacker-video-art lecture by mah friend, No Carrier. Links to follow. This was the weekend in a nutshell:

BLIP FESTIVAL 2009 from 2 Player Productions on Vimeo.

SUCH a great show. even though I missed the first day and a half I had a blast. I lucked out with my hostel and had a great experience (although I hardly used my bed for sleeping, more for storage). Once the night got started, nYc had a blizzard, we must have had at LEAST 6 inches of snow. Got myself an LSDJ cartridge so I can start writing for Game Boy and I got to talk to the guy who solders all the cartridges; Jeremy's a swell human being. I nerded out with DeadBeatBlast about the software he uses to write music, crowd surfed with SKGB, watched No Carrier go to town on visuals and just rocked out, despite a bum leg (which really hurts today...totally worth it.)

The Blip Festival pit was more intense than any punk or metal pit I've been in. just incredible.

At the end of the night, I skipped the afterparty and got on the wrong train. So I wound up getting breakfast at, I'm guessing 3 am, at some restaurant on 32 street and watched the snow fall. Then I walked to Penn Station and I was back on track. Even though it was cold, it wasn't that windy and I was well insulated. So I had a comfortable walk to the hostel. One long hot shower later, I fell asleep.

I would, at this time, like to share a Concert Vet's Survival Guide to traveling to shows and loving the cold:
-drink water before hand with a nutritious meal

-bring extra clothes that will fit under the first pair

-when you get to the venue, roll everything up into "logs" and stuff the sleeves of your jacket with them.

-make friends with the soundboard or lighting guy and politely ask to stow your jacket. or keep it in the side of the room where you can monitor it periodically

-keep cool and hydrated! after each set or intermission, be near a bathroom so you can get to the sink. use water to cool off your face, neck, and anywhere else that a lot of blood flows.

-dry off as much as possible. going outside sweaty will GET YOU SICK. I've learned the hard way but I'm fine this morning. also this will remove the heat stored in your sweat and keep you cool and less gross.

-if you have to, stop dancing a half hour early so you can change and get dry. If you're wearing long pants, grab the cuff and pull them upwards and over themselves to make shorts. This will cool you off faster.

-Change and get out of those wet clothes. get your hair dry. make sure you know where you're going. you'll be tired and probably won't want to take the scenic routes

-traveling in populated, well-lit areas will keep you safer. If you get a little lost don't panic. always keep your gameface: look intent on a destination, backtrack, keep confident. don't be vulnerable.

thank you everyone. This was the best winter Break Kickoff anyone could ask for

http://www.no-carrier.com/

http://www.deadbeatblast.com/

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Blipfest Day 2: my health club promotes stagediving

Woke up> set up my final> presented my final> RUN home and pack bags> rt 23 SEPTA bus>Chinatownbus>NYC F train> NYC 2 train> hostel> NYC 2 train> NYC R train> BLIPFEST!

The first night was incredible. I rolled in around 10 pm after more public trans than I could imagine. Just in time to see little-scale. I ran into a couple familiar faces and got crazy meeting some new ones. got props for my Legend of Zelda shirt and had a ball. Covox's set was probably the wildest pit I've ever been in. The people here are so nice and, when they're not incredibly busy, will sit down with you and shoot the shit. It's great. didn't get back to the hostel until 4am. I woke up and had breakfast with a stranger and had a strange but cool conversation about how the first of our four dimensions of reality is our thought. I gotta run so I can see no-carrier's hacking demo.

Peace

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Adventure in the Big Apple

It's 3:09 AM and WHY AREN'T YOU IN BED YOUNG MAN?! Well, I'm making shark soup after a long day of travel. At noon I got on the Chinatown bus to New York for a last attempt to get my final to operate with Professor Jessica Feldman, who I recently nominated for sainthood. We spent several long hours in a coffee shop working in a program called Jitter to get things operating. Unfortunately, not everything went according to plan. I had to make compromises with software limitations AND I missed the first day of Blipfest which was a HUGE bummer.

So 3 transportation systems and what, 16 hours later? I'm writing, praying for a Hanukkah Miracle that everything actually works when I plug it into the hardware for crit.

xoxo
-Glennz

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Fools for a hearty...

SO much has happened since the last blog entry. I had been meeting with Jess Feldman, a professor for sound art, who had experience with programming. We had several meetings, through the course of which we decided to use this program she had for a peice of hers done a year or two prior. She even had a file that had a bunch of framework for stuff I needed to do. We figured it would be best to use her program, called Jitter, rather than try to reinvent the wheel in Processing.

Fast forward a few weeks later. I'm sitting with my back, litterally against the wall. I have no projector, no camera, and no finished program. I've spent the last couple days trying to figure out Jitter, and while it is more artist-friendly, it is, yet another programming language I have to figure out. So far, no success. but either way, I'm going to Blipfest, three days of chiptune music. y'all should come! www.blipfestival.org. I will update if I make any progress on Jitter, which I sincerely hope I can.

A series of failures

So I bombed the open mic. The sound system sounded way different and distorted (unmonitored) from my perspective. so I fumbled through my 3 minutes. Next time: splitter from computer output; one output to soundboard, the other to noise-canceling headphones.

Talked to Wil, who's been a guide in Processing. More or less in his words, " you want it done by the end of the semester?! That's not gonna happen." So I've got to figure out something for the final.

Trash80 and AnimalStyle killed it so at least that was a consolation.

Trying to help Angelo Vermeulen as best I can but the systems are fighting us! I share his frustrations. I'm going to try to get help from Soundteacher Jess about my programming woes.

FUCK AMERICA

... where it cost more than 47 large to feed 6 people