Programming Interactivity

05/02/2011 · No Responses

If you’re interested in using electronics and programming to create rich interactive experiences with your artwork, designs, or prototypes, Programming Interactivity is the place to start. You’ll explore common themes in interactive art and design, like 2D and 3D graphics, sound, physical interaction, computer vision, circuit bending, geo-location and more. This book explains programming and electrical engineering basics, and introduces three freely available tools created specifically for artists and designers:

Processing, a Java-based programming language and environment for building projects on the desktop, Web, or mobile phones
Arduino, a system that integrates a microcomputer prototyping board, IDE, and programming language for creating your own hardware and controls
OpenFrameworks, a coding framework simplified for designers and artists, using the powerful C++ programming language

You’ll get working code samples you can use right away, along with the background and technical information you need to design, program, build, and troubleshoot your own projects. Programming Interactivity also examines cutting-edge design techniques, and includes discussions with leading artists and designers on projects and theory.

About the Author
Josh Noble is a consultant, freelance developer and Rich Internet Application designer, based in Brooklyn, New York. He’s the lead author of O’Reilly’s Flex 3 Cookbook (released May 2008).

As a graduate student, Joshua Noble studied interactive art, teaching himself programming and electronics using available resources on the internet. After school, he began teaching coding to art and design students interested in interactive design at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. He found an acute need for a book that taught the technical aspects of programming and computing for interactive art and design as well as some of the theoretical and conceptual aspects of design interaction. He’s worked extensively with each of the tools discussed in this book and has taught the subject at workshops, colleges, and to friends.