All posts by Ava Camargo

student blogs

My Migration

Hello everyone!

This is my last blog post for this semester. I wanted to insert the link to my final project here so you all would be able to click on it and work your way through it if you would like.

As the end of my final semester as a graduate student at Kean nears, I would like to thank you all for a fun semester! Moving through such a diverse selection of literature was much more interesting to do with you all than it would have ever been if I did it on my own.

I also wanted to share this really interesting thought I had after our last class meeting. I was quite enamored with these birds migrating, and found that each time I visited the pond and figured the birds had left for the winter, I was saddened. Despite feeling sad about these birds leaving, I was also so invigorated by their natural beauty and proud they were able to continue on their journey. I think it is somewhat reflective of my own migration from Union to my soon-to-be new hometown. It is crazy how such things manifest into our work without our noticing it. I just wanted to share that small tidbit with you all, as this project, albeit simple, is very me and telling of the specific life experience I am going through right now.

With that, here is the link to my final project. I hope to see everyone’s final projects as well.

Happy holidays.

https://avacamargo6.wixsite.com/themigrationarchive

student blogs

Finishing Touches

I hope everyone is moving forward with their respective projects. I am really looking forward to our last meeting on Monday, not only because it just brings me one day closer to completing my degree, but also because each project is so unique.

As far as my own project goes, I feel I am at about 70% done, so 5% less than what is required for Monday. I have most of the haikus written, just want to have seven more, so each section I have to organize it all has four haikus, plus each section’s landing page haiku. In total, I should have 24 haikus, all original to me. I’m really happy that these haikus are being put to use, as I have been writing them without knowledge of this project since the beginning of the semester.

So, I’m not sure if I will have all of the haikus written by Monday, but I have enough to give everyone an idea of how this project will look fully finished. I have the design of the website down, so even without all of the haikus posted there yet, you all will be able to get an idea as to how it will look.

The 5% that I really want to fill in before Monday is the inclusion of sound. Again, I’m not worried about this, as I found that website that contains thousands of free-use audio. So, it’s just a matter of finding ones that I like and inputting them. I’m not sure if I want to include sound of every page, as there is some overlap of the content of a couple of haikus being about the same bird. But, what if the reader doesn’t read both haikus? Well, I think I just answered my question, and I will have sound for every page.

In all, I will try to have the rest of those haikus written, but we’ll see. I do want to have some sounds in there. I might not have all of them, but having it for some of the pages is a definite. I have also begun carving out the narrative a bit and hyperlinked some pages to each other, but not all of them yet because I don’t have all of the haikus. I will have some examples of this for Monday, but I might not have all the pathways picked out just yet. Though, we’ll see how many haikus I can write this weekend.

student blogs

ELIT Underway

To begin, I express my hope that everyone had a great holiday with friends and family. Thanksgiving break always comes at just the right time. For me, I always feel invigorated when I return after this specific long weekend. Not doing work for three days was great. Despite thinking about it from time to time, because I am quite the thinker-holic, it was great to be able to just forget about it after a moment because I didn’t have to do the work in that second. It could wait, and that it did. Well, until tonight.

I finally embarked on creating my website. By the recommendation of Sarah, I created a Wix website (am I allowed to mention a competing website creator? ha!). I am really enjoying how it is going so far. It looks just how I wanted it to: simple. And, even though I have used WordPress for quite some time now, I feel Wix is a bit easier to navigate. For some reason, I just could not get a handle on WordPress. Ever.

So, I came up with a title for the whole work: “Migration: An Interactive Flock”. I found it funny and thought using the word interactive would really just hit the nail on the head. Of course, it is not set in stone, but I do not see myself changing it. I created the home page, about page, and created the first page for the first haiku each reader will begin with. I also put up pages of two other haikus just to mess around and see what I would like those to look it, if I would want some kind of variation between the sections I laid out in my head, etc. I have said this to my peers in small groups, but I really would like my website to be simple like Twelve Blue was. There wasn’t much to Twelve Blue in terms of design; there was the text, the hyperlinks, and the reset button. There was no nonsense, and I liked that.

