NewTheoryOrg
age is for collecting ideas about how/what the next version of the website should look like.
I would like something to be generated on the front page that depends on characteristics of the visitor.
The first idea I have is for a box in one of the top corners that contains some iterations of a 1-D cellular automata. I want the rules to be taken from the last bits of the visitor's IP. These boxes should be quick to generate and don't require java or anything like that. Each visitor has a particular rule set, and thus a particular kind of behavior, but we can have the initial conditions be randomly decided so that they can get a different picture on each visit. If we want consistency, then we could pre-generate images for each possible rule. This would be nicest to the web server, but i'm not too concerned about that. However, the question of consistency is a valid one. Any opinions?
Since each visitor has a particular ruleset, It would be nice to set the intial conditions to how many times they've visited. SO - for the first visit to theory we begin with x condition, then x+1, x+2...ect. for each sequential time they return. I guess this is kind of like the second idea above. That way there is a uniquness of identity but with a history thats non-repetitive. On a side note; I feel kind of strange equating people to automata, but maybe thats just too much art education lashing out.
Id also like to decrease the size of the side bar, it seems too strong a presence on the page. How would anyone feel about a banner bar? Same function, just more discreet.
And is it time for a new moth? Really, do we need a mascot? Mothy, mothy, mothy, moth....
I like the moth! -s
The moth was never meant to be a mascot. The home image was just something I created on a cold winter day in the old Branciforte house. It was supposed to give some sort of eye candy to the front page. Look at the old index to see what the old theory front page used to look like. Now, imagine it without any image. :) Though I like it, I personally don't identify Theory.org with its front image.
As for equating people with automata, that's not the point of the automata image. The automata image is supposed to be a representation of how a visitor is effecting the site. Think of it a bit like one might think of the virtual garden project. As Jon has put so well, it's amazing to think that when you click a link you cause the head of a hard drive to move somewhere else. The automata is generated to reflect
- The visitor affects the server (represented by its content).
- The visitor is (usually) unique amongst other visitors.
--j
so.....where are we putting the icons again???
(by the way how do i change the style of my edits...like the font??)
dybbsy
Last edit: Fri, 14 Jul 2006 13:47:31 -0700 (WikiWord) Revisions: 6