blacksteps

2007-09-10T01:35:00.000-07:00

WELCOME FARM PEOPLE .....but.....
this blog is ancient history...kaput...owari....c'est finis....finished....a nearly empty shell..you are welcome to look among the ruins for spare change and canned food, but if you are really interested in seeing what I am up to, YOU ARE MOST WARMLY INVITED TO:

http://www.blacksteps.multiply.com/

general insanity (this site goes well with pajamas and your favorite malt beverage)

http://www.mgkeducation.multiply.com/This site is a serious online notebook, devoted to the software I am guiding along, the MGK-the multipurpose game making kit. I will be using the MGK at the La Salle Rojak presentation.If you are interested in creating 3D games, artworks or movies, get in touch....

http://www.mgkedges.multiply.com/This is mainly a collection of machinima movies.

http://www.therefrigerator.net/

Poke around in the refrigerator and click on Popwars or the music section and see if you recognize anyone.

http://www.unseenguest.com/

Amith promised to provide me with musical support, but then his European tour came up...darn that European tour!...

and if you are really interested in something cool, google "Bioneers"

Thanks for your interest...SB

2006-07-03T09:39:00.000-07:00

Updating and going through boxes....design realized by Roy Chan at Hybrid HK

2006-06-16T18:05:00.000-07:00

As the CDK has an important relationship with models, I have learned a bit, not just about models, but how important the communication is between modelmakers and the CDK programmer. I have started this list as a means of allowing the modelmaker and the programmer to identify differences before they become a problem.
It is not complete, by any means, for high-end games with huge budgets and many teams.
However, I hope it is a starting point for CDK level projects. I look forward to hearing suggestions.
MODEL MAKING PROJECT SHEET
Company:
Project name:
Project number:
Project leader/Project team/contact info:
Model name:
Model(s) to be completed by:
Model use:
Description: Drawings/sketches/photos:
First importation test:
Trials:
Debugging schedule:
Detail: hi, medium low:
Texture/Skin/Mesh information:
Polygon count:
Engine to be used:
Operating system:
Engine supports vertex color: yes/no
Model making software to be used:
Drawings/sketches/photos:
First importation test:
Trials/ debugging schedule:
Detail: hi, medium low:
Texture/Skin/Mesh information:
Polygon count:
Game engine to be used:
Operating system:
Physics engine to be used:
Programmer/Modelmaker testing schedule:
Engine supports vertex color: yes/no
Model making software to be used:
Who is responsible for editing model parameters?
Contact info: Model interacts with other models?
Notes on editing parameters:
Who is responsible for animations?
Model interacts with other models?
If so, describe interaction:
Number of animations:
Animation to be completed by:
First animation test:
Animation trial/debugging schedule:
Who is responsible for editing model parameters?
Contact info: Model interacts with other models?
Notes on editing parameters:
Who is responsible for animations?
Model interacts with other models?
If so, please describe interaction Number of animations:
Animation to be completed by:
First animation test:
Animation trial/debugging schedule:
Scaling issues
Examples
Finished models belong to:
Notes:

2006-03-18T00:38:00.000-08:00

Hello!

If you have any questions about these workshops, please contact me at blacksteps@gmail.com

There is also more detailed information at www.instinc.com (Look in the class/workshop section)

2006-02-09T19:24:00.000-08:00

Blacksteps is pleased to announce a partnership with the British artist David Severn. Mr. Severn's distinctive works are in numerous collections and have often been used in Japanese advertising and children's books.
The joint venture will involve the development of characters and worlds to be used for virtual learning experiences, art, education and advertising.
The first project is an alphabet now being tested in primary schools for use in student-created spelling games.
More work of Mr. Severn can be seen at:
www.davidsevern.cjb.net

2005-12-04T00:47:00.000-08:00

Video Activity: Editing work continues on the Storytellers' Conference videos.

The weekend was full of documentation: a housewarming and a furniture showcase, both events featuring different nighttime views of Singapore. One video will have a shot or two of downtown Singapore as seen from the Holland Village area and the other will show snippets of skyscrapers and Christmas lights as seen from Odeon Towers, across the street from Raffles Hotel.
Most interesting though, was the shoot on Friday morning at the International Conference on Computers in Education. Working with Michael Hanning from Studiocode, a lecture was recorded, coded and analyzed on the spot and was ready to be uploaded onto the internet within minutes of the finished lecture. Additionally, a clip was loaded into the CDK as soon as the video team returned to the blacksteps booth. Watching the Studiocode software in action was very interesting. Michael wrote short scene descriptions on the spot. As an occasional editor, I assumed he would only be writing down phrases and headings from the speakers presentation. He did do this, but he also described scenes in terms of the speaker's body language-gestures, facial expressions,movements etc.
Studiocode is used by educators to study and label classroom activity so it is advantageous to describe scenes in terms of body language. This also reflects Studiocode's roots as a video technology originally developed to help athletes coaches and trainers better analyze the bodies of athletes as well as team formations and activities.
The keynote speech by Jeremy Roschelle, the Director of the Center for Technology in Learning, SRI International was filled with studies and examples of how teacher/student/computer approaches to learning are being used to improve testing scores. "The democratization of mathematics" was a great phrase he used. The term was originally used by Arthur Jaffe (I think..I just googled and his name seems correct...Later I will check the tape, but my player is now at the editing house). Great phrase..The democratization of mathematics.
Also, it was quite coincidental that Mr. Roschelle had previously written about a system of analyzing and labeling video data ....in 1989, before video had entered the digital world...very visionary!
As webcasting becomes more and more important, I look forward to more experiences like this. The software was flawless and the opportunities to use it are many.
www.studiocodegroup.com
the CDK in action! http://blackstepsmonjacdk.blogspot.com