I will not link the website here even though it is currently published. I want you all to see the finished product. Or, at least the finished product at the end of the semester. I think I will keep up with maintaining this website and continuously adding to it because the whole thing is just cool.

I am also scouting for audios of the birds I write about to really immerse the reader. I think I can actually record some of the audio myself, but with birds at this time of year, I will definitely not be able to catch all of them. Though I do think I can record some audio for the more general haikus that talk about the weather and the overall season. In fact, I recorded a 15-second audio earlier this week of running water in a small creek to be used in conjunction with a haiku I already have. I think including sound will give the work a bit of an exciting edge.

My goal for tomorrow, Sunday, is to create pages for the rest of the haikus I have written so far (so, about 10). I will also play around with that audio and see how I would like it to appear on the page. Then, starting next week, I will really dial down on the audios and write more haikus; both of which I do not anticipate any hardship. I am looking forward to seeing this final project.

student blogs

Final Project Ideas

I’ve had the idea for my final project for a little bit now. This semester, I’ve been living in a new space, so a lot of the last four months has been dedicated to not only researching and writing for the requirements of this program, but also for learning about the environment around me. Because of this, I have been writing a lot about the birds I’ve been seeing. Writing this out, I find it quite odd. Though, It’s something that I have been really enjoying. With each passing day, the number of birds I see are less and less, and that makes me sad. It makes me feel a bit like Tony Soprano, when he becomes depressed after the ducks leave his pool.

So, I have quite a bit of poetry about these birds. Specifically, haikus. So, what I’m thinking is doing some sort of hyper-text poetry with my haikus, and maybe throw in some tankas. Overall, I want all the poetry to have some kind of syllabic format. So, I’m thinking the haikus will see these birds throughout the seasons. Four sections, maybe three to four haikus per season, with a tanka to indicate the changing of seasons. Thus, it will be narrative driven, as it follows a sort of environmental sequencing, and it will also follow the same kinds of birds.

I have not started building the website yet, but I am gathering all of my bird-related haikus. I know I will have to compose some tankas about the seasons themselves, but I’m not worried about that. Overall, I’m just thinking of what the website will actually look like and how the hyperlinking will work. I really enjoyed the simplicity of Twelve Blue with its quiet background. I think I will replicate that in a way that complements my work. I want the work to speak for itself and not let random effects override the meaning of the haikus. Also, I am not that great at detailing digital spaces, so I will see how far I can push myself.

Until next time.

student blogs

Blackout Poetry Tool & 200 Castles

Blackout Poetry Tool

Okay, so what’s cool about this is that in the beginning of the semester, when we had to browse the volumes and choose a piece to discuss with the class, I actually played around with this one for awhile. Of course, it’s been about two months, so I do not remember all of the intricacies of this piece, though I do remember a feeling of annoyance. Though, I think that it is only natural to feel that way when working on a blackout piece, or a cento, or any sort of form that forces the writer to deal with only a certain group of words. But, when you finally make it work, and what you are left with, or what you pasted together, all makes sense, it is quite rewarding.

Here, you will find what I created as my thesis. I liked it for the most part. It’s weird when you make something from something you otherwise would not have made. What I mean is, I’m not sure I would ever come close to recreating such a piece with these words, this spacing, this tone. It really is quite an odd feeling.

Now, onto the annoyance. The bot created a very short poem which exudes a certain elegance I can’t quite place. I am unsure if this “elegance” is really just dissonance, but I appreciate it nonetheless. Don’t get me wrong, I am entirely against any sort of AI creating poetry. But, this is also weird. It oddly makes me wish I made this version instead. I don’t know what that’s about, because I am a successful poet. I’m not really sure what to make of it.

Yes, more annoyance. Co-creating with the AI was annoying. One, because I don’t know this AI. Two, because it picked its selections awfully fast. How can one just pick by means of an algorithm, rather than true consideration. It was quite off-putting. Plus, it picked weird stuff that didn’t take into account the rest of the words left. For example, it kept picking the preposition “in”, which was very hard to connect with other words as we went further down the given text. Relinquishing the control in this way, in the name of coherence, was difficult because what is a poem if you cannot understand it enough to feel something upon reading it?

