NM Magazine 2015

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About New Media

What does this program entail?

New Media Staff

Young & Free Checking Spokestor

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Congratulations to Midcoast FCU

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Opportunity Maine

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What the New Media Department teachers love most about capstone night

Know Your Intern Story about Kevin and his role as an intern

Seniors & Their Projects

Check out some of the futures most innovating and creative projects that emerge from 4 years studying New Media

Capstone Night Photos

Friends, family, and students of all majors come to check out New Media Capstone night in support

Alumni

What are remember

University of Maine Graduation

Dates and times of the Univeristy of Maine graduation

MidCoast FCU recently recieved the honor of a Diamond Award at our CUNA Conference in Las Vegas 2015!

College affordability program for individuals who have earned a college degree in Maine and live and work in state. Eligable for student loan payback

Seniors in college and other young adults prepare to step into our societies version of ‘adult’ world quicker than they anticipate.

Are they prepared? Were you? What do you wish you could go back and tell your 21-22 year old self?

Amy Collinsworth

-If you enjoy reading, especially about positive and happy activities going on in your community, then try reading some of the other magazines created by Brewer FCU! www.issuu.com/brewerfcu

-Enjoy reading from you phone, tablet, computer, whatever medium you choose!

-Share with family and friends on facebook, let them read all about your success!

editor letter

It seems so long ago when I graduated from UMO in 2012. I remember college was some of the hardest years of my life. But after finally getting into the real world, and finding a job I truly enjoy, I knew that it was all worth it!

It was my pleasure to want to go back and be an alumni, to help promote a major at the school that I know has alot of potential...

To interact with the students, and see all the new and exciting things they are producing, is really something to admire.

So get ready to read about some amazing young adults who are designing our future!

What Is New Media?

When people hear that you are majoring in ‘New Media’, their first instinct is to ask ‘What is that?’

The New Media Program at the University of Maine offers an interdisciplinary course of study in the systems, technologies, history, design, and theory of information.

The curriculum enables students to investigate the creative and applied processes essential to this area of study. It prepares students to be technologically capable, articulate thinkers, and creative media professionals.

Today, information is becoming fluid, continuous and instantly accessible. This has caused a shift in the ways in which we create, access, use, understand and distribute information. The advent and convergence of new ideas, technologies, and information systems has rekindled the relationship of the applied and creative arts and sciences. This renewed bond presents new collaborative opportunities for artists, scientists, communicators, and other creative thinkers.

Our program provides an interdisciplinary, experiential approach to learning that emphasizes creativity, critical thinking, teamwork and entrepreneurship.

DO YOU ENJOY: COMMUNITY INTERFACES -A key feature of electronic culture since the days of text-based bulletin boards, community design has only gained in importance as new media have developed, particularly with the surge in recent years of so-called Web 2.0 applications. U-Me’s ASAP program has produced a variety of innovative interfaces that serve local communities, notably the River Valley Connection Web site and calendaring system. Still Water, meanwhile, has been an innovator in new trust metrics, information filtering schemes, and remote scripting techniques (such as iFrame and AJaX-based data access). Community interfaces developed by Still Water have included online collaboration environments such as The Pool, creative outlets such as Community Comix, and social network systems such as Divvy.

EXPERIMENTAL FILM -The New Media Department sponsors an active Film Minor that draws collaborators from several departments. The foundation course Year in Film teaches students a range of techniques and formal considerations through direct experience writing scripts and behind the camera. Upper-level New Media majors play a more directorial role in film production and often go on to present their work in film festivals.

GAME DESIGN -Indigenous media are a focus of research for UMaine’s research group Still Water for network art and culture. Now that the market for electronic games has surpassed that of the movie industry, it is all the more critical to understand the appeal of this new form of storytelling as well as the ideologies hidden or overt in commercial games.

-Still Water co-director Joline Blais’s research takes a hard look at the dangers inherent in this addictive medium, but also explores its potential by envisioning games that go beyond the shoot-em-up model to investigate alternative forms of conflict resolution.

-Genre-breaking game designs that UMaine students are developing in conjunction with this research include Breakdown, whose protagonist is a five-year-old girl with the capacity to remake the world, and Eagle and Condor, a conflict resolution game based on an ancient Hopi prophecy.

INDIGENOUS MEDIA -Indigenous media are a focus of research for UMaine’s research group Still Water for network art and culture.

-To study indigenous media is to study what it means to be and become indigenous, and how and why we would reclaim and protect our ecological “commons,” both bioregional and electronic.

-Indigenous media practitioners explore new political strategies and tools, especially the power of networking like-minded communities for local/global actions and sharing of resources. Yet they also attempt to learn from the social, cultural and ecological practices of indigenous peoples, especially those in our own regions.

Conversely, Indigenous media practitioners are often committed to helping indigenous people regain and protect their sovereign rights.

-The Dawn Commons, an indigenous media project co-ordinated by Still Water co-director Joline Blais, is an open resource for community building and political action for local cultures from the St Lawrence River to the Gulf of Maine, from the tip of Provincetown to the Gaspe Gulf of Maine, from the tip of Province

town to the Gasp Peninsula. The Dawn Commons also seeks to form alliances and networks with indigenous groups across the Americas and across the world to help each other defend and protect our local communities and bioregions.

INTERACTIVE EDUCATION -The New Media Department takes the view that the future of education may be very different from the way universities work today. Apart from encouraging curricular innovations such as collaborative test-taking and interclass collaboration, the department’s research arms have explored interactive education beyond default applications like PowerPoint, which offer limited interactivity at best. The Still Water team developed The Pool as an online mechanism for sharing art, code, and text. ASAP’s numerous interactive educational systems include X-Power, a collaboration between U-Me, the University of Hawaii, and the Department of Defense Educational Activity for developing a CD-web synchronous distance learning Algebra I course; and 100 Years of Bangor History, a conceptual analysis for integrating interactive technology into the Bangor Museum Permanent Exhibit.

INTERNET ART -Art made for the Internet, known variously as online, Internet, or net art, has matured at the same breakneck pace with which digital technology itself has expanded. Less than a decade after the introduction of the first image-capable browser for the World Wide Web, online art has become a major movement with a global audience and has spawned countless critical discussions on e-mail-based communities such as the Thing, Nettime, 7-11, and Rhizome.org. Encouraged by a growing excitement over the Internet as a social and economic phenomenon, proliferating news articles and museum exhibitions have brought online art to the forefront of the discussion of art’s future in the twenty-first century. Apart from the department’s courses in Net Art and Web development, Still Water has organized conferences with many of the most respected Internet artists and curators of our time, from individuals like Christiane Paul, John Klima, and Alex Galloway to collectives like jodi.org, MTAA and 0100101110101101.org.

NETWORK STUDIES -Networks are an important focus of UMaine’s research group Still Water for network art and culture. The battle lines between network and hierarchic culture are drawn across much of today’s technological landscape--from the crackdown on filesharing networks, to the surge in open software development, to military attempts to defeat terrorism with an “army of one.”

-In all of these clashes, Still Water researchers see their role as demonstrating how networks can help us learn, create, and even survive. Networks are here to stay. We can resist them in vain, or we can embrace them, adapting them to constructive purposes like building communities or waging politics.

-Networks are proliferating and evolving so quickly in contemporary culture that it is difficult even to list their many mutations--instant messaging, blogs, wikis, mobile-phone texting, social networks, trust metrics, broadcatching. Still Water researchers investigate these forms not by conducting controlled experiments in a laboratory, but by introducing experimental ideas and applications into the uncontrolled wilderness of today’s new media ecosystem.

OPEN SOFTWARE -Open software is an important focus of research for UMaine’s research group Still Water for network art and culture.

The success of free and open computer applications such as Apache, Gnu/Linux, and Firefox proves that economies outside the capitalist model are not merely possible but also extraordinarily productive.

-Still Water co-director Jon Ippolito investigates open software both as a theoretical paradigm and as a practical method for building applications.

-Still Water projects frequently run on PHP, MySQL, and other open server languages, but Ippolito is especially interested in hybrid client-side techniques such as DHTML, object-oriented JavaScript, and remote scripting.

PHYSICAL COMPUTING -The New Media Department introduces students to physical computing early in their course of study in the interactive design sequence (x02). Students explore multichannel audio and video installations based on sensor data and other environmental inputs. Researchers use off-the-shelf programming interfaces such as Max/ MSP and Jitter but also collaborate on custom software with organizations such as IRCAM-Paris.

BIOS ON TEACHERS & COURSE CURRICULUM OVERVIEW FROM: http://newmedia.umaine.edu/index.php

New Media Staff

“They learn from us as much as we learn from them!”

Margo Lukens is a professor in the University of Maine Department of English and presently serve as chair of the Department of New Media and director of academic programs in Innovation Engineering. She teaches Innovation courses and English courses, including 18-19th Century AngloAmerican and Native American literatures. Her research interests include Wabanaki literary and storytelling history; Native American and First Nations plays and playwrights; innovation; and making whiteness visible to white people. She edited Grandchildren of the Buffalo Soldiers and other unMARGO LUKINS: NEW MEDIA CHAIR told stories: five plays by William S. Yellow Robe, Jr. English Professor & Director of *UCLA, 2009) and published with William Yellow AcademicPrograms in Innovation Roe “Two Worlds on One State,” a critical article on Engineering creating theatre with Native American communi ties. Her work has included producing and directing Native American plays on campus and in the region, and generally partcipating in as much theater as possible, given all the rest.

COURSES: Create: Innovation Engineering 1 Communicate: Innovation Engineering 2 Commercialize: Innovation Engineering 3 Experience: Innovation Engineering 4

Proposal & Project: Innovation Engineering 5 Make it Real: Innovation Engineering 6

INTERVIEW WITH

MARGO LUKENS

Mike Scott, a current teacher in New Media, had begun teaching innovation courses and asking me about two years ago, “Don’t you want to be chair of New Media”. After being on numerous chairs in the past, and not wanting to take on any more positions, I was asked to at least help in the search for a chair. I agreed to help be on the search committee, viewing portfolios, and breaking it down to really thinking about “What kind of colleague does New Media need, what strengths do we need?”

So after narrowing it down to three persons for the chance to teach at New Media, they decided on Gene Felice, and since I assisted in the interviewing and searching, I felt responsible for Gene to be comfortable in what he was coming into, and that the department was strong, and of course there were other reasons, such as being able to make connections between New Media and Innovations Engineering, and in doing so, ended up becoming the Chair of New Media! I will be chair for only two years.

The department wanted someone with experience in external reviews with a strong background in prior chair positions, along with a great connection with all the full time staff in the New Media Department.

I regard a lot of my job as being a communicator, especially with students and advising, we have so many students, and not enough staff to assist, so you know, the sort of primary job to be the administrative face of New Media, to get the message out about what we do here, in the college of Liberal Arts, we have to be present for all new student orientation, open houses, etc…, but my first act of chair was really to get the faculty together for a pre-semester meeting in August to get publicity materials out, figure out ‘what’s the message or our ‘elevator pitch’, something descriptive, enough of an umbrella that encompasses the things that people really can do, and leave room for the activities as well as suggesting what they might be.

