Category Archives: Ghost and Space

Brief 2

Name : Linh Luu

S3387253

BRIEF 2

 

In this task we sort to find out what is wayfinding and how it works in a variety of contexts. We are looking at ways in which place is represented through different APPS relating to maping and wayfinding.

Specifically, we have narrowed down to 3 certain apps : Lost on Campus, RMIT Map ( belongs to Lost on Campus ) , and RMIT Map2  ( developed by Yichi Zhang ).

 

Together we looked at over fifty references, explaining why a platform such as mobile’s apps is playing such important role in wayfinding, especially in this extremely developed and depended on technology society. We also researched closely at the process of app making in two different platforms which are ISO and Androids, the software that they use, the expectations and needs of users when downloading a wayfinding app and the geographic information system.
I personally had an interview with the RMIT Map app ( developed by Yichi Zhang ) team, including the 2 supervisors and the developer.

The first reference we looked at was 1Cresswell, Tim (2015) Place – An Introduction, Wiley, UK, in this book Cresswell stated “fusion of mapping software with social media software” (page 3 ) that not only provides information about a certain place, but also the linking of data between people, places and things.  The remarkable rise of mapping software with social media software – mostly mobile applications, as Cresswell mentioned, has enabled new level of augmented place. This has lead us to look at how apps nowadays affect people lives, especially wayfiding apps. We examined RMIT Map app and not only it shows users RMIT campus map but also updates users current location and automatically shows it on the map, then directing users to selected location (buildings, landmarks,etc ). And that represents the merging of Geographic information system (GIS ) and social media apps , which is also the second reference, to understand more about GIS and how it affects the mapping system.

 

“A Geographic Information System or GIS is a computer system that allows you to map, model, query, and analyze large quantities of data within a single database according to their location.” –  2How We Use Data in the Mid-Atlantic Region | US EPA. 2015. The article explains clearly what is GIS and how does it work and how it has become so big in our society. GIS can show many different kinds of data on one map. This enables people to more easily see, analyze, and understand patterns and relationships. Also, in 3GIS (geographic information system) – National Geographic Education. 2015. GIS (geographic information system) – National Geographic Education. [ONLINE] Available at:http://education.nationalgeographic.com.au/education/encyclopedia/geographic-information-system-gis/?ar_a=1. [Accessed 26 March 2015], states that GIS can use any information that includes location. The location can be expressed in many different ways, such as latitude and longitude, address, or ZIP code. The system can include data about people, such as population, income, or education level. The interactive maps you view on a phone or the Internet use GIS technology. Using Google Maps, people can add traffic information to road maps or view satellite images of their town or neighborhood. And that’s how the map apps function as well, as GIS plays a crucial role in processing the apps.

 

We also wanted to understand more about Wayfinding, and as in 4 “RMIT Central Authentication Service. 2015. RMIT Central Authentication Service. [ONLINE] Available at:https://equella.rmit.edu.au/rmit/file/d8ceb3ec-487d-49b8-b88f-5e766d2489a3/1/150219_3_023.pdf. [Accessed 26 March 2015].” , defines it as the process of using spatial and environment information to navigate to a destination. Wayfinding involves 4 stages: Orientation, which refers to determining one’s location relative to nearby objects and the destination ; Route decision refers to choosing a route to get to  the destination ; Route monitoring refers to monitoring the chosen route to confirm that it is leading the destination; Destination Recognition refers recognizing the destination. These 4 stages apply exactly to the process of MAP’s applications on different platforms.

 

“Make your app work with others. Full integration with the host platform helps users feel at home with any application and lets applications interact and exchange data”, said Esposito–  5 Esposito, D. (2012). Metro app design principles. InformationWeek, (1338), 34-35. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1038004707?accountid=13552.  So not only just showing only a campus map, these apps let users exchange info and data with other users, setting their favorites routes and places, such as coffee shops, dropping pin at smoking area, etc. “the heritage trail, sustainability trail provide information about the buildings which may be of interest to people.  Other information people might want would be coffee shops and bike parking.  We thought about academic information, but decided that would be too specialised and might make the app slower, and people could perhaps build that themselves as their favourites”, said Dr. Maria Spichkova, Computer Science & Info Tech, RMIT, RMIT Mapp app supervisor

After interviewing Margaret Hamilton- Associate Professor,

School of Computer Science and Information Technology 

RMIT, one of the supervisors of the RMIT Map app, we got to know the process of making the app and almost everything about the project. 6“It was a summer project, presented by Margaret Hamilton and Maria Spichkova – we had thought of it during a workshop on sustainability and public transport held at RMIT with Linda Stevenson who also had lots of ideas about what should be in the maps. “

Futhermore,  there are different groups in an app design project, which are Core group, Advisory group, and 2 Co-desgin group events 7(Sangiorgi, Daniela, and Meroni, Anna. Design for Services. Farnham, Surrey, GBR: Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2011. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 26 March 2015) .

