Download - Positioning the Avatar
P O S I T I O N I N G T H E AVATA R
P E R S P E C T I V E , A F F E C T, I N V E S T M E N T
S PA C E W A R !P H O T O C R E D I T: J A S O N E P P I N K H T T P : / / W W W. F L I C K R . C O M / P H O T O S / 3 8 1 0 2 4 9 5 @ N 0 0 / 8 4 2 0 8 8 7 9 1 6 /
F I G U R E S O F T H E AVATA R
• Perspective
• Cursor
• Theology
P E R S P E C T I V E
1 .
AVATA R I S N ’ T P E R S P E C T I V E
• Design problems
• Industry short-hand
• Analytically unsound
• Ignore avatar itself
– B R E N D A N K E O G H
“The puppeteer is both liberated and constrained by the abilities of the puppet.”
C U R S O R
2 .
T H E C U R S O R
• Textual interfaces
• Graphical interfaces
• Visual affordances
• User agency
A T H E O L O G I C A L E C O N O M Y O F T H E AVATA R ?
3 .
A T R I N I T Y O R A PA N T H E O N ?
• Avatar = incarnation
• Player, character, game
• Multiplayer gaming
E V E O N L I N E
H O W T O D O T H I N G S W I T H A VA TA R S
• Design problems
• Construction of agency
• Economics of avatars
P O S I T I O N I N G T H E AVATA R
P E R S P E C T I V E , A F F E C T, I N V E S T M E N T