Its kind of weird not to be teaching, and I’m kind of an outsider, but that’s the advantage of being an outsider. But I really had to learn the curriculum to help advise students and faculty for external reviews. We have added four new courses and couple course revisions, and that’s a lot to get done in a year!

What was your first thought of the definition of New Media (12 years ago compared to now)?

Well, I really didn’t think about it that hard 12 years ago, I was pretty busy working on the English curriculum, but it seemed to me that if they were calling it something, they must mean it, and it wasn’t really until other people years later began expressing ‘Well we don’t know what New Media is’ and I began to realize there is an issue of ‘Why don’t we know what New Media is? Why is this so mysterious?’ When I got but the idea that if the New Media Department is looking to merge in some way with the Innovation Center, or Mechanical Engineering Department, or Biology, I feel that would be a great asset, not only for New Media, but for them too! They, I’m sure, have projects and ideas they want to create but don’t know of the amazing tools and resources that the IMRC building and New Media students may need their assistance as well…Using New Media as a tool in itself for other majors on campus would probably do wonders for the University and students.

None of the teachers have a degree in ‘New Media’, it wasn’t available when they were in school, but now, they are able to each one bring something different to the table to provide a degree for the new age students to pursue. Mike Scott has his background in computer programming, Gene brings his knowledge of applying programming to art, and interaction between Art and Marine Biology, Owen brings his whole sense of fluxes and the Art world, Joline is about narrative, reasons of story telling, and sustainability, how stories keep us alive, and Jon is about the cultural effect of the internet, along with how to code your own internet.” Our faculty is all really accomplished and talented, and I think 12 years ago, the department had two other faculty members who retired and moved on, but in a way, there was more flexibility to be different than one another, and with the loss of those two people, took away the glue, Bill Kuykendall, Film and Documentary, and Raphael

Diluzio, the Time Based Art and Design teacher. We are hoping to make it so that the current teachers now are able to put their courses in more than one ‘choosing bucket’ for students, as in Jolines courses could fit into this bucket, as well as this other bucket, or Genes courses, etc…I want to get through this external review in hopes that it will support our continued development, and that may mean even structural change.

“It was a frequent strategy to ask students what New Media was.”

Owen, Renee Kelly, and I in the Innovation Center, want to write a proposal for a signature and emerging program, and let s create a way to collaborate resources with IMRC and the resources of the innovation center! The innovation center teaches people how to create ideas, and the IMRC has the tools to implement those ideas.

People I feel aren’t creating their full potential due to lack of help and tools to implement their projects, but the idea that the New Media Department is looking to merge in some way with the Innovation Center, or Mechanical Engineering Department, or Biology, I feel, would be a great asset, not only for New Media, but for them too! They, I’m sure, have projects and ideas they want to create but don’t know of the amazing tools and resources that the IMRC building and New Media Students have either…

And all that is really the one side of the bigger issue, which is teaching people to be resourceful, be creative, to be engaged, to look at the world around them and to be thoughtful about the world. And that’s the biggest takeaway, and its not so much things we can count, but people who come out of the program with this broader set of skills that will make their lives a rich and fulfilling one.

OWEN SMITH New Media Program The University of Maine Orono, ME 04469-5713 tel 207 581-4389 owen.smith AT umit.maine.edu http://newmedia.umaine.edu/

BIO

Dr. Owen F. Smith was appointed Director of the New Media Program in July 2004. This affiliation is nothing new, however, he was one of the founding members of the Program in 1992 (then the Multimedia Minor). He has been a faculty member at the University of Maine since 1991 in the Department of Art teaching Modern and Contemporary Art History and Theory, Non-Traditional Art Forms and New Media classes. As a professional he has simultaneously pursued the development of creative and scholarly work, but in all of his work he is most interested in the perceived gap between life and all things Fluxus.

Over the Last 10 years his artwork has been included in over 60 exhibitions and he has published several dozen academic publications, including a book on the history of the Fluxus Group, Fluxus, the History of an Attitude (San Diego State University Press, 1998). Current Academic Projects include a chapter in the forthcoming book At A Distance, Historical Precursors to Internet Art (MIT Press) and an essay for Leonardo on the computational poetry of Dick Higgins. His current creative projects are focused on the nature and function of images as conative place holders - three related projects currently in development are The Sexualization of Data (print series), The Nature of Being Relative (net art project) and Old Dead White Men We Never Knew (net art project).

How Long Have You Been With The Program?

Ahhhh, well…how long has the program been around (haha) I was one of the co-founders of the program back in ’92-93.

What do you do here in New Media?

I’ve am a faculty member in the New Media program, but principally I run the graduate Inter-Media program as well as director of Inter-Media Center, the Immercer Inter-Media Commercial Research Center.

How do you define New Media?

We know there is no singular definition…when I first started as chair, we used to say “New Media is a hybrid program that draws from art, computer science, journalism, communication, and engages students with, you know, possibilities, and a few years into being the chair, I realized I had the cart before the horse, and would now say “ New Media is a program that emphasizes problem solving and creative thinking and we ask students to do that through using digital tools and technology, so in other words, we don’t put the media first, we put the creative thinking first…New Media is a tool and a program that emphasizes creative problem solving and creative thinking and using digital tools and technologies.

Several years ago, a student used his exploration of New Media, to create handmade laminated backwood skis….took the design thinking and created wooden skis which not many people think of wood skis as New Media, but then started his own small company from it, the whole process he took to create it….we’ve had a lot of businesses started by students…

There was another student who majored in biology and new media and did a capstone on bees and created a digital way to monitor hives during winter to figure out how to work against the death and loss of hives and a whole monitoring system…that was a little more directed using New Media tools as a monitoring, but then you know, thinking past the idea of using technology by trying to figure out how do we deal with the fact that we are losing honey bees, if essentially we lose pollinators, we lose life on earth.

What do you hope the students take away from the program?

Well I think there is the short term takeaway which is students take away skills and knowledge that will help them get a job, get a good job, and more than a factory type job where you do the same thing over and over again.

But the much bigger and much more important concern or interest of what students might take away Do you teach any specific class? is getting them to really think about what is it in their lives that interests them and excites them, you know All my teaching is at the graduate level now, even how is it they can be someone who participates in though in the past, I did the first development of New shaping their own life, and we put a lot of emphasis Media 100, I’ve taught classes on web design, video on students making their own decisions, and coming production, interactive technology, but mostly now to their own definitions of New Media, and thinking I teach the graduate core classes such as research methods for artists, I teach one on creative thinking and about the tools they wanna learn and how to apply those tools…

I teach one on history and theories of Inter Media.

What do you think the best project or capstone was?

I think one of the things that I find interesting about the capstones is there always interesting…some of them may be more ‘successful’ answers to the particular question the students took on, but it really is about the process in which students take on an area and learn about it, they develop it, and through application, they come to some way of thinking about and working with whatever area they are focusing on…I think some of the ones that stand out to me are maybe some of the things that wouldn’t necessarily fall under the traditional thinking side of New Media i.e. digital side of things.

And all that is really the one side of the bigger issue which is teaching people to be resourceful, be creative, to be engaged, to look at the world around them and to be thoughtful about the world. And that’s the biggest takeaway, and its not so much things we can count, but people who come out of the program with this broader set of skills that will make their lives a rich and fulfilling one.

What would you like to see added to the program?

Well the one thing I think I would mention and we are in the process of adding this year is we have a new faculty member his name is Gene Felice and he brings a background in prototyping and physical production, so with his background and the new facilities we have 3D printers, recording studio, laser cutters and engravers, a full performance space, all of these great tools that we didn’t have when you were a student (Amy Collinsworth) I think that’s the important growth area, is getting students engaged in rapid prototyping, product development thinking about those tools and technologies, and you know with me, with hiring Gene, I think that will be very important for the next few years.

Why do you think some people grasp the concept of New Media more so than others?

Well…that’s a big million dollar question. I think some of its personality, some of it’s the ability to operate of domain of uncertainty, I think one of the aspects of New Media by not being told what to do, gives you the ability to shape your own direction and profession, but you also don’t have someone holding your hand...or giving you that structure, like more specific programs….and that can be a little scary for some.

You know, ‘What do you mean you wont tell me the definition of New Media?’ or ‘What do I do with this stuff?’

And you know some people in that more openness, just operate a little better…and culturally and in society, we are moving towards some of these areas…

VELMA FIGGINS How long been with program?

I have been with the department for over 12 years now

What do you do in New Media?

I’ve done anything administrative in the department since I started in 2002. I do budgets, ordering, and salaries, and contracts, but I also worked with the students and advising, technically I’m not an advisor but if a student needed help adding/dropping a class, I was available if needed. I do so much for the department; it’s hard to list it all!

What do you think the best project or capstone has been?

There’s been a lot of good ones, it would be hard to pin point...we never really had capstone night until just a few years ago...Mike used to have people do their capstones in class, but I think your class was one of the first to really do one. I know last year, Emma Hamm had the costume and makeup capstone, she did an excellent job with that. I’m not a technology person so a lot of the technology capstones go above my head, Im more prone to the design ones

What do you hope the students take away from the program?

I hope they can figure out a way of what they learned to get a job in the area they enjoy…I don’t want you to go away and flip burgers…I want you to be able to get a job in design, programming, etc…whatever you want to do.

What would you like to see in the future for New Media? Courses, skill sets, etc?

Well, for me, myself, I don’t, but from listening to the students, they would like to see more of a semester of Adobe Suites…rather than just touching upon the programs. Even if they wanted to a workshop, 2 or 3 workshops to learn something more specific “There wasn’t a lot of wiggle room to take courses you were interested in…I didn’t want to take a programming class if I was interested in design…I would of liked to of taken all design…and then had to partner with someone who can do the programming, to actually create something…to try and learn programming & design all in one, and try and produce a really great prototype was just unrealistic for me” -Amy Collinsworth

Why do you think some people grasp the concept of New Media more so than others?

That’s a toughie...I am thinking about my son and how he wanted to get into animation since 7th grade…so he did the extra work and studied the different things prior to going to school, so he could get to where he is now…

And there are some kids who come into college who don’t know what they want to do, but know they have to go to college…

What do you think the hardest course in New Media is?

We no longer require COS125 anymore (haha) to get through the major, but the programming ones are the hardest…and I don’t know where we stand right now, but I know when we first started 80% of our students were here for the design, so technology wasn’t what they were looking for…but I know it’s important to have, employers like to see you have experience…I know you need a little bit of everything to make the thing you want..

I know a good majority of the students have a problem with the programming.

JOLINE BLAIS New Media Program The University of Maine Orono, ME 04469-5713 tel 207 581-4486 joline.blaisATumit.maine.edu http://www.still-water.net/ Courses: NMD 203 Creative Hypertext NMD 303 Digital Storytelling NMD 206 Project Design Lab IMD 520 LifeArt BIO Joline Blais, Associate Professor of New Media at UMaine, co-directs Still Water, and co-founded LongGreenHouse. Her book At the Edge of Art (2006) investigates how new media art puts the power of networks and distributed creativity into the hands of ordinary citizens in a variety of non-art contexts.