My symbiosis was whatever. I’m not putting it here because I actually ignored the AI. At this point, I thought, “who cares what it wants me to do, especially when it picks nonsense?” So yes, I think the AI points me in the direction of nonsense, for some reason. I think it has it out for me.

Yes, it is just making nonsense. Here, I would like to discuss aesthetics. As many of you may know, I am quite versed in concrete poetry. With that, I deeply understand the purpose behind making shapes with my words to convey meaning. What annoyed me in the last section was the idea of the wave, which most likely will amount to no sense in the name of shapes. All I have to say is, if you want the words to represent something other than the meaning of the word itself, there must be more consideration of such symbolism.

200 Castles

After looking at the documentation video provided on the website, I can see the augmented reality really come to life. I have zero prior experience with AR, so it was cool to see what exactly is being augmented. Seeing the pages transform with a new texture layers on different meaning and experience. What I really enjoy about this piece, too, is that you have both versions in front of you. So, one cannot work without the other. Instead of translating a physical piece into an electronic state, which may lose, like working with two languages, the essence of the original, the reader can navigate both simultaneously. Overall, this seems to be a really awesome piece that blends together the analog with the technological in a way that complements both mediums.

student blogs

Retratos Vivos de Mamá y Writers Are Not Strangers

Retratos Vivos de Mamá

Before discussing the work itself, I must say that when I read carolina lópez jiménez’s biography and saw she was Colombian, my excitement level grew rapidly. It’s really awesome to see such intricate and purposeful work by someone who shares the same sort of background as you, and has similar ancestral ties to a specific region. ¡Viva Colombia!

Okay, now onto the work itself. The first thing that caught my eye in the introductory section was the second page. Her statement of purpose, what it felt like, really brings the reader in. Because this is still a work-in-progress, it serves as a sort of time capsule. I really liked the comparison to Pedro Paramo, and how he went about finding information about his father—he had to go to a town filled with the ghosts of people to get closer than he ever was while alive. That is not what jiménez is doing here. She wants to connect to her mother through living facets, whether that be tangible artifacts like pictures, or even recordings of a voice. I think this is a beautiful distinction, as we place such an intense emphasis on someone no longer being with us. This change in perspective, seeing that we are truly the living artifact of this person’s existence because we can assign meaning to such photos or recordings, is quite consoling.

Staying with this idea, a few pages after that, jiménez dedicates a section to the qualities she has that her mother had. Whether it be her pronounced clavicles that resemble much of her mother’s, or un corazón abierto al mundo (such a beautiful sentiment), she continues to “carry the torch her mother lit on her chest”. This section ends with, “Es hora de dejarla descansar,” or, it is time to let her rest. This was truly a standout section for me and does a fantastic job of laying out the intentions behind this piece in a personal way.

I spent a great deal of time in el soplo combing through all of the documents. This was really special to me, too, as my family also keeps so many documents from past generations. On my mom’s side, we have documentation from when her great-grandparents immigrated to the United States from Italy via Ellis Island, to my father’s own naturalization documents from the early 2000s, and everything that could possibly be in between. I’m not sure what exactly it is about having all of this stuff. I can’t imagine never seeing these sorts of things because I think it has given me quite the idea of where my family came from, but it also produces this odd, sterile feeling that keeps memory locked in documentation. I’m not sure if this makes sense, but I will continue to think about this. I suppose this is why jiménez calls this section soplo, because it is a quick moment, a flash even, of who her mother was—everything included here only gives small insight into who she was… All of these documents do not account for other aspects mentioned throughout the work, like how she looked and what she was like.

Writers Are Not Strangers

Okay, I’m not entirely sure if we all start with the same excerpt or if the bag automatically mixes itself, but the first one gave me very much Kafka vibes, what with the slithering of the centipede and all. I will say that I didn’t know what really was going on, but the within the excerpt itself, I understood the story. I rated that a 6… a little more than halfway sensical. For the next story, I of course picked the choice that went along the lines of, “Y’know… but I’m really a writer.” I wouldn’t be surprised if the majority of the class picked this answer because we’re all writers! It made me laugh a little bit, this scenario, because I feel the question of, “so, what are you doing with that degree?” never ceases to come up when I discuss school with family. They just don’t get it! I’m a writer, naturally.

