John Joseph Bachir

Personal Statement, ITP Application December 2003

 

 

 

 

At this exciting point in the evolution of media, we have important problems to solve and unique opportunities for innovation. While technology is evolving at a phenomenal rate, two significant problems persist in holding back its applications: poor user interface (UI) practices and over-consolidation of functionality. Additionally, I believe that the development of traditional media will soon slow down considerably, allowing us to focus our energy on creating entirely new media. I look forward to working to solve these problems, and I feel that ITP's unique program, with its emphasis on collaborative work, provides an ideal environment for doing so.

* * *

The concepts and capabilities introduced by the alphabet, movable-type printing press, telegraph, and Turing machine have forever changed the ways in which humans relate to, communicate, and value information. In the past two decades, these technologies have come together to create the Internet and general purpose computers (GPCs)[1]. Networking technology and the structure of the Internet are providing all the functionality we need and will continue to do so for some time. However, GPCs are merely the crude and clumsy beginning to what we can accomplish with existing and future technologies.

Due to their high performance, low cost, and flexibility, GPCs provide the most convenient environment for deploying newly developed media and tools. Unarguably, the capability of these tools far exceeds the capability of the previous generation of tools. However, the sophistication of human-computer interaction practices is falling far behind in comparison to the soaring functionality of GPCs. Most of the "innovation" being done in human-computer interaction is merely the iteration of ideas introduced in the mid-80s; this practice is beginning to take its toll in two major ways.

The first problem is the industry's commitment to perpetuating legacy UI practices. Many recent UI innovations are almost humorous efforts of reverse-engineering – hacking legacy UI concepts in order to compensate for their increasingly evident and detrimental weaknesses. The best example of this is the window. Windows were a great idea in 1984. The window/document and desktop metaphors were solid, simple concepts that stuck well in users' minds. Unfortunately, the window paradigm does not scale very well and has hit the limit of its efficiency. In 2003, people do so much, so quickly with their computers that it is difficult for a user to keep track of where various work-flows are within the UI. Apple brute-forced the problem by creating a system ("Exposé") by which all of one's messily arranged windows can be moved into a tiled formation, so that each window may be scanned over until the desired window is located. While this might be the best solution in terms of minimal transition for existing users, it is inconsistent with the rest of the UI's metaphors, and it will soon hit its own efficiency limit. New UI mechanisms need to be developed that will naturally fit into the way computer users work. I would like to explore these problems at ITP.

Second, little consideration has been given to the psychological and sociological ramifications of consolidating all functions into one device. Most consumers use GPCs for all of their computing needs, such as word processing, email, web browsing, music listening, and gaming. Only two decades ago, all of these functions were performed using separate tools (typewriter/pen-and-paper, postal mail, public library, stereo system, the great outdoors). For the end user, consolidation of this functionality means doing everything while sitting in the same location in one's dwelling or workplace, using the same device, and interacting with the same physical and graphical interface. Users have enormous capability, but only wield it in one physical location – indeed only one physical position – and in one frame of mind. This is a huge shift from how humans have been living for thousands of years. From carpal tunnel syndrome to depression, it is evident that this phenomenon is beginning to cause some problems in our society. I anticipate that a decade from now, when the numbers are in, we will find that it has caused a significant shift in our sense of self, sense of culture, how we relate to one another, what we value, and how we choose to be entertained.

The solution to this problem is often a somewhat obvious transition of functionality from the GPC to a gadget. But the benefits are rarely worth the overhead, which is why the handheld-computing/gadget market has remained a niche for many years. The best example of this is the portable compressed music player. Moving the functionality from the GPC to a gadget improves ergonomics and flexibility, but decreases efficiency: high cost, the need to synchronize files, and batteries that must be maintained. Transferring functionality away from the GPC, while not alienating existing users, is one of the most important emerging challenges in interactivity and media, and it is one I look forward to exploring while at ITP.

* * *

I believe that an understudied phenomenon in the evolution of media will soon be upon us: the point at which certain human extensions will be done evolving. The best example of this is voice in its two main extensions:

(1) The alphabet, hand-written letter, and hand-written book allowed us to transfer information in large quantities to people in other geographic locations and also to future generations. The movable-type printing press made mass-duplication a part of everyday life. The telegraph and the Turing machine came together to allow us to send and receive "letters" and "books" at the speed of light, in the form of email and the web. In this sense, email and the web are a final iteration of voice.

(2) The telephone allowed us to speak to one another in real-time over arbitrary distances. Talkies, and then video, similarly allowed us to transmit time-spans of visual and aural perception (including preconceived messages) one-way over arbitrary distances. Once video conferencing over mobile phones becomes affordable and widely used, we might be able to say that video conferencing is another final iteration of voice.

Given that nothing can travel faster than light, and nothing can be more convenient than "anytime, anywhere", I believe we can say that in certain important respects, our main forms of communication will soon reach their final iteration. This is a fascinating time to be doing research in interactivity and telecommunications. We will shift our energy away from improving the quality and accessibility of traditional media, and begin to extend humans in ways that we have not yet seen. Perhaps we will accomplish this by simply creating dramatically more interactive and realistic media, while also integrating the final iterations of traditional media, so that we move steadily toward virtual reality. Or perhaps we will begin to extend parts of humans that are not physical but psychological. We have taken voice and extended it with the web. What will happen when we use the telegraph and Turing machine to directly extend memory, dreaming, emotions, faith, or rhetoric? It is the development of these novel media, at a time when they may soon be ready for mass acceptance, that excites me about working at ITP.

* * *

I believe that creating through dialogue with trusted peers is a fundamentally effective and natural process. Also, doing so is a reflection of my philosophy regarding the value and nature of knowledge.

I believe that one's character is completely composed of all the continuing dialogues in one's life. From family, friends, and coworkers, to science, art, and God, these dialogues come together to form an individual's value system and sense of self. When a dialogue ceases for one reason or another, be it a geographic relocation or the severance of a romantic relationship, a very real and integrated piece of one's self is removed. Therefore, dialogue with others is an integral part of both who I am and my ability to create new ideas; I treat my relationships with others as invaluable, mutually beneficial assets. This model of character is a major factor behind both my interest in doing work in media and my attraction to ITP's collaborative work environment.

My belief's regarding knowledge and art align with the recently emerging creation models and sociopolitical theories of intellectual property ownership held by various open source and free speech organizations, such as GNU. I consider the centralized sharing of ideas to be an effective method of creation. I also consider all knowledge and art to belong to the public. Of course, those who discover knowledge or create art deserve credit and reward for doing so. But the knowledge and art should not "belong" to them in the medium or long term.

Attempting to be creative and productive in a solitary context is a difficult, unnatural task. Creating through dialogue automatically generates a system of intellectual accountability and motivation. I feel empowered when given the opportunity to share ideas while collaborating with others toward a common goal. Therefore, the emphasis that ITP gives to collaborative working is extremely attractive to me.

I know that I will flourish in the innovative and collaborative environment that ITP offers. My background in programming, multimedia, art, media theory, human-computer interaction, and the technology industry will make me an asset to the program. I hope I will have the opportunity to contribute to the unique and important work done at ITP.