Blais’ publications and creative work explore the overlap of digital culture, indigenous culture and permaculture. LongGreenHouse (2007-2011) weaves the Wabanaki Longhouse, permaculture gardens, and networked collaboration into a hybrid “communiversity.” This cross-cultural braid articulates tribal and networked alternatives to our hierarchic (and failing) economic and political structures, and seeds the re-emergence of the ‘commons’ in multi-age learning communities. She has been expanding this work from the university to community contexts as a partner and member Belfast Cohousing and Ecovillage, and as a member of Orono and Belfast Transition Town Initiatives.

Blais’ Fair eTalesand her courses in creative hypertext and digital narrative explore alternative narrative structures.

How Long Have You Been With The Program?

I have been teaching here for 13 years since I came back to Maine.

How do you define New Media?

I think, although I spent a lot of time learning about New Media when it was first exploding in New York City, asking what is this, what do you do with a web page, etc., I developed a sort of sense of what it was like.

I was asked to develop programs at NYU and eventually came back to Maine, and when I got here, I thought I understood what New Media was, and had a pretty clear sense of it, and I was really surprised to find there was such a big controversy over it, like why is this such a big question: ‘What Is New Media’, well that’s because it’s a number of different things.

What do you hope the students take away from the program?

I really would love them to develop a stronger sense of who they are, and where the come from, as a result of building new skills. By developing their own strengths, they get a better sense of what their capable of and they also get a better sense of who they are…the moment you pick up a tool and start using it, self expression becomes part it, and you begin to see more of yourself. And if we do that, we are able to make great contributions to the communities around us.

The skills, techniques, and tools are a way of bringing out the connection between students and their communities families, etc.

What would you like to see added to the program?

But I think the best definition I got was from my students, and it was in the first capstone class I taught.

The students started off with a projects that they really loved, and was told they couldn’t do it, wasn’t New Media, so I inherited them in January and asked them to tell me about their project, I didn’t want them to waste energy on a new project they don’t love. And after hearing about their original project, I realized that what they were saying wasn’t what I considered New Media, but the way the connected their learning process from the program into their project.

More faculty (haha) for sure, that’s our number one need…and I don’t think the University really understands how significant and how cutting edge and how much we contribute to local economies.

What better definition can we make than that?

Connect these new skills, approaches, networking, etc., and take these concepts and skills and bring them to what you love.

Faculty is certainly one of the biggest things, and a program that is constantly evolving needs faculty training to learn and continue to keep up with what they are teaching. We also need to work with our students, not just lecture to them. Students teach us just as much as we learn from them.

So I was no longer tied to this ideological definition of New Media…connect it, connect it to your life. I want people to connect with what you learn and what you think to who you are and what you love.

What do you do & teach?

I teach project design, New Media 206 and 306, digital narrative 1 and 2, I also taught some Inter-Media classes, and am a certified Permaculturist and have been apart of many projects regarding sustainability.

Like New Media, Permaculuture is a design art, how we design our lives, things from food, transportation, etc… how do we design our lives to get out of this wasteful mindset we are in?

We have combination of art and technology, and we have a concept of what they are, and what they are doing, and I think they are really crucial in developing our future, and I think the University underestimates our abilities here, and how creative we are.

JON IPPOLITO Associate Professor New Media Department The University of Maine Orono, ME 04469-5713 tel 207 581-4477 jon.ippolito AT umit.maine.edu http://three.org/ippolito A footsoldier in the battle between network and hierarchic culture, Jon Ippolito is an artist, former Guggenheim curator, and co-founder of the Still Water new media program at the University of Maine. He’s a sans-serif kind of guy.

BIO The recipient of Tiffany, Lannan, and American Foundation awards, Jon Ippolito has exhibited artwork with collaborative teammates Janet Cohen and Keith Frank at the Walker Art Center, ZKM/Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe, and WNET’s ReelNewYork Web site. As Associate Curator of Media Arts at the Guggenheim Museum, he curated Virtual Reality: An Emerging Medium and, with John G. Hanhardt, The Worlds of Nam June Paik. Ippolito’s critical writing has appeared in periodicals ranging from Flash Art and the Art Journal to the Washington Post. At theStill Water lab co-founded with Joline Blais, Ippolito has worked on three projects--the Variable Media Network, the Open Art Network, and a book co-authored with Joline Blais called At the Edge of Art--that aim to expand the art world beyond its traditional confines.

COURSES NMD205: Introduction to Variable Media NMD305: Seminar on Distributed Creativity NMD302: Interactive Web Development NMD306: Community and Collaboration NMD498: New Media Capstone I NMD499: New Media Capstone II You’ll find more up-to-date information at his page of teaching resources.

PROJECTS Here are some of the projects Jon has worked on: The Pool Maine Intellectual Commons Variable Media Network Open Art Network Cross-Cultural Partnership

New Media Program The University of Maine Orono, ME 04469-5713 tel 207 581-4359 mike.scott@umit.maine.edu http://newmedia.umaine.edu/

BIO

Mike Scott specializes in the Interactivity Sequence and is the director of ASAP research and development.

New Media and Internet Technology Lab (ASAP Media Service (Director) ASAP is an ongoing experiment in education where students are provided an environment and the incentive to complete projects that will stretch their creativity and explore their full range of abilities. In this environment, technology is considered a tool which students learn by using. They complete multimedia projects that combine traditional mediums through computer technology and communicate information in new and innovative ways. At ASAP, the value and importance of the process must remain the highest priority. ASAP maintains that any final product (an interactive kiosk, educational CD-ROM, WWW site, digital video, or traditional publication) must be representative of the development of creative thought, technical understanding and the dynamic collaboration which created it. If the product is a result of these learning processes, then ASAP has succeeded in its mission.

MIKE SCOTT

Access Grid The Access Grid website (http://www.accessgrid.org/) defines the Access Grid project as: -An ensemble of resources including multimedia large-format displays, presentation and interactive environments, and interfaces to Grid middleware and to visualization environments. These resources are used to support group-to-group interactions across the Grid.

MAPI -Co-Developed Maine Academic Prominence Initiative proposal March 2005 with Owen Smith for development of a New Media Research and Development Lab. A research, development and prototype lab, the New Media Research and Development Lab (hereafter NMRD Lab) would combine and reconfigure two existing, well established, elements in our program as well as reach to collaborate with other faculty members across campus.

DEAC -Applied for an Online Course Grant from the Distance Education Advisory Committee to develop an online course for NMD 102 Fundamentals of Information Systems. New course materials and assignments will be developed for this online course, including research of emerging technologies, exploring of software applications for the creation and analysis of distributed media. Part of this course will include communication through the implementation and use of video-conferencing from web-based systems up to the emerging Internet2 Access Grid technologies.

20 | MAGAZINE TEMPLATE MARCEL -Worked extensively with the Multimedia Art Research Centers and Electronic Laboratories (MARCEL), which was formed to provide a network of institutions involved in the collaboration between artists, artistic establishments and the public and private sectors in building a permanent high band-width network for artistic experimentation.

Ayers Island Arts Incubator -Ayers Island is headquarters for STArt Group (Science Art Technology Group), an international group of artists, scientists and technologists working on developing activities connecting these three sectors and making use of modern technology. A premise for the incubator is that creativity in one sphere tends to stimulate creativity in others and so seeks to foster creativity in all spheres.

COURSES Courses taught: NMD 202 Dynamic Web Development, NMD 206, NMD 207, NMD 295, NMD 302, NMD 306, NMD 460, NMD 490 Independent Study, NMD 498 Project Design, NMD 499 Project Design II.

What is ASAP? ASAP is an ongoing experiment in education where students are provided an environment and the incentive to complete projects that will stretch their creativity and explore their full range of abilities. In this environment, technology is considered a tool which students learn by using. They complete multimedia projects that combine traditional mediums through computer technology and communicate information in new and innovative ways. At ASAP, the value and importance of the process must remain the highest priority. ASAP maintains that any final product (an interactive kiosk, educational CD-ROM, WWW site, digital video, or traditional publication) must be representative of the development of creative thought, technical understanding and the dynamic collaboration which created it. If the product is a result of these learning processes, then ASAP has succeeded in its mission.

Such an environment then becomes a resource for the University of Maine and those who are interested in exploring ways to incorporate new and emerging technologies to enhance what it is they already do. ASAP understands the unique situation in history occurring at the cusp of this millennium: Technology has the potential to build an idealistic bridge that could span socio-economic divisions, and if technology does not become a contrivance of the existing power structure, its potential in education is limitless. By providing an environment to students and interested faculty in which to explore those potentials, ASAP strives to discover all that is fresh and possible in this exciting

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GENE FELICE Gene A. Felice II is a new faculty member within Intermedia & New Media at the University of Maine where he is also developing his Coaction Lab for interdisciplinary collaboration with an ecologically minded approach. He bridges his research and practice across: Art, Science, Design & Education, developing a network of creativity, living systems, and emerging technologies. He has a hybrid practice at the intersection of nature and technology, developing symbiotically creative systems as arts/science research.

New Media Program The University of Maine Orono, ME 04469-5713

How Long Have You Been With The Program?

I started teaching at the University of Maine starting in September of 2014 as a split position between the New Media undergraduate program and the Intermedia graduate program.

How do you define New Media?

I define New Media as a hybrid practice that combines elements of Art, Design, Science, Interaction and many forms of emerging technology. It is a constantly evolving medium that has the unique ability to shift and adapt according to the needs of today’s creative cultures.

Do you teach any specific class?

I cover a variety of subjects including 2D & 3D digital Prototyping (3D Printing, Laser Cutting, Vacuum Forming, Mold Making & Casting, CNC milling), I also teach 3D Modeling and Animation (mostly via Cinema 4D and Rhino) and compositing / editing via After Effects and Premiere. I also enjoy teaching Video Projection Mapping & Video Installation Art. Finally, I have over 12 years of experience in the design world and can teach the full spectrum of Adobe software, 2D / Interaction design as well as a variety of Interactive electronics subjects such as basic circuitry and micro controllers such as the Arduino and Raspberry Pi. In a more conceptual way, I am very interested in teaching about Interactive Art, Bio / Eco Art, Conceptual / Research based practice, Interdisciplinary Collaboration, The Stem to Steam Movement as well as other collaborations across the Humanities and Sciences.

What do you think the best project or capstone was?

I’ve only been around for this past year, but currently I have been very impressed by the work of Susan Smith one of our PHD students in Intermedia, particularly her current Burro / Museum of What’s left project as well as the collaborative work of Sarah Hollows, Chris Mason and Rachel Nelson particularly their social practice / community work around the Hide and Seek café in the IMRC. On the New Media side,I’ve really enjoyed several of this year’s Capstone projects as well as some individual work from for 2nd year students

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What do you hope people will take away from the program?

I hope that both our students and our local communities take a way an innovative educational experience through their access to cutting edge creative technology balanced with critical systems based thinking.

What do you hope to see in the future for the program?

I hope to see more community collaboration, more students internships and mentorship opportunities and more interdisciplinary collaboration with other departments of the University.

Why do you think some people grasp the concept of New Media more so than others?

It’s a relatively new, amorphous practice that forms hybrids between older and emerging fields such as art, design, engineering, computer science, etc. Some people are more familiar with this history while others still need to experience more examples of New Media so that they recognize it when they see it.

What’s the hardest course in New Meda?

