project turned out pretty well, as it achieved 99% of what I wanted to accomplish.
After it was finished I went back and changed the moving viewfinder image so it would move with the mouse. So you wouldn't have to drag the spotlight, just move the mouse.
It worked, but flash cannot change the position of the mouse (because of security measures), so it could only work for one level. Because it needed to change the position to restart the game.

wednesday

-fixed river
-added questions at the end of map #3 to entice the user to play again
-completed model signage last night

===

Final comments:
"Keep off the grass"

My project explores the factors that determine the chosen paths of players. With completely free movement the player can go wherever they choose in the three different levels.
I explored player paths with different routes, dead ends, loops, obstacles, and perceived danger elements, and tried to design the paths so the user would run into as many dead ends as possible by constantly changing these systems.
The landscape was modelled in 3Ds max and the rest was drawn and coded in Macromedia Flash.

tuesday

done:
-Enlarged to bigger resolution
-added more graphics
-made all the buttons work
-fixed background
-decided not to have sound

still have to do:
-add more layers to river
-"keep off the grass" signage (print + create + finish today)
-writeup (for end of 3rd level)
-writeup (summary of project)

monday, last week

I did some further testing with the navigation, and found that it is easy enough to navigate without using the centre. This means I can add some functionality like buttons which users can interact with. One example is if the user comes to a dead end, they can now have the option to click in the centre view and restart.

I'll have to make everything bigger to fit the bigger resolution (as I had to make it in 1280x800).
Buttons functions must be done of the bigger version.

1) 1280x800 > 1600x1200
2) add extra graphics (extra trees/shadows/etc)
3) button functionality
4) replace 3ds max bg with one of more quality
5) tidy up
6) signage ("Keep off the grass")

success sound on point B + moves to next maze/puzzle
dead ends go back to start (+ change path slightly to confuse)

3ds max build + systems > networks + level cration tips

Constructed the landscape in 3ds max, turned out well.
Not sure how to texture/shade/export it though.


So now I'm drawing up the bridges/trees/rocks/etc






systems > networks
-The system of paths start to intertwine creating a network of paths.
-The user is now handling multiple decisions.
Which way do I go at the fork?
Do the decorative objects hint at the right path?
Is there are a pattern in which paths are the right one?
Do I click the dead end to restart, or do I "cheat" by backtracking? Is it cheating?
Is this a maze or puzzle? Is backtracking allowed?
Should I navigate away from the path to explore further?
Is there anything beyond the path?
Does the path change during play?
Is the "fog" or "darkness" make the actually path any harder, or is it just simulated danger?

Level creation Tips
From source:
"Weenies" - Disney term.
Landmarks that help the player navigate + give the player an indication of places they will be going.
ex. Castle in Disneyland
Make sure they are unique landmarks, use shape, colour, lighting, texture/etc to make them stand out.
Two of mine would be the starting arrow and the shrine at point B. Both on the top layer.

Variety is good
Mixing up the "correct" path to take.

Perceived danger is more fun than real
My fog and darkness is an example of perceived danger.

project flash test

- coded via mouse controls, as it feels more natural movement (rather than only isometric)
- maximum possible dimensions in flash are (2880 x 2880 px)
- maximum dimensions to fit to the screen for display(1600 x 1200) (maximised screen)
- view finder MC needs to be 4 times the size as the background
- finish point needs to be visible to give user motivation
- is it possible to click buttons in the inside view finder (not atm because centre is alpha = 0%)
I still want the user to drag by the centre, but make it possible option to click 'signage' in map. But I doubt I need to implement it. As it is possible to zoom in/out via right click, and since it is vector, will retain quality.

I have a test completed, but I can't get blogger to upload the swf file.
I will upload elsewhere and link it when I get time.

buttons needed:
- return view finder to start point (the following buttons will also have this functionality)
- show background 1 (pathways)
- show background 2 (obstacles)
- show background 3 (signage)
- show background 4 (colours)
- show background 5 (combination)
I will aim for three backgrounds (same setting (but different paths)) and if time permits draw up more backgrounds. Will evaluate after 3D model, and after 1 background has been completed.
Put these along the top left as that is where most western menus are situated.

