[Reader-list] Human-Computer Oscillation

[Harwood]

I hope this is useful as a bridge between the Programmers and the 
other elites at Sarai

Human-Computer Oscillation and the need for calories.

The foundation of this report is the human sensing-system's 
contribution to the physical geography of the body: the orientation 
of the body in space, an awareness of spatial relationships and an 
appreciation of the specific qualities of different places and 
different things, both currently experienced and removed in time. The 
body's sensing systems offer important media through which space and 
time are experienced and made sense of in computer interface. Yet 
also, each sense system seems to offer its own distinctive character 
to that experience and physical geography in general. In particular 
contexts, a certain sense and specific style of operation of that 
sensing may play a dominant role in establishing geographical meaning 
and the meanings of particles of data from computer systems. Thus the 
multisensual nature of geographical experience is not even within 
interface but variable across space and time, between individuals and 
communities, between cultures and periods of time. Physical geography 
is always changing, and any general characteristics recognized are 
always specific to the need for calories and complex local economic 
and social systems arising from that need.

The human user's sensing systems express themselves within the brain 
though complex states of fluctuating voltage happening in conjunction 
with chemical processes. This electro-chemical complexity around the 
user's synapses eventually formulates itself into a symbolic-world. 
The structure and nature of this symbolic-world does not concern this 
report. It will suffice to say that one exists.
The first challenge of Interaction with an operating computer is to 
funnel this symbolic world of the user into physical actions that 
force locator devices from one state to another. The velocity and 
frequency of this force can then be monitored or measured by setting 
up constant states of voltage in the locator devices concerned. The 
fluctuations of voltage can then be used within logic gates. E.g. 
Keyboard. (Thus when the letter "K" is pressed down on the keyboard 
through the physical force of the user the voltage goes high (usually 
more then 2.4v in TTL or CMOS logic) and when released the voltage 
goes low (less then 2.4v).  This information is then logged in a 
register within the host machine).
This state of voltage is then available through the selectivity of 
software (interface) as a Basic Interaction Task (BIT). The computer 
may be preprogrammed to display this BIT on a monitor (cathode ray 
tube) by deflecting the path of three electron beams (Red, Green, 
Blue) by means of electro-magnetic coils. The path of these electrons 
is accelerated toward the phosphor-coated screen made of heated 
silicone (glass) by means of a high positive charge applied near the 
face of the tube. Typically the charge needed is 15,000 to 20,000 
volts. Eventually the electrons hit a specific grouping of phosphors 
transferring their kinetic energy into the phosphors atoms, making 
them jump to a higher quantum-energy level. In returning to their 
previous quantum levels, these excited electrons give up their extra 
energy in the form of light - usually aimed at the user's visual 
system. The user's visual system uses photo-receptors situated in the 
Ocular mechanism (eyes, with intrinsic and extrinsic eye muscles, as 
related to the vestibular organs, the head and the whole body). This 
system explores and finds convergence in the form and colour of its 
targets and the spaces in between them, thus converting the variables 
of the structure of ambient light back into complex states of 
fluctuating voltage located around the user's synapses and thus back 
into the symbolic world of the user.

This example represents here the oscillation between the user and the 
machine's complex states of fluctuating voltage. Having established a 
reliable link or oscillation. We can now move on, pulling out of this 
process a specific subject for further exploration.

Tasks

Tasks are a specific chore or duty to be done. They exist on either 
side of our oscillation and are preprogrammed by the user's or 
computer's environment. E.g. The computer has a chore or duty when 
first initialized: electricity is resisted in certain ways so as to 
make it pass down the roots of least resistance to measure other 
voltages through capacitance in order to check that its environment 
(working conditions) fit within its predefined order. The human unit, 
needing calories in order to feed the energy demands of its sensing 
systems, has the task of appropriating value that it can exchange for 
food, processing this vegetative produce, digesting it and turning it 
into complex states of fluctuating voltage.

So we have the human unit oscillating with the computer unit and both 
preprogrammed with sets of tasks. The side of the equation that 
interests us here, is how the computer recognizes a BIT in its 
oscillation with the user.