I’m not sure on this. Check back with me when I have a bit more experience in the department

Other Supporting Faculty

NATE ALDRICH AARON BOOTHROYD SHERIDAN KELLY

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CURRICULUM OVERVIEW All pre-portfolio students in the program share a common experience of courses in applied process and theory. After their first year, each student gathers work samples from her or his courses to date in an online portfolio that is reviewed by the faculty.

Students who pass the portfolio review continue as New Media Majors in years 2 through 4, choosing among five course sequences to develop a broad awareness of this evolving discipline.

From time to time students are brought together in core courses that explore the collaborative process. In the final year, a six-credit senior capstone course completes the BA. Here, students design and produce advanced projects ranging from online communities to mobile games to interactive installations.

You can find more about each individual course here: http://newmedia.umaine.edu/generic.php?id=230 Opened in 2013, IMRC at Stewart Hall offers extraordinary opportunities for undergraduates, grad students, and faculty to immerse themselves in the latest tools for media production.

Makers will be excited to get their hands on the 3d fabrication and circuit prototyping labs, complete with laser engraver, large format printers, and a CNC mill and router. Students who want to surround their viewers with a media-rich environment can exploit a 360-degree audiovisual projection room and a 25-foot high DMX-enabled performance space.

IMRC is located on the north end of campus, across from the tennis courts in the space previously occupied

by Stewart Commons.

EVENTS Students in U-Me’s New Media Department can take advantage of numerous opportunities to connect with each other and with visiting new media luminaries from across the world.

These events can be formal or informal, but they almost always offer opportunities for active, hands-on learning or exploration. At the Conference on the Intellectual Commons, Creative Commons director Neeru Paharia sat down with individual students to show them how to add CC’s innovative publishing licenses to their Web sites and mp3s. At the New Media Society’s flashmobs, on the other hand, students staged an impromptu debate about a glass of water--half full or half empty?

U-Me New Media has a strong track record of bringing the most noteworthy visiting artists, technologists, and critics to campus.

While many programs leave students merely sitting in a dark hall listening to visitors lecture, U-Me New Media also sets up workshops and person-to-person meetings between students and visitors of like interest to compare notes or get hands-on technical suggestions or feedback about their projects.

What Are ‘Capstones’

?

Capstone is a full year senior project, that gives students the opportunity to design their own project using all the skills they’ve learned from all their classes, internships, etc, to create something that matters to them. And for me, the critical pieces of that is ‘how are they connecting to what matters to them?’ That’s the real bridge. A student could love rock climbing and develop a ‘rock-climbing app’ that isn’t fully ready for deployment, but will have a real use, and is part of a rock climbing community, and to me, that’s the connection that has to happen.

-Connect to ‘that community’ -Enrich our lives -Use skills learned -To do things that matter to us

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WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO PREPARE SENIORS FOR THEIR CAPSTONE

POSTERS

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BIG

Make it Bigger posters get more attention. Tabloid (11×17) is a good size for hallways; larger (20 x 30) is better for tables or backdrops.

Use A Big Title Font

-Passers-by will only devote a fraction of a secod to decide whether to walk up to your poster or stop at your table. Make sure you give your poster a prominent but short title. A distinctive typestyle is nice, but don’t make your title so fancy that it’s hard to read. Aim for one phrase or image to be legible 40 feet away.

Appeal to the Senses

After the title, your visitors will be most attracted to a logo, images, a screen playing video, or audio (good quality but low level). A single big, colorful image usually works better than a dozen thumbnails. For a more coherent design, key font and background colors off colors in a prominent image.

Include date and location prominently.

Your viewer’s first question will be, “Is this interesting?” The second will be, “Can I make it?” And don’t forget the year, in case your poster will be archived for the future. (Exception: Backdrops to live presentations don’t need date and time, and you may want to re-use them.) And don’t forget to put your name somewhere.

Include A URL

-This can be small, and doesn’t need the “http://www” Consider a QR code.

-Smartphone users can scan those squiggly black-and-white squares and jump right to your Web site. Many online services let you make and download a QR code for free, and they don’t have to look standard (consider rounding the corners or changing the colors).

Consider a light background.

-Dark backgrounds cost more for you and the environment, and knock-out white text on dark is hard to read.

Push Off The Centerline

-Play with edges, diagonals, and white space.

Choose Your Atmosphere

-Clean, white posters with crisp fonts and graphics convey clarity and ease of use. Dark, soft-edged imagery, as seen in movie posters by Drew Struzan, suggests mystery or suspense. (More examples of movie posters…)

Re-Use What You’ve Already Made

-Dig up your old partis, abstracts, diagrams, budgets, timelines, and Gantt charts and pick the most attractive and informative selection. There’s no reason to re-invent the wheel when you’re making a poster.

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TABLES -Make your poster free-standing.

-You may be able to tape it onto a nearby wall, but there’s no guarantee an appropriate space will be available.

Consider adhering your poster to foamcore for added stability in case it has to be freestanding. If you have a QR code, make it accessible.

-Put the visitor in the driver’s seat.

-Arrange the chairs so visitors can sit down and explore your Web site/video/device with you by their side.

Set up your laptop so they can access the keyboard too.

Bring a prop.

-Physical objects speak louder than screens. Music-based project? Bring a guitar.

Offer a takeaway.

-Have a stack of flyers, business cards, or coupons on your table. No one’s going to remember that your url is MySpecialCapstoneThingey.com unless they pull a piece of paper out of their pocket the next morning or have already scanned your QR code.

SOFTWARE Limitations of PowerPoint

It’s inflexible.

Expensive to buy.

Hard to modify.

Limited integration of external links (urls, images, video, RSS).

It discourages audience interaction.

Hard to backtrack or change order.

Hard to load related urls, videos, etc.

Makes presenters boring!

It’s hard to share.

Requires proprietary viewers.

Hard to link.

Hard to spider.

Hard to cut and paste.

Advantages of an online format (eg, Firefox or Flash) Any Web page is inherently sharable–you don’t have to do the work twice.

You can use a Web navigation system to encourage random access.

Tips:

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Full-screen the browser (Shift-Command-F in Firefox) to reduce screen clutter.

You can organize your material in browser tabs.

Use a browser add-on like Tab Sidebar to review tabs quickly.

Use a browser add-on like Cooliris or imageZoom to fit images to screen.

HIGHLIGHTING -Consider using software like Mousepose to highlight areas of or interaction with the screen.

-Learn keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl-scroll to zoom the screen dynamically.

PREPERATION -Time yourself-Test the technologyDown to every plugin, cable, and url. The best training for an event is the event itself.

Try to test your presentation hours in advance in the same venue and on the same machine that you will eventually use. If you cannot do this, try to present off a laptop that you have checked beforehand.

DON’T TRUST AN ONLINE CONNECTION Cache a local copy, and if you can’t do that, download some screenshots you can load if all else fails.

BEGIN WITH THE REAL WORLD Start with a short metaphor, anecdote, or motivation that explains your idea in non-technical terms. You may want to draw from the computer-free version of your project.

END WITH A BANG Don’t end with “that’s pretty much it.” Pick a final sentence to sum up your project’s philosophical or cultural importance–the Big Picture–and plan to end with that.

DELIVERY Make eye contact!

Project (speak loudly)!

Be enthusiastic!

Wear appropriate clothes!

Know your intern

Kevin Boucher is in New Media at the University of Maine at Orono

I’m Kevin Boucher and I’m a 23-year-old transfer, New Media student. I’m from the top of Maine and grew up in a town called Madawaska Maine. I used to be a computer science major at University Maine at Farmington but didn’t do so well, so I decided to try something different. In attempt to find a medium to turn my story ideas that I’ve created since I was little, into something that people could enjoy like animations or games. New Media was offered to me as a choice long ago but I decided not too because of stupid personal choices. I regret not coming to New Media because most people who go to this Major have explored multiple mediums for their stuff and have yet to find something that they want to pursue as a carrier. I enjoyed New Media mostly because it allows you to explore different technology and make something that you want out of that technology of your choice.

Thought it’s still a very young program the people who go through it are encouraged to create what they want while learning other skills the could be very useful. This is especially good for someone like me because I have a goal that doesn’t have a specific major. Since I’ve wanted to turn my story ideas into something but have been trying to do it all alone so learning these extra skills have given me hope. These concepts and stories I create even while I sleep have become part of me since I was very young and despite

MAGAZINE TEMPLATE | 33 any difficulties I have encountered throughout the years I have to keep moving forward with my dream.

To create something create out of my ideas as great as the games I’ve played, movies, and shows I’ve watched and have people enjoy them just as much.

Most people think when I say I want to make my story ideas into something say I should be a writer but that is actually one of the most difficult things for me because of my dyslexia, yet I continue forward.

My childhood dream can be achieved with this major and that’s why I continue, that is my true goal but my mind has been opened to much more since I started New Media. I have an opportunity to create more then what I wanted, along with my graphic design minor there are plenty of opportunities for me.

Though I fear for graduation because a solid source of income with this major isn’t completely finite but I have a feeling that something will happen regardless of what happens in the coming year. Opportunities will present themselves soon to me because with New Media we create our own opportunities, our own path and like the tag line on the Logo I created, design our world.

“Kevin designed the incredible magazine cover for this issue.

Brewer FCU is beyond thankful to have such a talented student aid them in designing and launching of their new magazines!”

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CURRICULUMN Foundation Classes:

NMD 100: Introduction to New Media- 3 Credits NMD 102: Introduction to New Media Technologies, Interaction Design and Prototyping- 3 Credits NMD 104: Design Basics for New Media- 3 Credits NMD 150: Script Your World OR NMD 160: Creative Programming OR COS 125: Introduction to Problem Solving Using Computer Programming OR COS 220: Introduction to C++ Programming- 3 Credits NMD 200: New Media Strategies - 3 Credits

Portfolio: Sequence Classes Students must take a minimum of three 300-level and two 400-level classes from the following list: Choose 3 of the following (for 9 total credits) -NMD 341: Photographic Reporting and Storytelling- 3 Credits -NMD 342: Interaction Design & Physical Computing- 3 Credits -NMD 343 : Digital Narrative Workshop I- 3 Credits -NMD 344: Time-Based Art and Design I- 3 Credits -NMD 345: Networks and Creativity I- 3 Credits Choose 2 of the following (for 6 total credits): -NMD 441: Documentary Photography and Audio- 3 Credits -NMD 442: User Experience Design- 3 Credits

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NMD 443: Digital Narrative Workshop II- 3 Credits NMD 444: Time-Based Art and Design II- 3 Credits NMD 445: Networks and Creativity II- 3 Credits

New Media Electives Students must complete 2 courses (6 credits) that satisfy the New Media Electives requirement.

-NMD 250: Electronic Music Composition I: Item and Arrangement- 3 Credits -NMD 251: Electronic Music Composition II: Composing a Process- 3 Credits -NMD 270: Digital Art I- 3 Credits -NMD 295: Topics in New Media- 1-3 Credits -NMD 324: Year in Film I- 3 Credits -NMD 370: Digital Art IIA: 3D Modeling and Animation- 3 Credits -NMD 398: Topics in New Media- 1-3 Credits -NMD 424: Year in Film II- 3 Credits -NMD 430: Topics in New Media- 1-3 Credits -NMD 490: Independent Study in New Media- 3

CreditsRequirements -Minimum number of credits required to graduate: 120 -Minimum Cumulative GPA required to graduate: 2.0 -New Media majors must have a “C-” or better in each required major course taken.