2005-11-26T17:31:00.000-08:00

CDK Research: I met with Sebastian Loh from the Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. He is doing research on education and the monitoring of player's activities while they are in virtual learning experiences(VLEs). We had an interesting discussion.

Movie Activity:I was nicely surprised to see the group photo taken at the conclusion of Ted Perkin's seminar on film financing. The course is excellent and highly recommended to anyone serious about finding out how Hollywood really works. Visit http://www.conquistadehollywood.com/englishhomepage.htm and see if you can recognize anyone in the middle of the back row.

2005-11-24T05:19:00.000-08:00

Blacksteps was initially established to promote, distribute and create products with the Monja Kids Creative Development Kit.To see the latest in regards to the CDK, please check the blacksteps/cdk blog.
However, blacksteps is involved in many other projects in the fields of art, education and entertainment. Recent projects include:
-video and photo documentation of the Asian Storytellers' Conference and Showcase (a few photos can be seen at www.flickr.com/photos/81053308@N00/ )

-work on CD artwork for a project related to Soul Coughing

-intense scriptwriting work with my writing partner Philip Morgan, so that we can complete our feature-length script by our day-after-CNY deadline.

-research and pre-production for my short film, A Day at the Races, which will be distributed by KAD Entertainment www.kad4u.com

-rehearsals and meetings for a short film (film-not video) to be shot in February.The film is to be directed by Boo Junfeng, an award-winning director working with Joey Lam, Fran Borgia, Yang and Shawn Lee.

-discussions and planning with Amith, one half of the unseen guest.(www.unseenguest.com). I am hoping to document the making of the unseen guest's second album. Like the first, it will feature Indian traditional instruments played by musicians in Amith's hometown of Calicut in Kerala, India.
These guys are great and I was honored to have been asked to do the cover artwork, assisted by the beautiful and talented Tracy Bay at Caffeine Media.
I mentioned traditional instruments, but the unseen guest is not world music...part blues, part Irish melodies, part Indian travel journal...a unique musical expression of life, to put it simply.

-preparation for the blacksteps booth at the International Conference on Computers in Education to be held next week( www.icce2005.servy.net/). I am especially looking forward to meeting Sebastian Loh, who runs the Instructional Gaming Forumhttp://igforum.us

-meetings with teachers to brainstorm for a virtual learning experience to be started next week.

-Judging and attending an awards ceremony for Panasonic's Kids News Network. The theme was 'culture' and the other judges must have agreed with me that the story on Chinese Opera in today's world was outstanding-it won in several categories.
At the awards ceremony we also discussed the seminar on digital photography that I will teach next year. An old friend of Compudia(the CDK IP rights holder) was there and our happy reunion continued later in the day at the opening of the Star Wars exhibition at the Science Center.

-Construction and refinement of a virtual model to be used for education purposes.

Plus the usual....

2005-11-07T01:38:00.000-08:00

The official logo. It was created with 4D design, who are behind the refrigerator: www.therefrigerator.net In the refrigerator's music section are unusual music videos created by Stephen Black for Margaret Explosion, Personal Effects and Pete LaBonne.

2005-11-07T01:04:00.000-08:00

Blacksteps Pte. Ltd .

Blacksteps was established in 2005, initially to promote and distribute the Monja Kids Creative Development Kit as an educational tool to develop and encourage creativity.
In May of 2005, an exclusive distribution license was granted to Elchemi Education (www.elchemi.net), who also distribute educational software for Microsoft, Adobe and Apple.
Working with Elchemi in Singapore as well as with schools in Japan, Hong Kong and the United States, Blacksteps is establishing the CDK as a tool for developing creativity and creating customized learning experiences (also referred to as serious gaming).
The exciting results of these experiences have led to many new ideas and product possibilities.

In addition to the CDK and digital media projects, Blacksteps also:

-is an authorized agent for the licensing of the Monja Kids characters

-is the exclusive worldwide agent for a virtual project featuring characters created by the artist David Severn

-is involved in all aspects of movie creation, including scriptwriting, direction, art direction and music co-ordination

-is the agent and managerial office for the fine art and editorial photography of Stephen Black

-is the agent for scripts written by Stephen Black, as well as by Stephen Black with various partners.
A Day at the Races, a short film set in Singapore is currently in pre-production.