out there, to work, sometimes to relax, to see the world
I will be later this week in Toronto, Canada in the Future Play conference: http://www.futureplay.org/
There is also a conference blog, where abstract of my keynote is now available: http://futureplayconference.blogspot.com/2007/10/frans-myr-keynote.html
See you all there!
Joensuu, Tuusula massacre
Originally uploaded by FransBadger
I am today and tomorrow visiting Joensuu university on the Chancing Views in Technology seminar; pictured is the early morning in Joensuu market square. – Yesterday the news of Tuusula school shootings caught me in the airport. The entire day was spent in deepening feelings of sadness and shock. Today there are already news being published how the Internet is responsible for the massacre, or the shooter games (the school shooter was a fan of shooter games as well as real guns, and übermench style of extreme philosophies). I cannot but just repeat what I have said many times: please care of people in the real life, and they are also better capable of making positive use of the virtual worlds. If the society and people near to a mentally sick person abandon him, there is not much a virtual reality can do to him.
Skellefteå teaching visit
Originally uploaded by FransBadger
Air travel in practice has relatively poor effectivity ratio: for one hour of flight you might spend one hour to get to the airport, one hour in queues, suffering security check humiliations, and then perhaps spend three more hours waiting in another airport for your connecting flight. And then back through all those steps again, in reverse.
Today I have been in Sweden, as a visiting lecturer in Skellefteå, at their Luleå Tekniska Universitet’s Game Design degree programme. An interesting blend of technical university and art school, they are now moving in to provide game design education, and many researchers from our team are providing their expertise on various subjects as visiting lecturers. My offering was focused on some conceptual and theoretical fundamentals of Game Studies, and largely based on my forthcoming textbook on this subject. Now — just to be home already. Weather forecast promises snowfall to Finland tomorrow. That would be a welcome change in this darkness.
Conference in National Museum
Originally uploaded by FransBadger
Today will be spent in Helsinki, in the National Museum where I am presenting a short talk about games, virtual worlds and what these developments in digital culture could matter to museums and other institutions of cultural heritage. Rather than just focusing on ‘canonised culture’ (traditional national treasures and art of the analogue world), I am also calling for initiatives to maintain the digital memories, artifacts and some significant virtual environments for the future generations. (Pictured: some canonised art by Gallen-Kallela in the museum entrance lobby dome.) Link to conference pages: http://www.accessibility2007.info/
Amsterdam, again
Originally uploaded by FransBadger.
The remaiming PTS2007 schedule was messed up by the chartered bus missing in the morning. I finally joined a group who made it from Haarlem to Amsterdam individually with busses and train. No longer having time to visit the Holland Casino that was in my program, I find myself making it by foot through the Amsterdam centre, towards the Rijksmuseum where our airport return trip should eventually kick off. normally I would love playing the tourist, taking a close look at the historical sights, like the Koninklijk Paleis (pictured). But I am simply tired of all this travelling, homesick to get back to Laura and our baby, and even if the remaining trip goes according to schedule (which I am starting to doubt), it will be something like 3 am in Sunday morning before I am home again. Oh dear. — Oh yes, there also seems to be something wrong with mail-to-Flickr and WordPress integration; my Tokyo and Holland posts have gone missing and I have had to repost them all from a PC. Yes, home would be a great thing.
Addiction seminar in Haarlem
Originally uploaded by FransBadger.
The panelists (pictured) discuss social responsibility issues related to alcohol problems in the PTS2007 seminar taking place today in Haarlem, The Netherlands. I find myself in this seminar to discuss the various addiction or control problem issues of digital games, virtual worlds and online gambling. A rather broad and troublesome field, but it is also interesting to test approaching game like it would be a drug, and see what we could then say about the future of ‘ludic society’ if we take games’ holding powers more seriously. And whether they should be taken seriously.
Back home
Originally uploaded by FransBadger.
Sunday morning, it is raining in Tokyo. It has been great week, but now: it is time to go home.
DiGRA 2007 underway
Originally uploaded by FransBadger.
In her opening speech Tanya Krzywinska, DiGRA President (speaking in Tokyo University Yasuda Auditorium, pictured) described this year’s games research conference as “Godzilla” — which it in a sense is; even the proceedings book is almost 900 pages! The week is well underway, and today, in one of Thursday’s last sessions I have also my own paper presentation. Continue reading “DiGRA 2007 underway”
They start it small
Originally uploaded by FransBadger.
This year’s Tokyo Game Show (TGS) was bigger than ever; with its expected 180 000 visitors, 1 550 booths and 54 000 square meters of show-floor space, this is certainly as loud as games cultures get today. No moment of rest for a gamer, even if personally I’d prefer to sit down in somewhere more quiet and focus in only a game or two, rather than drifting inside a torrent of visitors past hundreds screens, demos, show sessions, all shouting over each other. But, hey — quickly taken, it was fun!
More pictures among my Flickr travel photos, see: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fransmayra/1426977592/
Edit: I did read later (from The Asahi Shimbun, 29-30 Sept. weekend edition) that the total number of exhibitors was 217 and number of visitors 193 040 — wow!
I updated my travel schedule and listed also the web pages for those conferences and seminars:
Note that the dates are my travel dates, and thus not necessarily those of the entire conference or seminar duration. See you somewhere around this globe this fall!
frans goes blog 
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