Textility of Code: A Catalogue of Errors

This article presents a series of informal experiments in software and weaving, most of which were conducted as part of the Weaving Codes, Coding Weaves project. Different aspects of weaving, including plain weave, a four-shaft loom, tablet weaving and warp-weighted weaving are simulated, in order to gain greater understanding of the craft from the perspective of computer science. The production rules of L-Systems are employed to begin to explore the expansive possibilities offered even by our simple simulations. In order to test our models and gain deeper understanding, the languages we produce are interpreted both as computer simulations and by our human selves, through the weaving of textile by hand. Physical user interfaces are introduced, in order to help communicate the structures and thought processes of weaving. Finally, we share our approach to representing a weave from the point of view of a thread. Throughout, our aim is not to simulate a weave in its entirety, but to gain and share insights into its complexity, and begin see how the long history of weaving, as a fundamentally digital yet ancient craft, can inform the younger fields of computer science and engineering. This is the open-access author’s version of a closed access article published by Taylor and Francis in TEXTILE: Journal of Cloth and Culture, May 2017. It is shared under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license, with doi: 10.5281/zenodo.832582

Lehre als Forschung: Grundlagen der Musikinformatik im künstlerischen Kontext

Was macht künstlerische Forschung notwendig? Am Beispiel des Fachs Musikinformatik erörtert der Artikel diese Frage, den Anspruch, den sie impliziert - und inwiefern er sich als Integration von Forschung und Lehre einlösen lässt. 30.03.2015 | Julian Rohrhuber (Düsseldorf)

Personality and intrinsic motivational factors in end-user programming

We explore the factors that determine whether individuals are likely to experience intrinsic motivation in end-user programming (EUP). We report two experiments: one that tests whether there are reliable psychometric constructs that describe different aspects of intrinsic motivation, and one that tests whether these constructs are successful in predicting individuals' own self-reported intrinsic motivation after using a popular EUP product. We conclude that there are identifiable and distinct motivational factors in EUP, and that these are associated with particular psychometric personality traits. We offer several suggestions for future research that could apply these findings to improve uptake and quality of user experience for educational and general-purpose EUP applications

Space as Time. A Study in Improvisational Interactive Computational Sculpting

This paper reviews some of my work in experience based computational sculpture, using a technique which I call Interactive 3D Printing, an amalgamation of generative art, livecoding, and sculpture. I3DP draws on a rich history of iterative revision and aesthetic refinement in the computational arts. This work foregrounds the time-based experience of digitally fabricating objects by describing them using only terms for time and rhythm (beats, beats-per-minute, duration, musical notes) following Paul Klee’s observation that “space itself is a temporal concept”. It explores the liminal state between finished/unfinished objects inside a manufacturing process by incorporating the sound of the manufacturing process into the experience of its products. I discuss how this work can be understood as both an improvised livecoding performance and a work of generative art where each iteration (or “instantiation”) has the potential to self-actualise and change over time according to the intrinsic nature of both computation al and improvisational works of art

Temporal semantics for a live coding language

Sonic Pi is a music live coding language that has been designed for educational use as a first programming language. However, it is not straightforward to achieve the necessary simplicity of a first language in a music live coding setting, for reasons largely related to the manipulation of time. The original version of Sonic Pi used a `sleep' function for managing time, blocking computation for a specified time period. However, while this approach was conceptually simple, it resulted in badly timed music, especially when multiple musical threads were executing concurrently. This paper describes an alternative programming approach for timing (implemented in Sonic Pi v2.0) which maintains syntactic compatibility with v1.0, yet provides accurate timing via interaction between real time and a "virtual time''. We provide a formal specification of the temporal behaviour of Sonic Pi, motivated in relation to other recent approaches to the semantics of time in live coding and general computation. We then define a monadic model of the Sonic Pi temporal semantics which is sound with respect to this specification, using Haskell as a metalanguage

Collaboration and learning through live coding (Dagstuhl Seminar 13382)

This report documents the program and the outcomes of Dagstuhl Seminar 13382 "Collaboration and learning through live coding". Live coding is improvised interactive programming, typically to create electronic music and other digital media, done live with an audience. Our seminar was motivated by the phenomenon and experience of live coding. Our conviction was that those represent an important and broad, but seldom articulated, set of opportunities for computer science and the arts and humanities. The seminar participants included a broad range of scholars, researchers, and practitioners spanning fields from music theory to software engineering. We held live coding performances, and facilitated discussions on three main perspectives, the humanities, computing education, and software engineering. The main outcome of our seminar was better understanding of the potential of live coding for informing cross-disciplinary scholarship and practice, connecting the arts, cultural studies, and computing

Dialogic coding: a performance practice for co-creative computer improvisation

This research project explores Dialogic Coding – a performance practice situated within the field of live computer music which works towards a dialogic relationship with the computer as a programmable musical instrument. The writing articulates a Practice-as-Research (PaR) inquiry that places my practice within specific contextual, analytical and philosophical frameworks. The point of departure is the assumption that following the concept of dialogue a more reflexive way of performing music with a computer becomes possible. This approach may produce innovative results through transformations of musical ideas, embodied interactions as well as the performer's self-concept within a situation of improvised group performance. Dialogic Coding employs the concept of nontriviality to create an independent but at the same time programmable musical agent – the apparatus – which so becomes a co-creator of the improvised music. As a context for Dialogic Coding practice serve other dialogic forms of music making such as free improvised music as well as dynamic performances of programming found in live coding practice. A dialogic approach in music performance is based on listening and the ability to speak one's voice in response to the situation. Here, listening is understood beyond the auditory domain on the level of abstract thinking and physical interaction (interface affordance). This research presents a first-hand account of a computer performance praxis and thus makes a contribution to academic knowledge. For this it makes some implicit or tacit 'knowings' contained in the practice accessible for an outside community through this writing. Dialogic Coding practice was developed through participating in free improvised music 'sessions' with other musicians as well as composing pieces in program code with which I then performed live (solo and group). This writing contextualizes the developed practice in a historic lineage, discusses it within the conceptual framework of dialogism and delineated how a dialogic approach fosters creativity, learning, surprise and flow. As a conclusion I summarise the ethical dimension of Dialogic Coding as a form of human-computer interaction (HCI)