-Other GPA requirements to graduate: a minimum accumulative GPA of 2.0 (“C”) in the major.

Experience: NMD 498 and NMD 499 accumulative GPA of 2.0 (“C”) in the major.

Required Course(s) for fulfilling Capstone

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-MINIMuM NuMBer of creDIts requIreD to graDuate: 120 -MINIMuM cuMulatIve gPa requIreD to graDuate: 2.0 -New MeDIa Majors Must have a “c-” or Better IN each requIreD Major course takeN. -other gPa requIreMeNts to graDuate: a MINIMuM accuMulatIve gPa of 2.0 (“c”) IN the Major.

-requIreD course(s) for fulfIllINg caPstoNe exPerIeNce: NMD 498 aND NMD 499

Contact Information: Margaret Lukens, Chair of New Media Department, 5713 Chadbourne Hall, (207) 581-4433 New Media majors must complete a total of 48 credit hours in New Media courses. A grade of “C-” or better is required in all courses that satisfy New Media major program requirements.

Technology Each New Media major is required to have a personal laptop capable of performing essential

Info Retrieved From: http://portal2.nmdprojects.net/curriculumn/

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COMMENT TRAIN By: Thomas Fourcheraux

Abstract:

Video creation and consumption is quickly becoming the most popular way to communicate one’s own ideas and experiences; As our society moves into this new era of content creation and utilization, it’s important to take into account not only the ways we consume content, but the ways we communicate it as well.

Existing systems of adding contributions to videos are jarringly abrupt, opting to letting users add comments that are only seen below the video. Restricting users’ contributions to fit this mold, destroys opportunity for creativity in what should be a completely collaborative process. This project seeks to rectify this disconnect by using a non-textual interface that delivers viewers’ contributions to appear alongside the original video to better balance both group’s saying power.

Press Copy:

Youtube is flawed. Now whatever illicit responses might’ve arisen from this blanket statement, there’s no doubting that with such a large site, the upkeep of certain features have been prioritized over others.

Thomas Fouchereaux, a New Media Senior is taking into account the features that YouTube have cast to the wind, and with the assistance of James Lavasseur, is building a site specifically tailored for one of these so called “abandoned features”, though the identity of the feature in question might surprise you. Whether you stand for YouTube’s feature Creep or against it, there’s no denying that YouTube comments, as a whole have attracted a rather paralyzing and seemingly impenetrable stigma that even Google has been unable to resolve.

Inspired by Tony Zhou’s: “Every Frame a Painting” series, instead of trying to change the collective perception of the YouTube’s community, Thomas seeks to change the very definition of comments altogether with his capstone: Comment Train Comment Train can be many things, but one thing it is not is a video browsing site, as video isn’t even supported. Instead, any video that is uploaded is immediately converted into a series of stillframe images with the converted images being placed within their own train, if you will. Users are able to browse through this train of images, with the intent that the user will find one of the converted stillframes, aesthetically interesting enough to warrant comment. The one catch: No keyboard.

Using a non-textual interface, users are able to select their favorite stillframes as canvas for which they are able to illustrate, literally draw on the frame of any particular artistic visions, filmic techniques, or memetic materials that they so desire. Once a user has saved their comment, it becomes a part of the train and is linked to its frame of origin. Because illustration is a language in itself and users are no longer creatively limited by text, a variety of newfound possibilities can be realized: “Comment Train’s original purpose was intended to give film enthusiasts, a more open means of creating and sharing filmic technique to a mass audience, but ever since the project’s unveiling, we’ve heard people claiming the site could be used in handling everything from tracking recorded animal movement, to the extremely unlikely possibility of it being used in court to analyze video-based evidence”. Thomas and James will be displaying Comment Train on May 1st of Capstone night and invite all participants who are curious in testing out a potential remedy for the hostility that have long permeated the YouTube comment system.

Capstone Question:

How many still frames can a train carry?

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GeoTrails App

By Zach Marvin

Abstract:

Geotrails is a geocaching mobile app designed to connect avid hikers and adventurers around Maine.

While there are many ways this can be achieved, Geotrails does this by setting up hidden cache locations for users to find on their everyday hiking trails. From there, users can compete or even add their own locations to challenge others either in person or via social media. Given the simplicity of the application and the ease of access, we hope to bring more people on board who can continually add new locations for future expansion.

Though there are tons of new apps and programs coming out daily, a local UMaine New Media student has taken it upon himself to develop an app specifically designed for hikers and adventurers of our beautiful state. Zach Marvin, 21, is the head designer for this project being called Geotrails and has been in development on the project for nearly a year now.

The application itself is designed to incorporate geocaching with hiking trails around Maine, thus offering visitors of these trails a little extra incentive. Following clues, riddles, and even picture help in some instances, users work to locate specific spots among the trail or shortly off of which that tend to offer spectacular views or some area of significance. Once the user has completed the cache, they’re free to review, add their own personal pictures, or even connect with others via social media who have done this trail before.

With an easy function to add new spots, users are encouraged to submit their own personal favourites so that this app can continue to expand as fast as possible!

Capstone Question: What is the approximate accuracy of phone GPS (in ft) WEB: www.geotrails.me

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DGS DISC GOLF SOCIAL Abstract:

This website is dedicated to the avid Disc Golf players across the country in an attempt to expand the social aspect of the sport. As both a course archive and open ended trading system, this site was designed to broaden the disc golf community by allowing players to connect with each other and explore the courses in their state while not breaking the bank.

At D.R. Disc Golf in Orrington there are things called pilot

By Arthur Olsen numbers that you can get only after recording 20 or more games at the arthur.olsen1@gmail.com course. The pilot numbers allow you to compete in their weekend tourget discounts on discs, and have your handicap recorded. As of right now, there are over 500 pilot numbers out after the course opened 4 years ago. The average disc golfer knows and plays regularly with around 10 people. If we take that information and use it to figure out how many people in this area play disc golf we’re looking at around 2,500 people who play disc golf and probably in-between 1,500 and 2,000 people actively playing. Sometimes people are left having to play by themselves when no one else is available when there are so many other players willing to be challenged. The goal of DGS is that people would be interested in challenging themselves more and meeting new people without having to participate in a formal tournament type of match.

With that being said, there comes the issue of getting the equipment you want without spending a lot of money. Granted disc golf tends to be a tenth of the price of regular golf, however that appeal may be what attracts people to the sport in the first place. DGS offers a craigslist-style trading system allowing players to negotiate trades online or at their local course. Lastly DGS sets out to allow players to know where the courses in their area are. Without extra funds to promote themselves, disc golf courses are often left unnoticed by the community and this site sets out to help players discover all the courses in their area, but also to let them know the ones that would suit their play style the best.

Capstone Question: Can you name at least three disc golf courses in the state of Maine?

Margo Lukens enjoys a presentation by a student of New Media

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Creators: Julianna Vezza, Evan Deschenes

Abstract:

In Orono, Maine, finding an apartment or house to rent is often a challenge for students. Livin’ Easy is a website that helps students locate an apartment or house easily and affordably. Livin’ Easy has pictures of available houses and apartments for rent, geolocation maps and personal reviews. It will allow the user to find or lease an apartment, see reviews on properties and contact landlords within minutes. Livin’ Easy will be a convenient way for students to search for off-campus housing. They will appreciate how much time and effort they will save by using this site and it will make finding a place to live more enjoyable.

Press Copy:

New Media students, Julianna Vezza and Evan Deschenes designed Livin’ Easy to provide students with a place to find housing in Orono.

Throughout their college experience, they have had countless issues when searching for off-campus housing within an affordable budget. The issues we have experienced deal with the fact that there are no efficient housing websites for students in Orono. The housing websites that do exist are poorly designed, do not update themselves and are not effective in assisting students locate housing. After years of dealing with these issues and talking with dozens of students, they created, tested and launched their housing website, Livin’ Easy.

Capstone Question: What do students look for in a housing website?

URL: livineasyhousing.com Personal emails: evandeschenes@gmail.com julianna.vezza@gmail.com

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By Kristen Douglass & Abbey Gutowski

Abstract:

MaineStream LLC Productions, is a student organized film company, dedicated to promoting the various types of student excellence, clubs, events, and student life experiences that occur at the University of Maine. Our business specializes in video, photography and advertising. We have a full crew that consists of production managers, cinematographers, editors, designers, and audio engineers. We work with our clients all the way through the video planning process, to sketching out beginning ideas, drawing out storyboards and creating an invoice that fits the clients vision and needs.

Mainestream LLC is up for hire, and while one of our main goals is to better the University of Maine marketing and community, we are continually working with outside clients as well and can be reached at mainestream04469@gmail.com.

Press copy:

The development for this project began when founders Abigale Gutowski and Kristen Douglass realized that there was a need for a media channel at the University of Maine. As two New Media majors, having acquired a background in film production, social networking, web development and web design over the past three years, they realized that this was a project that they could both achieve and succeed in. By combining these skills and establishing solid content, they foresee positive reactions from the University of Maine community by attracting attention and promoting all aspects of the UMaine campus.

MaineStream’s marketing strategy will be to advertise and capitalize on the services that the University of Maine does not offer. MaineStream will address the lack of promotional advertising and media coverage on student organizations, clubs, sporting events, academic achievements, student projects, social experiences, alumni and administrative profiles. Younger generations are continually relying on technology to gather insight and interest. That being said, MaineStream videos would be a great way to relay information, but also captivate the audience, and raise student morale. There are many aspects on campus that deserve attention, and video advertising would do just that.

Employee Abstract:

We believe that through our work, we will be able to bring the students of UMaine closer together by encouraging student involvement, awareness, and providing a medium in which people are able to use a resource.

MaineStream LLC provides an experience for students who one day want to be apart of a film crew or multimedia company. We cover the topics of film production, social networking, business management, as well as graphic design, photography and even audio production. IT is a realistic and versatile way to get hands on experience in the world of video production and conveniently located right on the UMaine campus.

We encourage the collaboration of students from all areas, within New Media, Studio Art, Marketing, and even business.

Capstone question:

“Have you ever used a black magic?�

URL: mainestreamproductions.com Email address: mainestream04469@gmail.com

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GCB Web By: Katherine Bartos Abstract: A place for members of the Greene Baptist Church to share prayer requests and stay connected throughout the week. The website is targeted specifically to the church and is a place for that community to interact. To make it a private and safe place to share, members register for an account to access the site. For deployment, the site is advertised on the church’s Facebook page and is being announced on Sundays at the services

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Tiny Tactics

By Scott Forand Tiny Tactics is a mobile game about beings and their influence on the environment around them. Mobile games as a whole are quick and, for the most part, only superficially interactive. Through the use of the turnbased strategy format, Tiny Tactics tests not only creative problem solving but probes the limits of the mobile multiplayer experience, within an environment full of different characters and methods of play. The players, both working toward a common goal and contesting for territory with opposing factions, will shape not only their own game experience but that of every other player in the game. “To me, New Media is about exploring the boundaries of what we have, and pushing them further. Sure, it means innovating a creating new products, but I think the real challenge is the same as it always has been for art; Taking something old and tested, and bring out the hidden potential within it in unexpected ways.�

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FOOD

FRIENDS

FUN

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Caitlin’s Catch

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By Caitlin Trafton

Abstract: According to NOAA, up to 90% of all seafood consumed in the United States of America is imported from foreign countries. 35% of that seafood was caught in the USA, exported to foreign countries for processing, and re-imported to sell in the USA. Caitlin’s Catch is designed to Upstage the [middle] Man and provide the most-direct source of seafood to Consumers. Disrupt bleak Chains of Custody; which drive the price and quality of product down, in order to prevent over-fishing and misunderstandings related to Seafood Freshness. Licensed Seafood Harvesters of Maine have the right to sell their species directly to Seafood Consumers within the state bounds.

