POKE for PalmOS (website link)
"personal companions" as they're affectionately termed. Elitist by intent,
POKE requires Palm OS and a compatible handheld organizer to experience,
emphasizing: the process of downloading and sharing, the priveleges of
access, the virtues of portability and privacy, the thrill of infrared
transmission (beaming) between users, and most of all -- the basic instinct
to touch.
POKE is a 1-bit monochromatic
interface, to tap, touch or poke, as you
please, with your nose, toes, fingers, or any probing object you can imagine.
POKE is reminiscent of yesterday's mobile edutainment toys, from
Speak'n'Spell to Gameboy, that turn tactility into fun. Like its commercial
counterparts, POKE is programmed to respond with rewards and rejections
that reinforce desired behaviors. Therefore, don't be fooled by POKE's
playful
nature and poor resolution. In the tradition of interactive games, electronic
or
otherwise, POKE requires delicate handling and attention to detail. As
the old
adage goes: practice makes perfect.
Gregory Chapuisat
has taken full advantage of the convergence of 'touch'
and 'tech' by developing POKE for Palm OS organizers. POKE reminds us
that although the acronym PDA has been popularized to stand for "Personal
Digital Assistant", it once meant "Public Display of Affection".
- Joshua
Trees
(b.1972, new york city, us)
— Generalist
— BFA, Art Center College of Design, Pasadena
— currently lives and (works) in
San Francisco
curator@voyd.com
