During the observation part of this project we documented how people used their mobile phones at Washington Square Park and videotaped ourselves sending text messages. Based on what we noticed our group decided to manipulate typing on cell-phones by creating a tool that would provide more possibilities for the use of this medium. Our proposal is to expand the use of the cell-phone typing through a program that can allow people to utilize their mobile phones as a control device for external tools.

Our idea to expand on the capability of typing on a mobile phone to make it a controller springs off several observations we made. Although typing on the phone typically calls for connections to other people it also acts as an isolator. Most people we saw at Washington Square Park were highly involved in what they were typing. These people were generally hunched over their phones and unaware of their environment. We wanted to create something that would allow ease in interaction and engagement, the very notion of what mobile phones have been built around.

By allowing users to engage in typing on the mobile phone as a means of control we wish to not only encourage interaction but to transform the phone into a physical extension or constituent of our bodies and behavior. As a controlling mechanism the mobile phone can potentially have remarkable power in affecting how we experience the world, our relationships with other people, and our understanding of self.

How It Works

For the purposes of building a prototype our group chose to focus on typing on a mobile phone to control the manipulation of video art. The way that we envisioned the process to work is by allowing people to type on the phone interface to control components of the video art. For example, they could press the letter "h" in order to cause opacity within a frame. For this to happen the phone would transmit information to an external computer with a receiver to interpret and then send the data into a program in the system to execute the command.

There are several ways we thought about to implement this project:

Use of Bluetooth: This is great because it allows for people to move around and perhaps even connect with each other. The accessibility factor is key in use of this transmission technique. Bluetooth is an great short range tool as it is becoming so ubiquitous and unobtrusive (does not really interfere with other devices - bluetooth or radio) The technology is also quite easily manipulated - and implementable in simple java midlets.

Use of Infrared: An infrared would be a great way to transmit data between the phone and the computer. It is a cheap alternative that some of us have a clearer understanding of. An infrared receiver is also easy to install within a computer. The problem with Infrared is that it can only be used in a linear path with the external computer. This would trap people from moving around freely. Infrared is also unreliable and interference is often an issue.

The Program: The program will interface the phone with the Video performance software. This will take the form of a Java midlet downloaded wirelessly onto users' cell-phones. The midlet will transmit key-press information through a bluetooth connection to a laptop with the Vid program runnng. The vid program will reference the key-press information and act accordingly. We are researching ways in which this process can be implemented with multiple participants. The social aspects are too great to ignore, and we are excited by the networking possibilities, without dealing with queing - we want this to be real-time.

Implications and Applications:
By making the mobile phone a device of control we hope to manipulate the way in which people interact with everyday tools and to provide ease in user experience. Doing this allows the mobile to be used in new and interesting ways thus providing interactivity with the world around us. Typing on the phone itself will change: it no longer serves merely as a connection between mobile phone users but as a manipulative device that allows people to self-express in new ways. People's experience of typing will also change with the ease of a few buttons to make commands.

Although our example sites a specific use of the mobile phone to provide creative control to users who wish to manipulate video, there are many directions in which this idea could expand. Perhaps the phone-control could be used to manipulate tools we use daily, or allow people to participate in interactive art installations and shows. It could not only broaden the capabilities of what people can do with mobile phones but also give power to the hands of the public. When we researched other types of control devices we noticed that several had already been produced with a high purchasing cost to the end user. Our idea would offer a step into making controlling innovations more accessible to the public and allow for centralization of every day tasks into one device.

The application of our concept is rather simple and accessible - which is entirely the point. A Java midlet would be downloaded to a user's cell-phone that would record and transmit key presses. We are exploring two main ways of transferring the key-press information: Bluetooth and socket connection. The main issue is range. For close range, as in a gallery setting, bluetooth would be ideal. If, in fact, we wanted to expand the range - lets say for people to control anywhere in the world - we would use a socket connection to interface with the computer-side application controlling the video. The Jitter/processing/java/flash live interactive video manipulation software would receive the key-press information from the bluetooth receiver/socket, and react according to our preference. Catherine is working on various live video manipulation concepts in Jitter as well as more conventional applications not yet duplicated in a live setting.