Okay, oddly enough, I also have an Aunt Serita. Well, Tia Sarita, but same difference really. And, one of my childhood cat’s names was Simon! Understandably freaky coincidences, but funny nonetheless. In any case, I really enjoyed the switch from choosing answers to just being told what is happening next, like “left the party” and “go inside”. I think that this is what makes it more akin to the literature we are used to than any of the other works we have looked at so far. This aspect being that we move from point A to point B without so much unknown. I also feel with these sorts of works, when you have to pick an answer that tailors your experience, I don’t like any of the choices. I felt that with this one a little bit. Though, I don’t know how this can be amended, as even in a hard-copy story, there’s only one way to go about things… so even LESS choices. I think this introduction of choice-based narrative has spoiled me a bit…

No way. I rated her writing??? She thinks there’s room for improvement, and that it wasn’t terrible. Honestly, I don’t feel so bad about my rating because I gave her a pretty good number, and it was honest. I would hope that if someone did that for me, they would be honest and not just say a number because of my feelings. Now, I’m really in this story. Moving onto the whole procrastination section, and doing random things before actually writing, I sincerely cannot relate to. I usually just sit down and make myself write. But, I do appreciate the sentiment and technique of storytelling here.

Okay so now, I don’t even know if what happened even happened in this fictional world. Because we know Alix was writing and we had to rate it, who’s to say that all of it wasn’t just some writing, and all of the doomsday proclivities were written, and the intricacies of Alix’s family weren’t just written? This was quite the uproot. Just when you think you know what’s going on, you really don’t.

student blogs

All Your Time-Tossed Selves & Hana Feels

All Your TIme- Tossed Selves

I knew from small tidbits of Tyler’s comments in class that his work dealt with a GoogleForm. I didn’t know what exactly that would entail, so I am happy I let myself wait until this week to actually see what he meant. Man, I had no idea what to pick for every single question.

At first, I didn’t really know what I was doing, or what I was picking for. I understood that I was in some city that had been ruined, but I didn’t know why or what ruined it, why I was there and what I was meant to do. But, I think that it really worked well, as when we hear stories of heroes trying to mitigate damage and attempt to pick up a community from its scraps, they don’t really know what they’re doing either, really. When faced with a situation like this, we can only hope we are doing the right thing. We never know if the choices we made were the “correct” or “incorrect” choices, but rather that they were the choices we felt compelled to choose in that moment. That’s how I felt moving through this piece.

I actually took my time with it, too. In the description, it states this only takes about 2-5 minutes to move through. Though, I took about 15 minutes to go through it. I wouldn’t say I was overthinking my answers, but rather thinking through them clearly and predicting what would come next. A lot of the choices I picked because they related to me and my current interests. For example, the “question” of, “so gather up your things as the city crumbles around you. what did you bring?” I chose the first answer simply because it mentioned a bird. Recently, I have felt very connected to birds, so I picked that one because it talked of an “amber bird” that the reader needs to hear it sing one more time. Another time this occurred was for the question, “did you notice yet? this life isn’t done with you,” to which I chose, “and we talk again like old friends,”. I picked this one because I’ve recently been thinking about a close friend growing up that I drifted apart from.

So for me, this was really cool to just insert myself into a narrative that I didn’t recognize at all. It was cool to just step back from my real life and twist it a bit to fit into this ruined city. It was great to just not be me for a few minutes.

Hana Feels

Before I began to work the website, I was immediately nervous. When I feel nervous, or any kind of emotion, I feel it right in my heart rather than my head or anywhere else. So, when I read that this story can end in three ways, I immediately worried about the way I would point Hana to. The first point I brought her to was hanging up. This <click> came after I asked for her name. How interesting that this one thing we’re assigned right away and that stays with us for a long time (whether one chooses to keep that name or not) can create a space for such discomfort. It’s interesting how much weight we put on a name.