With a BIT, the use of an interactive system enters a unit of 
information that is meaningful in the context of the application. How 
large or small is such a unit? For instance, does moving a device a 
small distance enter a unit of information? Yes, if the new position 
is put to some application purpose, such as repositioning an object. 
No, if the repositioning is just one of a sequence of repositioning 
as the user moves the cursor to place it at the top of a menu item. 
Here, it is the menu item that is the unit of information.
The space between what is treated as a BIT and what is not allows for 
the objectification of a user-task.

Objectification, within this text, represents our ability to see a 
thing as different from ourselves. This in turn allows us to explore 
and transform the thing at a spatial range from ourselves, seemingly 
leading to a sense of ownership of the thing (not necessarily 
individual ownership but ownership in general mediated through 
present economic cultures). This separation of our selves and object 
is achieved through a multitude of ritual practices, software 
interface being just one.

So it can be said: the user's objectification of content in computer 
interface relies on the selective translation of user force through 
locator devices. (This selective translation is of course predefined 
by the programmer's need for calories and the relative social and 
cultural parameters in which this need arises.) Software (interface) 
requires the recognition of BITs on the part of the user in order to 
allow the user to objectify content within the interface.

Example locator device: mouse.

Locator devices are either absolute or relative. Absolute devices 
such as a graphics tablet have a frame of reference, or origin and 
report position relative to that point of origin. An absolute device 
can be used to specify an arbitrary large change in position without 
contact with the tabletop.  This allows it the ability to transcribe 
things that are already objectified into the computer (such as 
tracing a plan or a drawing). Relative devices on the other hand such 
as the mouse, trackballs and velocity-control joysticks have no 
absolute origin and report only changes from former positions. 
Relative devices cannot readily be used for transcribing real world 
coordinates into the computer.

The Mouse

The mouse having no absolute origin is a relative device containing 
two states at the top level (working and not-working) and two 
parameters (movement and button-states),each containing one further 
variable of (time-in-between-states).
E.g. Top-level-states-of-a-mouse (not-working [nothing], working 
[variables-of-a-working-mouse ([movement, timing-of-movement], 
[button-states, timing-in-between-button-states]])

The objectification of content within interface (a user-task) in a 
mouse input can be carried out through the repression of both:
the timing-of-movement variable
and 		the timing-in-between-button-states variable
and 	filtering the button-states by mapping rectangles of interest 
through the movement variable.

Expressed:
repeat while  <movement> happening
If (<movement> within Mapped-Rectangle-of-Interest ) then
  	if(<button-states> = down)then
do-something-useful
end if
end if
end repeat


This allows the user to experience selection of content in the 
interface outside of a continuous time-frame. The repression of the 
time-based variables of the mouse allows the user to feel in charge 
of a process and not incidental to one that is already happening. The 
next step to objectification in an application interface is to only 
record those movement events that are significant to the interface 
and nothing else.  This is done in a windowing environment by using 
icons to represent files, applications and menus.

This objectification in interface allows the user to see software 
structures as part of a fixed, environment that is external from 
themselves. The production and exchange of value within capitalism 
requires such a process takes place.  The user's contact-time with an 
application is made into something more definite, constant, or in 
other words, an object. We then objectify it, i.e. replace the 
process (the entire subjective and 'objective' range of the user's 
contact-time with the application) by another object.

Objectification within this model is a kind of meta-system 
transition. Normally in a meta-system transition we create a new 
process which controls the old one(s). In objectification the new 
process controls not the old ones, but the objects representing these 
processes.
The most common form of objectification is definition. In interface 
design for instance, algorithms are defined as computational 
processes that we expect to be executed in a certain fixed manner by 
the user.

Having established a reliable model of one specific aspect of 
objectification in interface design the report reader may like to 
consider the following questions.

Q: What are the consequences for the appropriation of value within 
capitalist systems if we interfere with this objectification process 
within interface design?

Q: Having established that the selective reading of the user's input 
data through the mouse helps lead to objectification of content 
within interface, what happens if we create software that acts on all 
possible variables within mouse interaction?


Harwood at scotoma.org

Tel  +31 (0) 20 365 9334




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