Fish Drops resolve the issue of Timing Risk, where agreed upon locations facilitate direct Harvester-Consumer sales. Caitlins Catch is the space where transparency of sale is visible to anyone with the link (CaitlinsCatch.com).

Upon purchasing a Shellfish Dealer License, Caitlin Trafton can buy and sell seafood from other Harvesters to build variety for Small-scale Restaurants and Families throughout Maine. Fish Shares would then be labeled CaitlinsCatch and dropped at Fish Drop locations.

BIGGEST CLAM EVER!!

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Caitlin’s Parrot Logan

The New Media Department knows it’s hard for college students not to have a pet.

Student’s know it’s a big responsability, but also feel bad leaving them home alone.

Well, the New Media Staff know just that, and encourage you to bring your pet in for a visit!

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UAV AcadeMe

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By: Jesse Hinmann

Abstract: UAV Academy is a website which highlights different projects and applications that use unmanned aerial vehicles. It specifically focuses on High Schools across the nation that has implemented drones into their classes and curriculum. Along with the creation of the website, we’ve partnered with a local Maine High School, Wiscassett High School, to provide and implement a high quality UAV into the lesson plans for the students.

This technology can supplement several different fields of study, such as physics, computer programming, tech education, photography, athletics, and more. Wiscasset will be the first High School in Maine to incorporate a drone into their curriculum, paving the way for other schools to follow suit in the future.

We plan to advocate for more local schools to adopt this technology in preparation for the boom of commercial use of UAV’s in the near future.

Nomo Phobia

Authors: Kelly Rowan and Abigail Bailey Abstract: Nomophobia actively demonstrates the recent surge in mobile phone attachment through biofeedback devices. When the body is under stress, it reacts through a spike in one’s heart rate and perspiration level increase.

Using a heart rate monitor and a Galvanic Skin Response sensor, users will be exposed to a situation where cell phone attachment will be evaluated. Through live interpretation of the data, attachment can be determined by physical changes in one’s body as the result of being under stress.

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Forestry Finder By: Abstract: Forestry finder is a piece of software available online for anyone, but particularly loggers, to use as a way to save a GPS location in order to orient yourself or find it later.

Using this online app one can easily mark and remember the exact position of biomass, yourself, or the boundaries on a job site. The simple design and incredibly low barrier to entry means that even the most technologically challenged logger can join.

Twining Tales

By Tyler Beauman Abstract: How many ways are there to tell a story? What does it take to tell a story? Experiments in Digital Narrative takes a look at a few potential ways to create unique stories based on user interactions.

The project consists of a few ideas, each developed separately over past two semesters. The experiments focus on variables, decisions, and our senses, and will be presented in demo form for capstone presentation.

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Ever wonder what it would be like to be a commentator for

sports?

Video Games?

What about...

CrowndCast By: Brandon Poli

Abstract: In my 4 years of undergraduate study at the University of Maine, I’ve had the privilege to begin a career of amateur sports broadcasting at WMEB 91.9FM, UMaine’s student radio station. I was able to gain experience through attending live sporting events and broadcasting them over the radio. None of this would’ve been possible without the opportunity WMEB gave me.

However, with the growing culture of e-sports, video games played to a professional and competitive level, that made me realize there does not yet exist this same type of opportunity for amateur broadcasters to get started like I did. That’s where CrowdCast comes in. CrowdCast is an online community for those who want to get started in e-sports broadcasting, or “shoutcasting” by providing them a space to post content and get feedback, as well as some “raw material” to broadcast over. They will learn and grow through their experiences providing content for the subreddit while also getting tips and tricks from those who have more experience in broadcasting (like myself).

This capstone project is currently live at reddit.com/r/Crowd_Cast and my capstone blog can be found at policapstone.wordpress.com.

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Epitaph

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By: Leslie Hood Abstract: Epitaph is an interactive fiction piece in which users explore their own thoughts and feelings regarding mortality in relation to humancomputer interaction and attempts to find emerging cultural norms. It’s based on emerging research in a new field called “thanatosensitivity.”

Users explore the story, scattered and fragmented across the Internet, of two sisters who are separated by decades, by technology, and by death. Depending on how the users explore, they can learn more about the fate of the sisters and the future of someone close to them. The story is written in such a way to encourage users to think about the role technology plays in their lives – and their deaths.

McPeak Designs

By Hunter McPeak Abstract: Through the process of working with my initial graduate internship at Liberty Farms, I have compiled a good selection of clients for future design projects. When I took a trip to San Francisco, I showed some

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some of my portfolio to people and from there I was able to generate 3 new clients and this is important because it was a major shift in my capstone that helped me and made my capstone a stronger project.

As stated initially I had one client, but from showing my work I was able to generate 3 additional clients, so now my capstone has moved from making 1 wordpress based website, to selection of wordpress sites that can be used to show my progress and understanding of the wordpress itself. With this many wordpress sites being made I made the decision to make my capstone into a business portfolio presentation rather than a wordpress presentation. It is with the development of my understanding of wordpress as well as my business minor, that I can combined the two to create a successful career and portfolio to display on capstone night.

With my capstone being so based around wordpress and the progression, I really want to be able to showcase the fact that people can build functional websites rather than just blogs with this new technology. Overall the shift from hard coding websites to creating wordpress based themes with enhanced widgets is becoming a growing trend that offers a huge market.

Overall I chose wordpress rather than squarespace or any other web building app because it is more rounded and servers/hosts are very fond of using wordpress based sites. The transitions and working with wordpress as well as the amount of tutorials is something that makes it a good choice to start a business. For my business and the clients I am currently helping, their understanding of the web design and design in general is very minimal, so given my experience and past knowledge, learning wordpress features and has translated in actual work and has created a job for me. As stated before I have 3 new clients on top of the existing clients that I am already working for which is a good start to running a business and makes me want to learn the new technology that much more.

Responsive

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Furniture

Author: Ryan Wahle Abstract: Conventional furniture often fails to incorporate portability, versatility and interactivity into a single design. This project designs a piece of furniture that is defined by these three qualities through the use of 3D printers, small motors, sen sors and design concepts presented by origami and robotics.

These tools were used to build a piece of furniture that lays flat on the floor as a two dimensional hexagon, and through responsive behaviour can be transformed into a chair or table with the press of a button.

This design provides a portable, versatile and interactive solution for the constraints of common furniture and is significant because it can be applied to settings ranging from a studio apartment where space is limited to remote locations where compactness and portability are top priorities.

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Maine reduced moose collisions to an average of 443 a year, but dangers remain Animal Collision Prevention Author: Sara Webber Abstract: The animal-crossing warning signs that are currently posted along major roadways are incapable of alerting drivers with real-time tracking data of animal activity, rendering them static and minimally effective. Animal Collision Prevention will attempt to reduce the number of fatal accidents that drivers and large wildlife undergo every year in Maine. There needs to a proactive system that will prevent these situations before they happen. Using infrared technology to detect animals near the roadway, drivers can be warned of the potential danger ahead and protect themselves from injury and financial crisis.

Virtual Fitting Room Author: Joshua Couturier

Abstract:

This capstone research project started in September 2014. The goal was to create an experience using an Xbox One Kinect that could record measurements in inches across the human body. The point of this experience is to demonstrate that input devices such as the Xbox One can compete with hand taken measurements by tailors in-store, and can assist Kinect owners shopping from online at home.

Current studies over the past two years are saying that retail is changing from in store to online purchases more and more frequently. They also state that the future of online retail, like augmented fitting room experiences, and visual try on capabilities are what companies should be aiming for now. The most successful businesses will have incorporated these strategies over the next five years, to sell more product and to assist consumer experience in buying more effectively.

Come check out the advancements being made in the new age of retail!

Alphabet Reveal Author: Elise Galgano

Abstract:

Technology is changing the way children learn. We live in a world where children can easily engage in technology before they can create full sentences. This capstone explores the idea of using technology to educate, without requiring the child physically touch any of the technology.

This is explored through a game for children aged three to four that helps teach the alphabet. This game consists of a plush dog (that’s equipped with a webcam), a computer screen, and “magic” alphabet wands for the children to wave. As children show the toy dog their wand, an image will pop up on the screen.

The image contains hidden objects that start with the letter on the wand. As the child waves their wand around, they will see that they are now controlling that letter on the screen. They can then find the hidden objects by waving their wand over it.

Through this game children can practice letter recognition, begin linking letters with words, and practice their fine motor skills.

Fall Detection Device Author: Heather Anderson and Ben Herold-Porter

Abstract:

Fall Detection Device or F.D.D. is exactly as the title claims. This is a wearable device that will detect a fall and automatically contact a preset phone number. This device was originally created in mind to replace systems such as LifeAlert. LifeAlert requires a button to be pressed, this device will do the work for you, especially if you fall and are unresponsive. Our device will be deployed at Maine free skate.

Connecting the Past, Present, &

Future

Author: Bethany Warnock

Abstract:

Mankind has always been fascinated by the mysteries of the past. We strive to know more about our own ancestors and the world as it was when they lived. Outside of our own curiosity, our culture can benefit from learning about those that came before us. Whether our reasoning is spiritual, cultural or academic, we all need to look back in order to look forward.

This desire to reflect on the past is the sole purpose of the establishments we call historical societies.

These organizations make it their duty to collect the written and oral histories of a region, and make it openly available to the public. The Mount Desert Island Historical Society has performed this duty since 1931, and it is time that they take a look to the future, and embrace modern technology.

This capstone is about bringing a modern look and functionality to the technology that the historical society already has. Their website has been migrated to WordPress, and given a custom theme. The goal of their new website is to improve ease of use by inquirers, begin a more efficient exchange of information with other societies, and expand on their accumulated knowledge.

Photo Truth

Booth Authors: Joan Oparowski & Pip Komar Abstract: Big data is a term used for the collection of mass amounts of information about the general public that can be analyzed and potentially used by researchers and organizations to observe trends that could mitigate health risks and raise the efficiency of business models. Although the premise behind big data intends to work toward a human-optimized world, this kind of detailed, structured information about everyone in the world could be easily abused in ways many do not realize. We often consent to the collection and use of our information when using online retailers and social networks and are unaware of who uses that information and for what purpose. In an age of increasingly accessible information, it is important to take control of our own privacy and demand to know how it is used.

This capstone creates an isolated scenario intended to raise peopleĂ­s awareness of privacy issues and strives to understand peoples current beliefs and understanding of their privacy rights.

The Photo Truth Booth capstone can be found on display Monday 3/23 through Wednesday 3/25 from 8 am to 4 pm on the first floor of the Memorial Union across from the UCU.