I then picked all the options which all ended this way. I was really disheartened by this because sometimes, not matter what you say, the other person may not be ready to receive it. It’s one thing to pick up the phone and dial, but it’s another to actually begin talking. It’s all really difficult. But then, I found the hidden hyperlinks, which took me to Will, who keeps saying he would be there for as long as it takes. I found that quite beautiful and sincere. I went through some more conversation with Hana, which ended a bit after her description of the woman in the casino. I sincerely hate saying the wrong thing all of the time, so it’s really interesting to have this heightened sense of that when put in a situation where you are talking to someone who is feeling vulnerable and a bother.

Moving through the story, my version of Hana was able to open up about her troubles to Will, Jen, Christine, and Ernie. My ending was a bit of a cliffhanger with her mother, and how they would soon meet to talk. We cannot be sure if it’s to talk about her behavior or something else, but it seems that Hana will confront things that have been bothering her. This work took me about 45 minutes to work through because of the deep reasoning I made myself go through each time I chose a response. I don’t think I will work through this one again, at least anytime soon, because of personal effects. But, it’s a really interesting simulation that anyone can learn from. It forces you to either choose or abandon empathy. I hope everyone chose and continues to choose empathy.

student blogs

ask me for the moon & The Vine & The Fish

ask me for the moon

I am greatly looking forward to discussing my selection of electronic literature with you all soon. Linked are my materials for my presentation, including my response paper and powerpoint slides. I hope you all find this poem-as-scholarship as moving as I do. See you all on Monday on Zoom.

Response Paper: https://kean0-my.sharepoint.com/:w:/g/personal/camargav_kean_edu/ET1IyIkUKJtEhxN7Filb_wUBqHYL4ftKowXiRptWHsFlkA?e=isJmCS

Powerpoint: https://kean0-my.sharepoint.com/:p:/g/personal/camargav_kean_edu/EfoKbPQd261EqSuySIrpYEIBf5y-mujEHqoF34aDkM0lBQ?e=BRSeU7

The Vine & The Fish

I almost chose this piece of electronic literature for my selection, but at the last second changed my mind. I referred this piece to Emily, and I am happy she decided to go with it. Much like my own selection, The Vine & The Fish is told through comic-like narrative with a limited color palette. Though in this case, I felt it was a bit of a drawback, as there were some moments in which the color of the text against the coloring of the images was difficult to look at. What I really enjoy about this piece is that, very much like mine, its informative nature. The reader is leaving with newfound knowledge they otherwise may not have been aware of without interaction with this piece. Yes, we have more than likely heard of invasive species in one context or another, but the way in which the author connects it to a sociological aspect of society is unique.

By taking something biological and connecting it with the personal experience, the author breaks down some kind of wall concerning autonomy. The idea of being invasive, whether regarding biological species or in the way the author discusses it, meaning by way of racism, is a manmade occurrence. Meaning, animals, most likely, are not thinking in a way that stretches farther than survival instincts. Yes, there must be some inherent othering within the mind of animals, as that is what the distinguishes predators from prey. Though, this is somewhat akin to racism to some degree, as one group may view another group as a predator or prey. In the human world, these are the groups of the oppressed and the oppressors. So, despite having a difference in the level of autonomy, there are certain experiences that both animals and humans (we are animals!) experience in some form.

With this in mind, I was left wanting more of a connection with the teenage girl who moves. She seems to be the catalyst of the whole story, but fades away in the middle, until the end of the piece in which she, the assumed speaker, states she does not want her children to feel like the vine or the fish. I think having one specific person to bring the narrative and research back to may have bene helpful in garnering a stronger connection between the piece and the interactor, especially if the interactor does have personal experience with the circumstances explored. Continuing with techniques of storytelling, I enjoyed scrolling through the narrative. I feel as though a lot of the literature we have looked at thus far has been quite disjointed. Though, by scrolling and staying in one place, or rather one page, helped me feel grounded and as though I had a true handle on the piece.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and I think it opens the door for a lot of discussion. I am looking forward to hearing Emily’s insight!