For backgrounds:
pathways, trees/bushes, rocks, bridges, rivers/streams, different textures (grass/dirt/etc), lights, mountains/hills, tree stump, buildings, building remnants, tree logs, gates, caves, ladders, stepping stones, torches, wharf, ruins...
Will need to draw the paths free hand, it would be time consuming to build in 3ds max. Can enlarge/shrink the other obstacles to simulate perspective.

Need a simple visual hint to user that x point is "bad" and cannot continue.
Red gradients, lack of continuing path, skull/bones.

draft project

3D landscape mock up with several 2D overlays showing different pathways/obstacles/signage/colours/etc

1) Sketch some 3D landscape plans.
2) When finalised, produce some elevations and plan views to speed up 3D modeling.
3) Export images of final model.
4) Use one or more as a base layer, and add new layers with paths/obstacles/etc
5) Final project produced on screen at the moment.

Which view of the default model will be the base?
plan view (with contours)
+ Alternate routes (forks/choices) easily viewed
- less interesting visually
elevation
+
- less interesting visually
- hard to see different paths, would have to be similar to LBP with "layers" of depth
- more trial and error via mechanics of user movement
3D
+ Can easily view the majority of the design. (perhaps skew the overall design for this purpose)
- Layout would need to show point A and B clearly in view. Isometric perspective with point B on the right.
- Views of alternate routes might be blocked by obstacles. Obstacles could be flat (water/lava/etc)

I think 3D is the right way to go, with a high point B in clear view. Possibly with contour lines. More interesting visually, and fits the requirements of the brief better than 2D views. And more enjoyable for me to create.

Not sure about adding music/sound effects, it might modify the speed a user would move through the setting. For example scary music/atmosphere, a user would move slower and be more careful. Upbeat music would make the user progress faster.

board games = moving through a 2D map/space
Research some!

What are more things that effect a players path?
(pathways, obstacles, signage, colours...)

stuff to do:
- flash coding, moving MC via mouse
- 3D model basic landscape
- reset button for flash MC/view
-

conceptual ideas

I like the idea of how people interact in the space and what effects them while they move.

getting from point A to B
how to track people while they are doing this? (like QA in video games? How are the popular player paths recorded?)

some factors:
-pathways
-obstacles (rocks, foliage)
-signage ("keep off the grass")
-colours (warm vs cool, light vs shade)

how is the path people choose different when these are changed? Even though it would be the same space.
re-using the same space/map in different ways.
Find some examples of this...

-building plan conceptual overlays to show different approaches.
-layers in photoshop/flash/illustrator/etc
-multiple paths from x to y in multiplayer game maps (usually built around a central object)

model made from cardboard/paper, viewed through clear filters/layers somehow.

Would people take the left or right fork in the road? etc
alternate paths = choice/decisions. Would slow the user even if the two paths were the same, even if just momentarily.

tessellation/geometric style origami
origami using light
landscape piece
window art using lighting

Source

Tracking the movement of people in indoor environments is useful for a variety of applications including elderly care, study of shopper behavior in shopping centers, security etc.

interactive art: "You are here"

"You Are Here tracks and displays the paths of visitors traveling through a large public space. The system displays the aggregate paths of the last two hundred visitors along with blobs representing the people currently being tracked. When viewers approach the work, they can display the live video image with the paths of currently tracked visitors superimposed:"

Cabspotting

Cabspotting traces San Francisco's taxi cabs as they travel throughout the Bay Area. The patterns traced by each cab create a living and always-changing map of city life. This map hints at economic, social, and cultural trends that are otherwise invisible. The Exploratorium has invited artists and researchers to use this information to reveal these "Invisible Dynamics."

Using the data, the map builds up with the routes of the cabs, which can be put into an interactive map or a time lapse.

Source
On tracking shoppers:

To gather the data eventually used in the Wharton research, PathTracker RFID tags were placed on the bottom of every grocery cart in a supermarket in the western U.S. According to Sorensen, these tags emit a signal every five seconds that is received by receptors installed at various locations throughout the store. Once collected, the signals are used to chart the position of the grocery cart and record its route through the entire store. This data is translated into the computerized, Etch-a-Sketch-like drawings of shopping cart paths that Sorensen presented several years ago to Fader.

