This is a half-sized view of the touch - sensitive home screen
from the "Who is Marshall McLuhan" kiosk. Touched, the
icons play movies, audio, photos, books, biography and interviews
with Marshall McLuhan. Untouched, the kiosk randomly plays the
content for walkers-by.
In the 1960's, Marshall McLuhan researched, wrote, and
lectured brilliantly about the essential character of all media
and their effects on people. Today, his insights and philosophies
can help us understand the power of multiple media in an emerging
digital culture.
This interactive piece had its roots as a simple HyperCard stack
developed by Mark Beaulieu for his students at San Francisco
State University's Multimedia Studies Program to explore
McLuhan's contribution as a way to define the aesthetics of
interactive digital media. For this kiosk installation, Beaulieu
deepened the content and design to allow people to read, hear,
and see McLuhan in thought and action through text, audio, and
video clips from various sources, including the Marshall McLuhan
Center on Global Communications in Toronto, Canada.
This Miko Plynth kiosk, designed by King Products Inc., was
donated by Apple Computer Inc. for the entire run of The Medium
at Theater Artaud in San Francisco, April 26-May 7, 1995. The
hardware is similar to an Apple PowerBook 540c with the addition
of a touch-sensitive screen. The interactive software program was
written in Allegiant SuperCard.
Special Thanks to:
Mark Wu, Apple Computer, Inc.
Dana Morgan, Digital Dreams
Don King, King Products, Inc.
Nelson Thall, Marshall McLuhan Center on Global Communications
Chris Okon, Okon New Media
Mark Beaulieu, Digital Lantern
Timothy O'Brien, Modus Ensemble
A web version of McLuhan's teachings at Mark Beaulieu's site.