Additionally, mobile platform development has lately become a technological war zone with extremely dynamic and fluid movement, especially in the smart phone and tablet market space. Through 8 Sumi Helal, 2012. Mobile Platforms and Development Environments (Synthesis Lectures on Mobile and Pervasive Computing). Edition. Morgan & Claypool Publishers, we came to understand more about the three currently dominant native platforms – iOS, Android and Windows Phone and the basic process of making the apps. For example, the Android operating system produced by Google has over 70,000 apps available, while the iOS 4 system used by the Apple iPhone has over 200,000. 9(Poyntz, N. (2010). Tapping in to the past. History Today, 60(10), 29. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/760963539?accountid=13552

http://search.proquest.com/docview/760963539?accountid=13552

).  And according to Yichi Zhang, the developer of RMIT Map app, “Those who won scholarships were given the list, and the 3 of us selected it, and decided it would be for iPhone.  We approached Linda Stevenson to fund a separate scholarship for the Android version. Once the maps and building coordinates were sorted out, we worked in two separate projects really – android and IOS are so different and complicated.“

In conclusion,

Reference List :

 

  • Cresswell, Tim (2015) Place – An Introduction, Wiley, UK, in this book Cresswell stated “fusion of mapping software with social media software” (page 3 )

 

  • How We Use Data in the Mid-Atlantic Region | US EPA. 2015.

 

 

 

  • Dr. Maria Spichkova, School of Computer Science and Information Technology, RMIT, RMIT Map app supervisor.

 

  • Margaret Hamilton- Associate Professor,School of Computer Science and Information Technology,RMIT,RMIT Map app supervisor

 

  • Sangiorgi, Daniela, and Meroni, Anna. Design for Services. Farnham, Surrey, GBR: Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2011. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 26 March 2015) .

 

  • Sumi Helal, 2012. Mobile Platforms and Development Environments (Synthesis Lectures on Mobile and Pervasive Computing). Edition. Morgan & Claypool Publishers,

 

 

  • Yichi Zhang, Developer of RMIT Map App ,Student Service – Study & Learning Centre , RMIT.

Editing

So I spent 3 days at the Suites to try to finish my video.The first 2 days were fine, I finished editing all the scenes in order and time, inserted music and transitions smoothly . But the 3rd day at the suites didnt go well, as I had trouble with the audio files. Editing the project using 2 different computers caused the problem, as the software I was using were 2 different versions so it couldn’t recognise the files.
So I had to switch to plan B, inserting subtitles instead of using a narration. Because there weren’t much time left so I rushed this process and the final piece came out not as good as I expected and Im not happy with it…..

LESSON LEARNED.

Filming

So I decided to film my piece with a 5D Mark 2, 18-75mm lens, and a tripod.
After contacting Marc Morel , I came up with a confirmed filming date and had no problem with entering the building.

I started to film the outside of Storey Hall first, by placing the tripod just in fonrt of the 7 Eleven store opposite building 16 , and recorded a close up shot for about 15 seconds of Storey Hall’s titles and widow and entrance, then a 2 minute time-lapse with wider angle, capturing the whole area : people walking around ( in the rain ) , trams and cars and pedestrians passing by.

Then filming inside was fairly easy and straight forward,as I always complete all the wide shots needed first, then focused on the details of the architecture, such as ceilings, lightings, shapes, colours,stairs and walls.

Overall , filming day was a success, only took 3 hours.

Final Reflection

1000 words reflection :

Cresswell begins to explain the concept of space, stating that space is viewed as an area without meaning, as something basic and unrelated. However, he then says that once a human invests meaning into a space, they then become attached to it in some way, thus, it then becomes a place.I am interested in the ways in which place plays an active role in the constitution of culture and society.So this inspired and triggered me into making “The Residue” , exploring the facts and meanings behind the architectures of Storey Hall.

Cresswell stated ‘the ability of place to make the past come to life in the present and thus contribute to the production and reproduction of social memory.’ This truly indicates to my individual project , as I would never understand Storey Hall’s use of different colours, or the brick wall, the geometric shapes if I don’t realise it’s connection with the place’s memories. It is a building of endeavour and industry, celebrating individual qualities of making things, materials , textures, casting metals, colouring walls, and the power of imagination which adapts new communication and transmission technology . Storey Hall seems in the end to argue the glory of the human mind over that of artificial logic. Making people to wonder and start searching for it’s former lives, instead of visually show it on signs.