A study of the "linkage between travel and purchase behavior seems a logical next step," the Wharton researchers note. "Linking specific travel patterns to individual purchase decisions may lead to an improved understanding of consumer motivations for purchasing certain items, and can shed light on the complementarity and substitutability of goods in ways that a more traditional 'market basket' analysis cannot capture. Further exploration of travel behavior, independent of purchase, also seems another promising route for future research.

I also downloaded a podcast featuring a level designer interview, but didn't really help on the level design side.

block ideas

-How people interact with blocks/structures (statues/displays)
-How people navigate within blocks/structures (buildings/mazes)
-how a player interacts with the environment (level design)
-organic vs man-made structures
-efficiency of man-made vs computer AI grids
-how blocks can fit and work together (games (puzzles, rubik's cube, tetris, transformers)
-functional compact blocks designed for a certain function (kitchenware, boxes, wall-e)
-blocks can save space, as no space is wasted (lego factory (Interesting how much of the factory is automated))
-point A to B (falling dominoes, system of blocks)
-early block structures (pyramids)
-linear vs open paths

game boards

Other works that deal with systems and collaboration

systems
A group of interacting, interrelated, or interdependent elements forming a complex whole.

collaboration
Working together.

Example 1:

From source

Collaborative piece (10'x6') painted outside by anyone who wished to participate.
The system was the limited colour palette of black, white & red.


Thoughts: From the website, it sounded like the original creators didn't try to control the outcome/quality. It seems to have worked out in this instance.

Example 2:
Production of a movie/show/game/comic, where artists, writers, programmers, etc work together to create a unified piece.

Thoughts: Works out most of the time when everyone is controlled by the director, as opposed to different processes. This may be a example where it only works out 10% of the time.

Example 3:
From Improv Everywhere
Frozen Grand Central




"On a cold Saturday in New York City, the world’s largest train station came to a sudden halt. Over 200 Improv Everywhere Agents froze in place at the exact same second for five minutes in the Main Concourse of Grand Central Station. Over 500,000 people rush through Grand Central every day, but today, things slowed down just a bit as commuters and tourists alike stopped to notice what was happening around them."

One of many pre-planned collaborative artworks from Improve Everywhere.

Thoughts: Interesting use of technology creating creating live performances. Entertaining.

Example 4:
They Rule
Allows you to make connections between directors, companies and institutions.

Presents the data in a easy to follow visual links, which are also easy to modify.

Thoughts: Nice tool. Could be used in other applications. It would be interesting to see the code behind it.

Example 5:
Subway map

Complex 3D Rail systems displayed in simplified 2D map.
Easy to read due to the reduced curves in the tracks, clear coloured tracks and text.

Thoughts: Would be hard to make this any more simple. Which means this is a highly effective way of displaying rail systems.

Seek

From source:

"Seek," a computer-controlled robotic environment that, at least in theory, cybernetically reconfigured itself in response to the behavior of the gerbils that inhabited it.

It was another AI-inspired programming effort that hardly reached its goals, except on metaphorical level: living gerbils had been placed on a glass-caged arena with aluminium building blocks, and a computer-controlled robot arm operating from above. The system, engaged in arranging the blocks according to pre-programmed schemes was supposed to respond “intelligently” to the “noise” created by the gerbils, bumping on the blocks, etc.

From source:

The Architecture Machine Group he headed contributed Seek (featured on the cover of the Software catalog), which housed the above mentioned violence-prone gerbils in an environment of metal blocks. These blocks were light enough to be rearranged by the gerbils’ movements. Seek reacted to the modifications the gerbils made by stacking the blocks into more grid-like versions of the gerbils’ “designs,” using a movable electromagnet.

Thoughts:
It would be nice to see it in action, as it is hard to imagine how this would work. I wonder how well AI programmed in 1970 can respond to the rearrangement of the blocks, and how it worked with the 3D aspect of the blocks (towers), and how much the gerbils moved these blocks.
I'm guessing the blocks are the system and the collaboration is how the gerbils and the robot AI work together.

Possible intentions of this work:
- If computer controlled grid-like arrangements were more effective than those controlled by organic creatures.
- If AI/computer precision helped or hindered the creatures.
- How well the gerbils/AI could cooperate.
- How the gerbils would respond to the more "efficient" designs.
- A commentary on the possible future of architecture and potential of AI