The Flicker is an interactive object which you can flick in any way you like. The aim of The Flicker was to make an object with the most interesting possible flick for the Flicker. I the beginning the idea was to make an object which changed over time depending on how the user used it, with one of the interactions that the user could do with it being flicking the paper. While exploring the possibilities of my idea, it became simplified to an object which you can flick through the paper and by doing experienced a sound and feel which you wanted to repeat, and therefore fidget with the object.
Thursday, 11 August 2011
Wednesday, 10 August 2011
Final studio
In the final studio I presented the last three of my prototypes to my tutor. The first two were the same two from Friday plus one more made from Zeta paper but much more thicker. This was in reaction to the request by Fridays tutor group for a thicker flicker. I also experimented with the length of the flicker to see if it made it more interesting flick. I found that the longer flicker could be interacted with in more ways, but the length made it awkward to use in one hand which is what I was aiming to do with the flicker.
Also with the new flicker I made it so that the Zeta paper had no spacers which produced a more interesting flick than I first thought the no spacers would. After giving this some thought I believe that the length and thickness of the original flicker caused the flick to be quite 'heavy' compared to the easier flicks with the newer prototypes. Although the spacers are not needed if I just use Zeta paper I think I will make the final flicker out of drafting film with Zeta paper spacers, as this seems to have been the one which people have reacted well to.
I have also decided to make only one end of the flicker to be the end of the main interaction. The reason for this is so that the flicker can have an obvious place to grab/hold when flicking. One way to do this is to have a curve inwards between the two ends so I could have a handle on the double ended one, but because I decided to use the drafting film doing a curved cut in the flicker would be extremely difficult especially when drafting film is already very hard to cut in straight lines with out mistakes. Instead the flicker will taper down to a smaller flicker end, which while interactive will not be the main interaction which I am trying to draw attention to.
In the final studio before the presentation it was suggested I use heat shrink to add the black wrapping around the final flicker, but due to the heat causing the drafting film to warp it was not feasible. So I will wrap the final flick like the previous prototypes in a binding of thin thread which people who tested the object seem to like very much both for its feel and the craftsmanship behind it.
So by Friday morning I aim to have the final flicker done, five photos of it in action and a 200 word explanation of the object done. If I don't I will miss hand-in so there really is no choice.
Also with the new flicker I made it so that the Zeta paper had no spacers which produced a more interesting flick than I first thought the no spacers would. After giving this some thought I believe that the length and thickness of the original flicker caused the flick to be quite 'heavy' compared to the easier flicks with the newer prototypes. Although the spacers are not needed if I just use Zeta paper I think I will make the final flicker out of drafting film with Zeta paper spacers, as this seems to have been the one which people have reacted well to.
I have also decided to make only one end of the flicker to be the end of the main interaction. The reason for this is so that the flicker can have an obvious place to grab/hold when flicking. One way to do this is to have a curve inwards between the two ends so I could have a handle on the double ended one, but because I decided to use the drafting film doing a curved cut in the flicker would be extremely difficult especially when drafting film is already very hard to cut in straight lines with out mistakes. Instead the flicker will taper down to a smaller flicker end, which while interactive will not be the main interaction which I am trying to draw attention to.
In the final studio before the presentation it was suggested I use heat shrink to add the black wrapping around the final flicker, but due to the heat causing the drafting film to warp it was not feasible. So I will wrap the final flick like the previous prototypes in a binding of thin thread which people who tested the object seem to like very much both for its feel and the craftsmanship behind it.
So by Friday morning I aim to have the final flicker done, five photos of it in action and a 200 word explanation of the object done. If I don't I will miss hand-in so there really is no choice.
Sunday, 7 August 2011
Mixing it up
So in Fridays studio we mixed up our groups so that we were with different tutors and different people so that we could get a fresh look on our projects. I ended up in a small group of five with Alex as a tutor. I showed the group my two new prototypes I had made.
The first is a flicker made of Zeta paper, one side with spacers the other without. The second is larger and made from drafting paper and printer paper both with spacers. The second one being thicker was apparently more interesting but the group agreed that they wanted it to be thicker so that they could flick for longer.
The group also agreed that the drafting paper was the most interesting to flick, then the Zeta paper with out spacers and then the printer paper. This put the Zeta paper with out spacers last which is different to printer paper when the one with spacers was more interesting to flick. This may have to do with the fact that the Zeta was probably too thin.
The group was also impressed with the binding around the center of the flickers. It takes about an hour to do this with the thread I am using and the binding comes undone if not stuck in place at the end but the reaction to it makes me think that I will keep it.