student blogs

Yardley, PA 1997 & Avenue S

Yardley, PA 1997

I would like to begin this section of my blog to say that I really enjoyed this one. The first time around, I went the linear way. Going across the keyboard from left to right and shifting the keys as the instructions advised. Usually, when looking at electronic literature for this class, I do not read the instructions and just go. For this, I do not know why. I think I just like to go into it and try to figure it out on my own as well as find what speaks to me personally. Though, I do read the statements by the author and the summaries of each piece. So, when I saw that it involved the keyboard, I knew I had to buckle up.

I expected something a bit more radical than what it actually was. I think I was more so expecting some kind of crazy technique requirement that I could not keep up with. Though, I was pleasantly surprised when all I had to do was make my way down the keyboard and press new keys once the words and music began to fade away. I thought the delivery of the poem was quite beautiful, and really mimics the way we read poetry on paper. Although there is no fade away of the words or built-in music to accompany our reading, the way in which both of those aspects carry the piece is a great way to creatively imagine what goes on in our heads when we read poetry. Things oftentimes click in our heads from line to line, creating a personal symphony. Yardley, PA 1997 helps us do this in a way that is more connected to another’s experience. Unlike the other pieces of ELIT we have read so far, this one stands out because you can go through it the same way another person does, or not. The choice is yours, and I really enjoy that idea.

Lastly, I would like to discuss the content a bit. I think the way in which the author brings about the various aspects of 1997 in Pennsylvania and the specific instances in which they live through was really beautiful because it made room for readers to connect in their own way. Specifically, the short section of about the brother, and how the author reflects that they should have told him they loved him more. I really liked how there were times in which we knew we were not in Yardley, PA, but instead taken back into our own lives, wherever that may be, and given a chance to reflect.

Overall, this was a really great piece, and I think I will find myself returning back to it. I enjoyed its simplicity and the fact that it had no “tricks” or hidden meanings — it was all laid out for us to type through and reflect on.

Avenue S

Reading first, of course, what Avenue S is about, I was immediately pulled in. There are plenty of COVID-19 experiences written and heavily discussed today, but I knew that this rumination would be an outstanding one. First, just stating right off the bat that the speaker missed urban life is a statement that everyone though in some way or another, but to just be laid out in such a way that is pointed and speaking for itself was a great way to start. The world at large missed so many things for a great amount of time that just admitting we missed a part of our lives demonstrates a vulnerability that is pertinent to literature tackling such matters.

Clicking through the dots and mandalas, the first page that really connected with me was “bouncing off the walls” . The way in which the simplistic art renders itself is really fantastic. The constant movement of the stick figures demonstrated quite well the shell of people experiencing the pandemic, and how we were limited to just a specific space — in this case, the screen. Additionally, the lack of color in this section goes to show how staying in one place, forcefully, can remove the color we have in our lives because we are not out experiencing what we otherwise would have. Once clicking on the three dots, I was brought to “butterflies in the stomach”. Again, we are met with a simplistic stick figure who seems to fade into themselves, generating a gear, or a butterfly, preparing to take off. I find this an interesting way to symbolize the anxiety felt during these unprecedented times, especially because this gear-looking image is composed of smaller human-like figures. Not only can this symbolize the many facets of one’s own personality ruminating in a way that works against one’s own person, but how the expectations and well-being of others was also a great source of worry for people during this time.

