Final Year Studio - Research - Data Visualisation - Crank the Web

Image courtesy of http://www.coin-operated.com/, originally uploaded by Jimbo (Alan James Wellock).

As my idea involves the idea of 'bandwidth' digitally, physically and metaphorically, I need to look at work that has challanged the transfer speed and in turn restriction of information. One such project is 'Crank the Web' created by Coin Operated. It allows the user to browse the Internet but makes them physically 'crank' the bandwidth and data speed at which the webpage is received. As shown above users type in a URL on the screen, hit the 'Enter' key and the Internet window opens. The wepage they require then travels through a buffer before displaying on the screen, byte by byte. The user turns the crank to increase the data speed and bandwidth which is also displayed on the screen, making text, images and sounds appear at various rates depending on the speed of the crank.

This project directly attacks the role of the user and the Internets promise of instant information. It combines the mechanical 'romanticism' of analog interaction with todays common 'click' digital telecommunication technology. This in a sense widens the 'Associative Bandwidth' of the medium as the user gets to touch, feel and control the information itself, much like a sculptor does. It is a very 'witty' project and potrays a 'real world' feel which I hope to replicate in my final peice.

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