Alex also suggested handing out the flickers to people and see how they interact with it differently. I have noticed so far with the few people that I have tested with that there are many ways to flick it so I will have to note down a few of these so that I can photograph them when the flicker is done.
By Tuesday I hope to have the flicker either done or in the final prototype so that I can spend the rest of the week working on getting the write up and photos done for final hand in on Friday. If this is not so there may be some late nights, which is not a good idea and would produce unsatisfactory work for the final hand in.
The first is a flicker made of Zeta paper, one side with spacers the other without. The second is larger and made from drafting paper and printer paper both with spacers. The second one being thicker was apparently more interesting but the group agreed that they wanted it to be thicker so that they could flick for longer.
The group also agreed that the drafting paper was the most interesting to flick, then the Zeta paper with out spacers and then the printer paper. This put the Zeta paper with out spacers last which is different to printer paper when the one with spacers was more interesting to flick. This may have to do with the fact that the Zeta was probably too thin.
The group was also impressed with the binding around the center of the flickers. It takes about an hour to do this with the thread I am using and the binding comes undone if not stuck in place at the end but the reaction to it makes me think that I will keep it.
Alex also suggested handing out the flickers to people and see how they interact with it differently. I have noticed so far with the few people that I have tested with that there are many ways to flick it so I will have to note down a few of these so that I can photograph them when the flicker is done.
By Tuesday I hope to have the flicker either done or in the final prototype so that I can spend the rest of the week working on getting the write up and photos done for final hand in on Friday. If this is not so there may be some late nights, which is not a good idea and would produce unsatisfactory work for the final hand in.
Tuesday, 2 August 2011
Catch Up and Progress
(So this blog is about both the Friday studio and today's studio because I was being lazy over the weekend and didn't write one for Friday.)
On Friday my tutor, Helen was away sick so our group got split up and was mixed in among the other groups. I was in Byron's group and he gave an interesting new perspective to the 'flicker' (yay a name). The ideas he bought up about my object were based on the fact that as the flicker was currently designed it was not very intuitive. So thinking about this I realized that I could not figure out how to do this with out actually making the object, so over the weekend I made this prototype.
While fidgeting with it over the weekend I found that the paper seemed too dense to get a satisfactory flick to it so on Monday I made a new mock up with a smaller sheet of paper between each larger bit of paper, as a spacer. I found that flicking the one with the spacers felt better when flicking and most people agree. One thing I did notice about the 2nd prototype was that it did not wear as fast or in the same way as the first. The 1st prototype started to curl its edges after about five minutes of playing with it, the 2nd has not really started curling, even after over 2 hours of playing with it and letting multiple people have a go at it.
Even though the wearing of the 'flicker' was the original idea, I have been told been told by my tutor that I should focus on getting the sound and feel of the 'flicker' right first. So because everyone likes the flick of the 2nd prototype better I shall extend this idea further.
Also in todays studio Helen told me that i should try to figure out how to make the 'flicker' look less like a pile of paper and more like an object people would want to buy. So for Fridays studio I am going to make at least half a dozen more prototypes for people to try out, using different paper to see how this affects the flick and seeing how short or long the paper has to be to get the best flick... EVER.
On Friday my tutor, Helen was away sick so our group got split up and was mixed in among the other groups. I was in Byron's group and he gave an interesting new perspective to the 'flicker' (yay a name). The ideas he bought up about my object were based on the fact that as the flicker was currently designed it was not very intuitive. So thinking about this I realized that I could not figure out how to do this with out actually making the object, so over the weekend I made this prototype.
While fidgeting with it over the weekend I found that the paper seemed too dense to get a satisfactory flick to it so on Monday I made a new mock up with a smaller sheet of paper between each larger bit of paper, as a spacer. I found that flicking the one with the spacers felt better when flicking and most people agree. One thing I did notice about the 2nd prototype was that it did not wear as fast or in the same way as the first. The 1st prototype started to curl its edges after about five minutes of playing with it, the 2nd has not really started curling, even after over 2 hours of playing with it and letting multiple people have a go at it.
Even though the wearing of the 'flicker' was the original idea, I have been told been told by my tutor that I should focus on getting the sound and feel of the 'flicker' right first. So because everyone likes the flick of the 2nd prototype better I shall extend this idea further.
Also in todays studio Helen told me that i should try to figure out how to make the 'flicker' look less like a pile of paper and more like an object people would want to buy. So for Fridays studio I am going to make at least half a dozen more prototypes for people to try out, using different paper to see how this affects the flick and seeing how short or long the paper has to be to get the best flick... EVER.
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