Semester 2, Week 8
Class Sharing, Merlin the Wizard
Class Sharing
To be honest, I was a little sad that I wasn't able to show more for the sharing, as my making had not
progressed much. Most of the work I had done in the past few weeks remained in my illustrator files and
dissertation. I shared what I had as best as I could (slides, plans, ideas.).
Also, it was quite inspiring to see what everyone was working on. I felt like maybe a part of my
unmotivation was also not having felt a sense of community for a while, and seeing everyone working and
being creative with their work got me excited to get back into the work again.
Feedback
I did get feedback on my pixel oracle setup from last week. Andreas suggested that it was very
conceptual and might be a little difficult to understand, as opposed to the initial website, which he
found more interesting. I didn't take that immediately as a 'no', as I felt like it was okay for work to
challenge both myself and the audience without having to be "interesting" all the time. BUT, I
understand that the work still needs to capture the attention of the audience, so I will sit on that
feedback.
Other than that, I was urged to FINISH MY CPJ! and also start thinking of my open studios set-up and
show my research/experiment so far. Hopefully in writing my CPJ, I will be able to make more sense of
what I've done so far.
Pixel Oracle Setup
The Computer Wizard
At some point in doing my CPJ, I remembered stumbling upon the setup wizard. Back when I first started using the computer, softwares often started with a wizard that helped me to install my programmes. I never really questioned why it was a wizard except for the fact that it magically completed the task for me — which was perhaps exactly the point. Calling it was likely meant to say "don't worry about how we did it, it's just magic!"
Merlin, The Microsoft Wizard
The specific instance of the wizard I was concerned with here was Merlin, of course. He was a character used as a representation of a Microsoft agent in 2003, a step taken towards the personification of the setup wizard. It is interesting how the language of magic has always been used in technology as a means of completing complicated processes without having to understand it fully (like magic!). It definitely paints an innocent and fantastical image to have a wizard do your digital chores for you. While it remains so, does it prime itself as something that prevents us from wanting to peek behind the curtains?
Reconciling Dissonance with Audiences
As one of the most famous wizards in pop culture, even having its own TV show and Disney character, I figured Merlin would be the perfect narrator for the story I'm telling. I asked my
friends if they remember who Merlin was, and most don't immediately recall the character, but
eventually do when I show them the wizard in the pop-up box.
As discussed before, the challenge of any discursive project that is not immediately understandable is to help the user reconcile with the dissonance presented to them.
By hinging on the nostalgia of the character, I hope to invite the audience into this world — a world where magic and technology has never been that far apart. The memory of Merlin might just be the key to the story I'm telling.