So from Cresswell’s idea of place is represented by it’s former lives, and the art of noticing in place and space, I have decided to focus on Storey Hall’s designs, as from my first time visiting the building, I was amazed and impressed by Its architecture aspects and how they instantly bring visitor an unique mood of playfulness and complexity. So I started to investigate and notice more, the use of lights and colours, the actually-not-random shapes and last but not least, the brick wall. As I noticed that Geogre also came across the brick wall and started to wonder the same question, what’s the purpose of leaving a brick wall surrounded by modern concrete walls, and that must be related to the building’s history, a hint from the architects to the public, that we should research deeper and find out by ourselves.

The brick wall brought me into researching a lot about Storey Hall’s histories and the architect’s message through the odd designs. And with the help of Abigail, I found an interesting interview on BBC, where the architects at A.R.M talk about their works. That’s when I decided to make a short documentary about Storey Hall’s architecture facts in relation to it’s former lives, using shots of it’s very special designs and follow up with a narration. Later on, Rachel introduced us a book called “Mongrel Rapture” , written by the A.R.M architects. That book has fulfilled my need of sources and information, helping me to finish my script and an informative and detailed narration.

There has been some difficulties and problems during the process of making my video. Firstly, I was flooded with too many information and facts about Storey Hall’s architecture design that I went off track in my narration and storyline. So after sorting out all the crucial information needed, I rearranged the narration to a simple but informative enough one, in order to still make the documentary not too long and boring. Secondly, the whole project to me was very time consuming because it’s an individual assessment. Previously , Im used to working in a crew where I never have to worry about writing a good plot, arranging work loads , preparing and casting narrator. Now I have to be a director, a producer, a cameraman and a post-production man in the same time. So I struggled without knowing it. I spent too much time on the wording process that I lacked the time to film,edit and narrate. So I rushed the editing process, causing a serious trouble with the audio files. I didnt convert the files ,and because I used 2 different computers at the same time, the files corrupted and I had to switch plans, using subtitles instead of a narration, which is far less effective, lack of creativity and is really boring and plain , but I had no choice. I think visually it’s not bad, but overall, my piece does not reflect me and my ability at my best. And honestly I’m not happy and satisfied with my final outcome.

On the other hand,I enjoyed the challenge of working solo and the experiences it brought me, so that I can learn from my mistakes and improve in the future. Also, I love participating in our group work where I can offer my abilities and experience to others, help my classmates to complete the virtual tour works and also their individual piece. I enjoy executing the idea of using youvisit and witnessing how the virtual tour turned out visually. About improvements, I could have arranged my time smarter, not rushing any process and execute my video better than this one.

I have discovered about my own creative practice that I tend to focus more on the wording process this time than the filming and executing the piece , which is completely different from previous semesters. That Im interested in hidden meanings and secret plays of telling stories through architectures. That I worried about completing the task too much that I lacked the use of creativity which I never failed at before. An interesting discovery after this semester.

Through out the course, my understand of place has developed from just a space, as I have not invested meaning in it yet, therefore, it cannot be transformed into a place; something solid and concrete. Although the media representations have provided me with a ‘sense of place’, it is not my own constructed meaning, hence it is not constructed personally; I merely take what the films show and regurgitate those mediated meanings. However, once I have noticed, and experienced, and researched about it, the idea of “space” transformed and involved into a certain “place”, with its histories, its own beauty and meanings rather than viewing it just as a physically location.

I have learned to notice more about memory, space, place and I also learned the importance of researching materials. From googling a phase to a really deep and informative search online and at the State Library, from just brainstorming ideas into backing it up with facts, histories, statistics and references. Moreover, I learned and experienced more about group work and how important communication and chemistry is .I believed I have acquired a lot of knowledge, skills and experience from this course.

 

Readings

Site Visits

Guests

Briefs

Work in-progress

 

Jeremy Bowtell

I did not attend class while Jeremy talks about editing because I was too busy merging the panorama photos for the group work, but I got to meet and talk to him while the class was at the editing suites.
I have experience in editing from my part-time job as a photographer and filmmaker , but still I needed to know some of the technique I want to achieve for my video, and I thank Jeremy for easily explained and showed me what I needed.

3 things I learned:
Use of Frame Hold ; Use of Paste Attribute and Conform frame rates.

These 3 things I learned had helped my video a lot, visually.

Abigail Belfrage

Back to the week when Abigail Belfrage came to class and helped us individually with researching for our own project.
She had helped me with digging deeper at Storey Hall history in order to collide with its nowadays architect aspects, exploring the history of the Woman’s Association , the Australian – Irish politics and the refurbishment process in 1995.

