Author Archives: btb25

HTML and Twine

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Here are some examples of HTML codes:

Here is the written code:

<h1>This is a large heading</h1>

<h2>This is a medium heading</h2>

<h3>This is a small heading</h3>

<p>This is a paragraph</p>

<br>(adds a line break)

<img src=”stora.jpg” style=”width:304px;height:228px;”>

<a href=”my.pitt.edu”>Here would be the text you would like the link to display</a>

 

Here I have displayed the results of that code through twine. These codes are HTML which can be used in different ways. Having defined headings can help with the cohesion of your game.

Display Results

Here I have displayed how WordPress reads this same html code:

This is a large heading

This is a medium heading

This is a small heading

This is a paragraph
(adds a line break)

stora

Here would be the text you would like the link to display

I apologize for the pictures of the bed I am trying to sell, but I have just recently made an advertisement.

Final Project Proposal – Cats

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For my final project, I wanted to create something that I would have fun viewing. I decided that this would involve copious amounts of cat gifs. So here goes my pitch. I want to make a text based game in twine that ultimately matches the player with their ideal cat gif. This is something that I would click on if Buzzfeed posted it.  I was not satisfied with any twine games that i have played so far on the internet. Now i\I would not usually say that I could do better in a creative sense, but this once I would like to try and make a better twine game.

I want to focus on the format, layout, and colors of the game for the final project. I want to avoid any annoyances that I experienced in the playing of mine and my classmates games in class. I want to experiment with the different format styles, since I might try to use a different display style. I think it would be interesting to not have the previous text disappear, but display a history and the possibility of changing selections without starting over.

I would also like to try using a variable. I have seen variables used in twine games to give information about the story so far. One game I played was a cat petting simulator that allows you to execute different ways to pet the cat and gives you the cats respective reactions.

My goal for this project is to enjoy the final product, and maybe be proud enough to send it to my friends for their cat viewing pleasure. It might also take another direction entirely since I am so fickle with projects of this nature.

Here is the cat petting simulator if you are interested.  https://neongrey.itch.io/pet-that-cat

Extra Credit Digital Storytelling Talk

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I had the chance to attend the lecture featuring Steven Hammer and Steph Ceraso on different aspects of Digital Story telling through audio.  Steph Ceraso’s talk, “Sound Never Tasted So Good,” resonated with me and the project that I was working on at the time.  This presentation was during our audacity project, one which i enjoyed very much. She talked about an experiment conducted by her students at University of Maryland where they tried to influence the dining experience of a group by controlling the auditory environment. She talked about how frustrating it was for her students to see the dinning guests talk over their soundscape, which is a lesson that I considered when finishing my project. You cannot control the actions of your audience. You cannot make them pay attention if they get distracted, or force them to dedicate all of their attention to your piece. I know that when I listen to podcasts and audio books, I am usually driving, thereby dividing my attention right away.

I really enjoyed the sensory experiment that she attempted with chocolate and sound clips. Although I cannot say that I tasted a difference in the two chocolates, the experiment was a window into the research of a different field of study than I am familiar with. It is very interesting to see how our auditory environment impacts our experience, especially when it is also a topic I learn about in my Green Building Design class. There we learn that a part of healthy living indoors involves control over our auditory experience through selective sound insulation in restrooms, study areas, healthcare buildings, etc.

Steven Hammer’s talk on “Composing/ with/ Noise” was difficult for me to relate to. He used very advanced terms to describe his tactics, and much of his presentation went over my head. I have to admit that I was unable to understand much of his talk.

Blog 7 Text Preview

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My game puts the reader into the story, giving them options as life choices for the day that my story takes place. So far, I have changed the font to a uniform color and a font that is easy to read. However, the design element that I want to talk about is sound.  I am incorporating sound into each decision and passage to help pull the reader into the story. I think that the addition of sound will help the reader feel as though they are in the story. As they hear the alarm blaring in the morning, they will understand the desire to stay in bed. I’m undecided if i will include any music, or just sound effects. But I will have to see how music would fit into the story and format. My hope is that sound will help give the reader a sense of place in their own story. It will probably take a few play throughs of my story to understand where the decisions are leading you ultimately to the two different endings.

My inspiration for this idea is from the Uncle Who Works for Nintendo. I enjoyed how the sounds gave me a better sense of the scene I was in. I’m not sure if i want my story to have a creepy aspect in the way that story did, but I will see where the game takes me. Since the main point of my game is to pull the reader into the story, i think the auditory stimulation on top of the visual and mental aspects from the text. I also want to add more visual intrigue since i have experience with HTML and I would be able to showcase my skills in a better way than my writing will.

Blog #6 Biking

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I was inspired to look into this topic after a terrifying run-in with a bike as a pedestrian on a sidewalk. I was shocked, since bicycles are not allowed on the sidewalk. At that moment I realized that not everyone had a parent who taught them the rules regarding the operation of a bicycle. I was taught to share the road with cars, and that while you are on the road you are to act like a car. In this project I would like to learn what the real rules are, and look into ways to educate the public on what rules they are required to follow. I have also been speculating as to why there is a lack of education on the topic. Drivers Education about cars is completed in high schools around the country, but why the lack of information about bikes? It may have to do with differences in roads in rural vs urban locations. I would love to be able to address some of these questions.

There has been bad publicity in Pittsburgh recently with bike safety after the death of a University of Pittsburgh staff member who was riding a bicycle on Forbes Ave at Bellefield Ave. This cast a sour shadow over the newly lined bike lanes that have been constructed throughout Pittsburgh, and especially in Oakland. While she was not at fault in regards to proper operation of the bicycle, that is the most significant recent news regarding the topic.