Virtually Fearless By: Jacy Quint, Kelsey Philbrick, Kyle Fowlie Abstract: The Virtually Fearless research project aims to explore the benefits that may arise when using Virtual reality systems in conjunction with or in place of - exposure therapy (a technique in behaviour therapy intended to treat anxiety disorders.) It is not a project dedicated to simulating or re-inventing the exposure therapy process, but is purposed to determine if virtual experiences could potentially be used in place of their physical counterparts. For example, if a person is terrible afraid of spiders, traditional exposure therapy may have them gradually work towards a different mind-set by physically exposing them to their fear.

The Virtually Fearless project aims to determine if a virtual spider within a virtual world could be used instead. The participants of this study have the possibility of being exposed to spiders, heights, or enclosed spaces.

Their stress levels will be monitored during the entire process with a heart rate monitor attached to their finger. A relaxing environment will serve as a control and gauge participants resting hear-rate. This value will be compared to the other situations. If virtual reality is capable of aiding the exposure therapy process, their must be a noticeable different between the heart monitor data sets. This is how the researchers will determine if virtual reality is capable of creating a stress-inducing environment and possibly aiding the exposure therapy process.

Virtual reality could be beneficial in many ways. It costs less than traditional exposure processes, eliminates any physical risk, offers total control over any experience and allows patients to be treated in the comfort of a therapist’s office. Of course if the patient is ever over-stimulated they can remove the headset or the virtual world can be stopped/adjusted by the therapist. Virtual reality could also allow for the treatment of more specific fears and phobias, as the environments could be tailormade for individuals.

By Andrew Heretakis Abstract: Say One Thing (SOT) is a one-man social experiment application.

At its core SOT is a posting comment system with the added benefit (or detriment) of being completely anonymous, more anonymity than usernames and passwords. SOT has gone all the way to literal nothingness when it comes to the idea of a digital person.

Say One Thing strives to bring people further away while at the same time bringing their ideas together. The only way this can be achieved is through completely taking away outside and inside digital influence. Posters will post and commenter’s will comment on posts. Any chance of getting closer to anyone is nullified and made impossible.

The importance of this complete anonymity is huge. Any kind of influence such as a post history to read through or a username can have a significant effect on a person before they make a post. SOT is trying to achieve a place where users can solely post exactly what they would post without influence, and to see how people react in an unchained environment. Say One Thing is coded and designed by Andrew Heretakis and the beta is currently available here. (Site subject to change)

THE ALUMNI We as alumni aren’t that much older than the students enrolled now, and by reading our stories, we hope to send a powerful message...(hoping that the world doesn’t change drastically in a few years)! Each of us took something away different than the peers; we had different projects, goals, skill sets, and outlooks on the program in general.

We all had similar feelings toward the hardest course, what could be different in the major, what we would of done different, and how we challenged ourselves after graduation to put our New Media Degree into use.

We hope the faculty and students can use our feedback to continue to create a very in-depth and successful major for future generations, since technology, creative and innovative thinking, and design are truly the backbone to a well rounded society.

Interviews

Jonathan Cunningham

New Media Alumni Jonathan graduated in 2011 from the University of Maine at Orono in New Media. He currently holds a position as a film editor.

My concerns looking back on this subject is that the major was so scattered that it was hard to designate a specific focus and students were all My first thoughts over the place and the only were that New Media would professors that. The most be a great way to learn a bit of impressive professors I had code which I had dabbled with were part time and didn’t in high school and learn how have much pull in the say of to problem solve and design what was to be done as far as systems for users. I wasn’t New Media goes. The power sure exactly what I would be was solely in the hands of the learning or focusing in but I coding professors and they left was determined to learn as students to learn mostly on much as I could. My interest at their own and didn’t push in first were user interface design, the right ways. graphic design and animation.

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hat were your first thoughts going into New Media?

What did you learn from it?

I learned a bit about how people problem solve and how people approach new technologies. I learned a bit about coding, but not as much as I would have liked. I was driven to focus on Time Based arts portion of New Media because it had the best teachers.

“ “My capstone was a film project that included motion graphics to help convoy the story message”

New Media Alumni What is your job now with your New Media degree?

I am a film editor for a documentary production house in Camden, Maine. I edit videos linked with one of the major travel companies in the world as well as work on conservation videos and other projects associated with the curiosity channel.

What was the hardest course in New Media?

The hardest course were the courses that taught coding, and thinking like a coder.

What was your favourite course?

The best course there by far were the motion graphic courses that taught After

Effects and Premiere.

Learning the Adobe software has been invaluable for my profession. Knowing these skills gave me a leg up and surely lead to my success in finding a job and being hired over other candidates.

What was your capstone about?

My capstone was a film project that included motion graphics to help convoy the story message. The motion graphics were suppose to show help what I have learned when it comes to mixing both animation and live film.

If there is one thing you could go back and tell yourself to prepare for in this major, what would it be?

I would focus more on code and video installations, so I could add that to my knowledge pool, and than I would also focus on film and every aspect about it more I would really push myself to learn as much about post production as possible, I feel like an audio background and better color grading background would be be very helpful for me today.

What did you find was not working for you when you applied for jobs with your degree?

I actually had fairly good connections of my own accord, and through those, it helped me get the first job I applied for. I waited a year and developed a really strong portfolio and showed that at my first interview, and I got the first job I applied to, which I am still at today. I think showing my dedication and skill set really impressed the potential employer and helped me out a great deal.

Interviews

title is Graphic Designer/ Administrator. I am working on restructuring and developing their website.

I’ve made their current site responsive -accessible on all devices. I assist with internal graphic design & web development jobs, along with performing administrator tasks. Currently, I am stretching my animation muscles, building web animations that can be used for presentations, landing page content, etc.

What was your favourite course?

Katie St. Michel

New Media Alumni Katie graduated in 2012 from the University of Maine at Orono in New Media. She currently holds a position as a graphic designer.

greater skill than the ability to teach yourself. Continue learning everyday. I felt that the program gave me a basic survival pack of skill-sets that I was very excited will help me shape my career knowing I was about to learn path. New Media has given me how to animate, improve my the ability to create/edit videos, drawing skills, and become a develop animations, design/ proficient illustrator/concept build websites, and push my artist. New Media to me was a comfort zone into working with gateway to opportunities that circuits and switches. I learned would allow me to make money that I can do anything I set my doing what I love to do. And mind on. hopefully allow me to stay in Maine and work remotely.

What is your job now with your New Media degree?

What did you learn from it?

I currently work for a cyberWhat I learned from the New security firm called Northcross Media program is there is no Group in Portland, Maine. My

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hat were your first thoughts going into new Media?

My favourite course was with Aaron Boothroyd. I remember he taught me how to use Adobe Illustrator and a few other Adobe programs.

I felt like I could really be creative, and he was always there with some fresh ideas and hands on help when I needed it. I didn’t feel like I was being pushed too hard to create something perfect. I didn’t feel like I was creating something for him. I was creating for me.

What was the hardest course in New Media?

Hardest courses in New Media for me was every course with Mike Scott. He always had big goals for us, he would point us to certain sites for inspiration, but we were completely on our own.

I learned to teach myself which did turn out to be a great skill.

Picture of Katie St. Michel and Michaela King (also New Media Alumni 2012)

New Media Alumni What was your capstone about (brief summary)?

My capstone project was a necklace that had LED lights that would pulsate with the wearer’s heart rate. The necklace was built using a Lilypad Arduino kit and used a clip-on earring as the input. The earring would collect the data from the user’s heart-beat and that data would be projected through the LED’s in the necklace. The idea behind it was to create a necklace that would detect stress levels throughout your day, however we found that detecting stress was harder than we thought. So we started with capturing heart rate, and came up with a pretty neat project. I learned about circuits and conductive thread. Fun stuff!

If there is one thing you could go back and tell yourself to prepare for in this major, what would it be?

Prepare for long sleepless nights and drink lots of coffee. Think about what you want from the major, and plan out exactly what classes you want to take. I didn’t get into some of the classes I wanted to, and I regret that. Like I build logos for people all the time, and never got to take a class in Logo Design. Be prepared to be frustrated with teachers, and frustrated with yourself.

You’re learning, that’s all that matters. Good luck.

“there is no greater skill than the ability to teach yourself�

Katie's Watercolor Painting

Interviews

New Media Alumni Elysa graduated in 2011 from the University of Maine at Orono in New Media. She currently holds a position as a Sr. Trainer at Verizon

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hat were your first thoughts going into New Media ?

My first thought was how excited I was to finally find a major between my two favourite subjects, art and technology.

have from the program is how it it changed my view of learning.

After completing the program, I had exposure to so many different facilitation techniques and styles that I was a wellrounded learner and could pick anything up quickly.

What did you learn from it?

What is your job now with your New Media degree?

I learned a lot from the program. I learned different programming languages, software, photography, and conceptual art, about other artists who made a difference.

I also learned how to convey my ideas in a structured way so that they’d be implemented successfully in the “real world”.

The most important takeaway I

I am currently a Sr. Trainer at Verizon Wireless. I utilize many skills I learned while in the New Media program. I use many kinds of technology when I facilitate or launch a new product. I also have been contracted to be the center’s photographer, so my journalism photography background helps out!

Elysa Woodhead What was the hardest course in New Media?

They were all challenging in their own way. I can’t really say which was the hardest!

What was your favourite?

I really loved the photography classes I took with Bill Kuykendall. I also enjoyed my capstone classes because it was my own body of work and I was totally invested in it.

What was your capstone about (brief summary)?

“Introduction to the Internet” was my capstone. I designed and taught senior citizens how to use the Internet.

I taught them how to use Google, how to e-mail and Facebook. We talked a lot about Internet security and how to protect them from fraud. It was a blast!

Elysa using scratchboard to convey her artwork

New Media Alumni enough I was getting special projects and promotions. I now have a position where I travel frequently and can work with people from all around the U.S. Keep an open mind and go with Having a degree was a great the flow. start, but as recent grads we can’t expect to get a job that fits What did you find was not our degree right off. A degree working for you when you doesn’t work on its own, you applied for jobs with your have to have the drive and degree? dedication to back it up.

If there is one thing you could go back and tell yourself to prepare for this major, what would it be?

I actually got the job with Verizon Wireless right out of college! I looked for a company with growth opportunities and started taking calls. It wasn’t using the skill set I developed in the program, but that came later when my work ethic spoke for itself. Soon

“My capstone was about Introduction to the Internet. I designed and taught senior citizens how to use the internet”

New Media Alumni

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Interviews

hat were your first thoughts going into New Media?

When I first started college in the Fall 2007, I knew my focus was to someday ‘lead and be in charge’ of group projects and activities, but also focus on design. I began my college career at Maine Maritime Academy where I studied Power Engineering…but since I was not strong enough in math and physics, and only pursued the design aspect…I was not making it in that field. I then transferred to UMO where I tried Mechanical Engineering… again, loved the drafting portion, but hated everything else. I was beginning to feel I would never find a major that was all about design and creativity…until my mother and I discovered the New Media program at UMO! My first thoughts going in were sceptical, for I had no idea what it entailed, nor did I know anyone who had graduated from it…and NMD100 scared me to pieces when I couldn’t even answer “What is New Media” right. So my thoughts on going into New Media were “What did I get myself into?!” (haha).