Also I learned a few search tips from Abigail :
Use different terms ( synonyms ) to search to achieve more results

And I found an useful interview of the A.R.M Architects with the BBC, where the Minister of Planning, RMIT Chancellors and the architects talked about the refubirshment process, from the very first day when they introduced the drawings, to the day it’s finished.

Melbourne Museum

What ARTEFACTS indicate particular notions of ‘place’?
Things that were of significance that indicate notions of place to me are the WWI Exhibition and Little Lon.
The dinosaurs , the mamals and the media section were really amazing as well. I spent 20 minutes at the Media place, with all the projected films and student’s projects.

What elements on display are distinctly MELBOURNE?
I came across the Melbourne transports , Melbourne’s streets, the Capital Theater , the West Gate Bridge and Luna Parks. I find these elements really interesting , as I spent 7 years here in Melbourne and those elements truly make Melbourne Melbourne to me now. As if my friends or parents would come and visit Melbourne, I’d show them the same things.

What have you noticed about the WAYFINDING techniques used throughout the exhibition?

There’s a map with titles, detailed descriptions and signs almost every corner of the museum. I started with visiting the insects, animals seciton first, then headed to the human’s history and further. So I guess the structure is guided through a timeline ?

Does the exhibition take care to tell ‘multiple’ stories… what are these?

The stories of the white settlement and the aboriginal histories were separated into different areas but kinda linked together somehow.

 

How does the Museum deal with ‘difficult’ or ‘tragic’ stories?

They didn’t emphasis embellishments, just stating facts and standing on a neutral , simple point of view.

What “media” do they use to tell the stories?

As mostly other museums use :Displays, viewing objects with descriptions; Soundscape; Digital Map, Projected Short Films/Documentary; Interactive Objects.

 

Public Record Office

I wasn’t feeling well on the day the class visted the Public Record Office ( PRO ) so I did some research about the place, since I didnt know it existed and what exactly is that office.

So firstly I went to their website and understands that they holds records created by Victorian government departments and authorities, the State’s courts, municipalities, schools, public hospitals and other public offices. The records date from the establishment of the Port Phillip District in the mid 1830s and include information relating to areas of activity managed or regulated by government such as the administration of justice, immigration, health and welfare, land, education, Indigenous communities, planning, transport, and resource management.
Secondly, I came across the family search option, where people can track down records of their great great grandfather , even with the help from the staff.
And then they have reading rooms for public , to access and look at records but the rooms are strictly supervised and visitor need to register in order to enter, and there are things that are prohibited in the rooms such as Pens, Folders, clipboards or plastic sleeves, Bags, Containers of any kind, Food or drink.

State Library

I was unsure about the class’s timetable and activities at that time so I couldn’t join the crew to visit the State Library.
But as an international student, that place has been one of my favourite place in Melbourne. I used to stay there for almost all day for the whole week before VCE exams to be able to study in a perfectly silent and comfortable enviroment.

After looking up , I found out that The library holds over 2 million books and 16,000 serials, including the diaries of the city’s founders, John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner, and the folios of Captain James Cook, R.N.. It also houses the original armour of Ned Kelly.
Im also thankful that I have learned how to look for what I want at the library, with the help of one of the older student there , 2 years ago. He showed me how to effectively search for books and articles, and back then I was struggling with choosing my major for Uni, and browsing some of the articles and newspapers about Media and especially Film Making and Photography has triggered me to enroll to this course.And so for Brief 1 and my other class’s assignment, researching for references at the State Library has been really straight forward and successful.

Shelley Hornstein’s Losing Site

In Losing Site, Dr. Hornstein investigates how architecture shapes our experiences of place and both captures and conjures memory. She explores how architecture exists as a material object and how it registers as a place that we come to remember beyond the physical site itself. Connecting architecture with geography, visual culture and urban studies, she looks at the infinite variations of how architecture maps our physical, mental or emotional space.

Dr. Hornstein notes that a hedge separating a garden from a road traces a line that not only divides a space into two places, but creates two new places that did not exist before. “We build, demolish and shape space into architectural places that are meaningful to us,” she says. “When those places disappear, how do we remember them?”

Especially,I was impressed when reached Losing Site Chapter 2: Architecture, Memory and Place . It curates a broad range of sites and places, showing the connections between architecture and memory. Hornstein’s volume presents the possibility that we ‘hold’ architecture within our memory, whether we have visited the site or not and, indeed, whether or not the site continues to stand. Hornstein takes up this point by arguing that, rather than investing places with our memories, the physical structures and places themselves generate memory.
This belief triggers me into making my short documentary, naming it “the residue” and exploring how the architecture of Storey Hall collides it with its past.