My interest in this topic is redoubled due to a course I am taking about transportation where we are learning about the rules that regulate the design of intersections and roads including how bike lanes can be incorporated. I’m interested to see how these two different classes can have an overlapping theme.

Blog 5

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The first thing I noticed about The Uncle Who Works for Nintendo was the level of suspense that it instilled in me. The sound effects, especially the thunderstorm, set the scene with an ominous tone. This resulted in a bit of fearful apprehension as I made each selection through the game. Although, since many of the sounds are from video games, I was comforted by Super Mario Bros, which I play often.

I found the Depression Quest to be quite different. The way some options were not available to you, but were visible , was particularly manipulative. I found myself wanting to select the only choice that was being kept from me. Call it human nature maybe, but I wanted what I couldn’t have. Then I realized the point of this game when I made myself stop and consider what those choices I was unable to make had in common, they were what I would consider to be the normal or respected choices, which she was unable to choose due to her depression. I related to a particular scene dealing with waking up in the morning. Even though the person woke up before her alarm she still snoozed it so many times as to cause her to be late for work, and instead of being able to just get up and face the day, she decides to stay in bed and call out sick from work. This game is actually a very good representation of what some people face when dealing with Depression.

I will go back to the topic of the creepiness factor of these games for me, but it may have something to do with recently watching Twin Peaks, X-Files, and Supernatural. I think that I am expecting things to take a supernatural or spooky turn with every word I read of the story I am creating in the game.

 

First Date Preview

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My audio project is centered around a couple on a blind date, one that is not going well. The clip I have included as a preview is the first 30 seconds of my project. It follows a girl named Emily into a restaurant, including her inner monologue, as she meets a blind date set up by a friend. Within 30 seconds he has made her uneasy by ordering her a drink before she got there.

There are four characters in this story so far including Emily, the protagonist. She is meeting Eric who is a mutual friend of Jenny. We have also met the hostess, to what sounds like a french restaurant. Eric did pull out the chair for Emily, showing that he does have a gentlemanly side, and making a good first impression. But starting her off with such a strong drink, put Emily on edge for the date.

Underneath the clip is the ambient noise clip that a fellow classmate uploaded onto our box folder. I like that it adds a subtle background noise to the otherwise quiet restaurant scene. I am still working on how to incorporate soft music in the background without drowning out any of the other sound effects. In this, you can also hear the sounds of a chair being pulled out, and a coat being taken off. I plan to add in footsteps as she approaches the table. My favorite part thus far is using the reverb effect to distinguish Emily’s inner monologue from her speech in the scene. I believe it gets my point across without sounding too goofy as it would if I changed the pitch.

Will Emily leave when Eric answers his phone at the table?

Find out in this audio project!

Microwave Sound

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While going through the collected sounds in the box folder, I heard the microwave, the low humming while it cooks, and the beep that signifies the food is ready. In my mind i could see the light shining on the turn table inside the microwave through the grainy glass door. I thought about what I would be taking out of there on a daily basis after i heard the beep. Could I hear the food making any sounds inside? If it was popcorn or water boiling maybe I would hear it. As my brain followed this train of thought, A scene was quickly  forming around the sounds.

Am i making breakfast, or dinner? Am  I following a recipe, or making it by memory? I thought about other sounds I would hear in the kitchen, and I thought of eggs being whisked with milk, salt and pepper. Breakfast is my favorite meal, and it seems that I was imagining making scrambled eggs with toast, and maybe a cup of tea.

I’m in my small apartment kitchen. I take melted butter out of the beeping microwave. I turn on the electric kettle with a click. I crack two eggs into a bowl that i pulled out of the cabinet. I pour milk into the bowl and grind some fresh salt and pepper. I turn on the gas stove and place a pan over the flames. I scoop in some melted butter and it begins to sizzle. I place the bread in the toaster and set it for three minutes which starts a rhythmic ticking. In the background the kettle is making a whooshing sound that increases in volume as it heats the water.  I pour the eggs into the buttered pan and it sizzles until the eggs cover the bottom of the pan. I begin to stir, hearing the scraping of the spatula on the pan. The water is done and it makes i final howl and click off. I get a cup out of the cabinet and pour the hot water. Then i hear the ripping of a tea bag and a plop into the water. The toaster dings and i scrape some softened butter over the top. I go back to the stove and scrape the eggs into my plate, pick up my tea and sit down to start eating.

I will be able to build these sounds upon one another to make a common scene in my kitchen.

11:52 Limetown Moment

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Both of the assigned podcasts were very interesting, in very different ways. The one thing that I noticed the most is the contrast from an audio book to a podcast. I have recently been listening to Emma by Jane Austen on Spotify and find it tedious to listen to for a long period of time. These podcasts, especially Limetown were much easier to listen to. The added music and transitions are much more pleasing than listening to voices alone. AT 11:52 in Limetown, this is one of the first music inserts that i noticed. The music itself was pleasing to listen to, but it is its purpose as a transition that stood out to me. It gave something to occupy my mind while i was thinking about what i had just heard. It was beautifully crafted to not distract me from my thoughts, but allow me to fall into the story. for an audio book on the other hand, it was a constant stream of text, as it would be if i were actually reading it, but manages to make it easy to listen to the speaker(s).

I am doubtful that my pwn voice is as soothing as all of the voice actor associated with these podcasts. The voices are not unpleasant to listen to, but offer no distraction from their intended message. Pod casting is really a form of writing, although  I had never thought of it that way before. I thought it was just like talking on the phone and telling  a story, but it is a pre-written piece of writing that also gets edited after the initial recording. I appreciate the added element of background noise and interviews that accompany these types of podcasts.