What is your job now with your New Media Degree?

Amy Collinsworth Amy graduated in 2012 from the University of Maine at Orono in New Media. She currently holds a position as head of Marketing at Brewer Federal Credit Union

I actually went back to school after graduating in 2012 with my B.A. in Art and pursued my A.S. in Computer Aided Drafting and Design from EMCC. I wasn’t satisfied nor felt prepared after graduating and wanted to find a more specific concentration. There were many programs at EMCC in my major that offered so many cool design opportunities as well: 3D Max Design, more Photoshop classes, AutoCAD Revit and Inventor with 3D printing. You can view my online portfolio at: www.collinsworth.carbonmade.com

And once I graduated from that, I still had a hard time finding jobs, for obviously there are none in Northern Maine, and two, no experience…I even contemplated doing my B.A. online in Game Design from Full Sail University, but decided that would be too much…I was beginning to feel very stressed and discouraged until my neighbor who is the PRESIDENT/CEO of Brewer Federal Credit Union offered me a full time Marketing Position. So with a New Media and CADD degree, I’m head of marketing and senior management at Brewer Federal Credit Union. I do everything from photoshop, social media management, event organizing, magazine publishing, video editing, and more! So did I succeed? I believe so!

Picture of Amy Collinsworth and Ellison Hendrix (also New Media Alumni 2012)

New Media Alumni What was your capstone about?

My capstone was no where near complete, but the idea and concept behind it were the inital stages of what later became an actual app from the company I worked off. I wanted to create an app that would allow people to add makeup, piercings, try on different cultural attire, tattoos, etc. And even though there were apps SIMILAR to mine already out, I basically added in and recreated what they hadn’t done (aka New Media).

The best part about it? I actually had a phone conversation a year later with the CEO of ModiFace who’s company is world renowned: New York, Los Angeles, Paris, etc...and when I told him of my idea of virtually trying on makeup that would scan your photo and automatically place makeup on your face, he said they were already launching that idea in a few short months! I felt that everytime I tried to create an app, I wasn’t experienced enough to complete it, and watched the app be released years later...it was very frustrating!

What was the hardst course in New Media?

PHP by far!!! Even CSS….I understood the generic concepts of the coding, for I had done COS 120 and had a general sense, but I had absolutely no idea about the program PHP, nor did I have anyone who really help me. I had to bug the assistant, John Bell, for most of my projects…I wanted to just focus on the design part of the coding, so it would have been easier to find a friend who excelled in coding to pair up with.

Coding is something that I think you can’t teach with a mixed level of learning. There needs to be a complete basic course, intermediate, and advanced course, and it was very nerve wracking.

Vector Portrait of Amy in Beauty and the Beast What did you learn from it?

I learned quite a bit of material, actually, more so in one field than another, but still comprehended and mentally noted the other coursework’s objectives. Grades to me prove nothing, for I was not a school person and didn’t want to over exert myself for the glory of a grade…to me, the skills that I learn that help me achieve real life goals are what counts. I learned a lot of basic skills that look amazing on a resume: Adobe Suit, Web Coding, Design and Photography, etc…I found that employers require those types of skill sets for most jobs in the design field.

I learned that New Media is a course of independence, that you need to be able to do things on your own, research and develop your own creativity, and you HAVE to think outside the box…I was not someone to be in touch with real world scenarios, know all about ‘wordpress’ or other platforms that my classmates were aware of…so that made it harder…but, I did learn the basics…which certainly helped!

If there is one thing you could go back and tell yourself to prepare for in this major, what would it be?

Research and prepare for ‘future’ technology, know what sort of things are out there that help people tell stories now, learn coding ahead of time for sure, and don’t be afraid to ask for help and partner up with people. I wish they had partnered a coder with a designer, a Photoshop editor with a photographer, a story teller with website experience, etc…I’d tell myself to also pick an interest and study really hard at it…

Oh and the biggest thing…EXPERIENCE!! Take the opportunity of summer internships, for the biggest reason for not getting jobs in today’s world is the lack of experience…You could be a dynamite coder, but if you don’t’ have a work experience on your resume, forget it.

Taking a coding course with someone who already had a job, been through the material, or knew what it was before going into it…Intimidation was a big key factor when I was there.

What was your favorite course?

Even though I didn’t receive glowing grades (again, timing and prior knowledge of programs were not my strong suit) for I always thought of these elaborate projects, apps, movies, etc., but didn’t have the skills, equipment, or companions to accomplish them…, which discouraged me greatly.

However, there were a lot of classes I did enjoy, basically any class that focused on narratives and design…I feel bad though because I took Bill’s documentary photography class and could of aced that in a heart beat, but felt out of place with the other students, so I sort of just said eh, and did the bare minimum…again…intimidation…I understood the concept very much, and if I retook these classes again, I would definitely get an A this time around.

“Take the opportunity to invest in summer internships.

Companies won’t hire regardless of skill set, without exerience!”

Interviews

What is your job now with your New Media degree?

I was lucky enough to have a friend in New Media who was working in the field when he came into the major.

When he left his position, I was highly recommended and I got the job. In applying for jobs, I discovered that if you don’t have more than 5 years experience, you aren’t going to get the job.

What was the hardest course in New Media?

Anything with Mike Scott.

Mostly the hardest courses were anything to do with coding. I never took html or css, but instead focused on arduino based works because I was interested in robotics.

Emma Hamm

New Media Alumni Emma graduated in 2012 from the University of Maine at Orono in New Media.

W

hat were your first thoughts going into New Media?

Does ‘I’m absolutely terrified’ count? College was a really rocky start for me. I was scared to leave home, scared to not know no one, scared to do a lot of things. New Media promised me a chance to learn film and develop skills. But honestly? I went into it not knowing what I wanted out of life. I’m not sure if I even do now.

What did you learn from it?

This major is definitely one where you have to push yourself and teach yourself.

If you’re looking for a major where the professors sit down and explain everything to you, that’s not going to happen here.

The adjuncts help a lot, but there’s only so much.

What was your favourite?

The photography and documentary film courses with Bill Kuykendall (now retired) were absolutely amazing. On top of that, Film and Motion Graphics was absolutely amazing.

What was your capstone about (brief summary) I had a very untraditional capstone. My interests lie in Special Effects Makeup, and I sculpt, mold, and design characters that I then make out of foam latex, glue to a person’s face, and then paint.

Unfortunately for me, I didn’t want to learn on my own and When my original plan of I felt like the education I was paying for should be taught to LED’s fell through, I ended me. I don’t believe that I should up go online, learn it, and then have it critiqued by the people who didn’t teach it to me.

New Media Alumni designing my website and starting my business out of it.

If there is one thing you could go back and tell yourself to prepare for this major, what would it be?

You aren’t going to make any money doing this. If you want to make money, go into computer science or marketing. IT is always looking for help, marketing opens up a lot of doors. New Media dances too much in between those to make any kind of stable living.

What you found was not working for you when you applied for jobs with your degree?

I didn’t have enough experience. I have been working in this field for 2 years, and I still don’t have enough experience. 5 years plus. Not to mention that you don’t leave college with a portfolio or any ideas of what KIND of jobs that you can get. They throw you out into a world with no experience, no resume, and no idea of what you can or cannot do. On top of having no connections, this was a scary place to be.

Prosthetics and Bodypainting- http://www.magpieswardrobe.com/

Emma has a book published which you can find on amazon! http://www.amazon.com/ dp/B00WC5UUEC

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CONGRATULATIONS

MIDCOAST FEDERAL CREDIT UNION ON YOUR DIAMOND AWARD RECIEVED AT THE CUNA CONFERENCE IN LAS VEGAS 2015

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MIDCOAST CREDIT UNION RECEIVES DIAMOND AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING MARKETING, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ACHIEVEMENTS BATH, ME – MIDCOAST Federal Credit Union in Bath, ME was recently honored with a Diamond Award, which recognizes outstanding marketing and business development achievements in the credit union industry.

The award was presented by the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) Marketing & Business Development Council, a national network comprised of over 1,200 credit union marketing and business development professionals. Awards are given in each of 29 categories ranging from advertising to community events and beyond.

Midcoast Federal Credit Union won the Brand / Corporate Identity category. The entry included documentation of the Credit Union’s newly established logo, marketing materials, office renovations, mission statement and core values.

“The Diamond Award competition is the most prestigious competition for excellence in marketing and business development in the credit union industry,” said Michelle Hunter, Chair of the CUNA Marketing & Business Development Council, and SVP of Marketing & Development at Credit Union of Southern California. “Credit unions that receive these awards should be extremely proud of their accomplishments and know that their work represents the very best examples of creativity, innovation, relevance, and execution. The Diamond Awards are not easily earned and the CUNA Marketing & Business Development Council is proud to honor those who are deserving of this recognition.”

Award winners were recognized at the council’s 22nd annual conference held March 25-28 in Las Vegas, Nev. For more information on the Diamond Awards or to view the entire list of winners, go to www.cunamarketingcouncil.org.

For more information about Midcoast Federal Credit Union, please visit: midcoastfcu.me.

Midcoast Federal Credit Union currently serves over 15,300 members and has offices located in Brunswick, Bath, Edgecomb and Thomaston.

The CUNA Marketing and Business Development Council is a member-led organization comprised of more than 1,200 credit union professionals from across the United States. The Council strives to provide superior educational and networking opportunities to help its members be recognized in the credit union industry as the premier experts in credit union marketing, business development, and related disciplines. The Marketing & Business Development Council is one of the six organizations that make up the CUNA Councils, a network of more than 6,400 credit union professionals. For more information, visit www.cunacouncils.org or www.cunamarketingcouncil.org.

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For years, Brewer FCU has not been shy about helping out their community. We have donated generously to those who truly need the help in the towns of Dedham, Eddington, Holden, Orrington, and Clifton. This past year, we were granted charter expansion to all of Penobscot County, where took full advantage of it.

We hope to continue our support of Penobscot County and help those who need it! Our Credit Union would be nothing without the loyalty and committment of our members!

Brewer FCU also donates generous amounts to schools, charaties, commerces, events, businesses, and much more!

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Brewer FCU is always involved in their community! Here are just some of the charities we cater to!

CHEFS Brewer Area Food Cupboard Maine CU Leagues’ Ending Hunger in Maine Campaign Credit Union Youth Week Financial Fitness Fairs Children’s Miracle Network City of Brewer 4th of July Fireworks Annual Yard Sale Box Tops and Label for Education Brewer Winterfest Schoool Supply Drive Special Olympics-Summer and Winter Games International Credit Union Day Member Appreciation Day Brenda Davis’ Walk to End Hunger Thanksgiving Food Drive Free the Z Turkey Drive for Chefs The Smile of a Child Christmas Program Monthly Dress Down to Help End Hunger CULAC Dress Down Don’t Tax My CU Campain Brewer Days Maine CU’s Ending Hunger Share the Bread Event at Good Shepherd Food Bank

Have a story you would like to see covered?

What about promoting your business?

Give us a call today or send us an email!

Our Marketing Specialist is waiting to hear from you!

Amy Collinsworth: amy@brewerfcu.org

BREWER FEDERAL CREDIT UNION 229 Dirigo Drive & 77 North Main St. Brewer, ME, 04412 207-989-7240