Lastly, I wanted to discuss “endless cycle”. I think this page put into perspective the idea that life-altering events will always happen, whether on a scale as massive as COVID-19, or on a personal scale. Though this may seem to be a bleak perspective, I choose to see this animation as somewhat hopeful, as the stick figure, after falling and sliding, continuously gets back up. Yes, the figure does fall again after getting back up, but it’s the action of rising again that intrigues me, and makes me hope that in moments of failure or sorrow, I am able to get back up again, even if its just to go through the same sort of perilous time again and again.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the flashback to 2020-21 that this piece brought. I found myself more drawn to the simplistic features of this piece because it allowed for more connection. Using a simple stick figure really works well here because anyone can input themselves and their own experiences into this work. It is also really interesting to. be interacting with this piece now, as COVID-19 has been behind us for a few years now. In day-to-day life today, it’s easy to just go on and not think about what happened to us not so long ago, but it was a major life event for all of us. Though, moving through this work, it was really interesting to be brought back to that time (I was a junior in high school!) and reflect on it today. How easily we forget.

student blogs

Welcome Home & Facade

Welcome Home

Right off the bat, I must remark that the opening page of Welcome Home reminds me of Purble Place. This downloadable game was available on all Windows computers for a time, and I used to play it on my Mom’s laptop all the time when I was younger. I’m sure some of you may remember this game. It is so interesting, though, how something that seems so recent, the technological boom, can actually be nostalgic for some people — including me! Growing up with such computer games, especially immersive at the time, is quite the experience that most recently turned adults have. It brings to the table such interesting questions and implications.

Well, it seems I was on the right track, sort of. It’s really awesome that there’s electronic literature for children. Though Welcome Home is a restoration project, it still bridges the gap between analog techniques of entertainment as well as newer versions of content creation. I suppose, despite Purble Place being considered an educational game, can, in some ways, be considered electronic literature. There were familiar characters each time you opened the game, so you knew what to expect, but you were not interacting with characters or text in the way we have been doing with the forms we have read thus far in class. That is similar to Welcome Home, but in this case, there is a more diverse set of characters to interact with and a plethora of ways to interact with them. Whether you watch and listen to the storybooks, or you listen to the featured radio station, or simply click around to see who lives in which house, there are different ways for children to connect and be transported into this world, where, “home is where is the heart is”.

This project also provides an intriguing source of not only restoration, but re-creation, too. In theory, any animated show, or really, any show, could be recreated online for people to interact with. For example, Bikini Bottom can be recreated into an electronic hub for kids who want to be immersed under the sea in a different way, and possibly, a way more conducive to learning about the technological mediums around them. This way, there is still a core of where SpongeBob began his legacy, but it is continued on to abide by the changing needs of society. I’m not saying television is obsolete — I think it is far from it — but the way in which we rely on computers or tablets is so different than how we rely on the television. Frankly, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being frank. (Ha! Thanks Frank)

Overall, I thought Welcome Home is a really great project that can set some really interesting standards for the near future.

Facade

Unfortunately, I was unable to go into Facade and actually play the game. Some of you may already know this about me from past conversations in other classes, but I am not a gamer at all. For some reason, I just cannot wrap my head around what is actually supposed to be done in the game. Identifying the plot line within a video game has always been difficult for me, but I was greatly looking forward to playing Facade because, from the excerpt, it seemed really intriguing and pulled from a lot of different disciplines to support its creation. Though, I did take a look at the walk-throughs on YouTube…

First off, it was really cool to actually be inserted into the narrative. The way in which the scenes are coded so that what you see mimics what you would see if you were actually there was a great way to include the reader/interactor. Additionally, being able to actually type what you say, and Grace and Trip responding, truly brings home the idea of immersion. It’s almost as if you forget a bit of your current surroundings, and feel as though you are really in the home of Grace and Trip.

Though, this is a really interesting way to discuss what is ELIT and what is, say, a video game. From what I understand, the main difference here is that you are actually contributing to the storyline. In a video game, you can move around the room and shoot the bad guys down (or whatever you do in video games), but it’s more action-based, rather than narrative-based. In a video game, you have to kill that one bad guy to move onto the next part of the game, but with Facade, you just keep going no matter what you say. I supposed what I’m trying to articulate here is that there are no requirements in terms of what you say or do within Facade — the scenario still moves along whether you express agreement or disagreement with Grace or Trip. I think this is a great distinction between literature and gaming, as both are quite similar with the detailed storyline and inclusion of language.

As an ending note, I really hope Facade makes it back online at some point. I think it would be really cool to actually play it for myself and experience just how interesting dinner would be like at Grace and Trip’s that one fateful night…