Highlights and Features

Stanford's How They Got Game Project of the Stanford Humanities Laboratory, the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University, and the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco recently launched a series of exhibits and events related to computer and videogames.

Fictional Worlds, Visual Experiences: Storytelling and Computer Games

Computer games and the narratives that propel them are the focus of an exhibition that opened November 12 at the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University. Fictional Worlds, Virtual Experiences: Storytelling and Computer Games, on view in three galleries through March 28, 2004, features the live projection of a networked, “massively multiplayer” virtual world, and interactive game stations immersing visitors in the storytelling aspects of games, while challenging them to contemplate the history and the future of virtual gaming.

The exhibition derives from research of the How They Got Game Project at the Stanford Humanities Laboratory, a project seeking a path-finding narrative for the historical and critical appreciation of computer and video games.Fictional Worlds is guest-curated by Dr. Henry Lowood, Curator for History of Science & Technology Collections, Stanford University Libraries, in collaboration with Casey Alt, graduate student in the Program for History and Philosophy of Science.

In conjunction with this exhibit, an all-day conference, open to the public, was held at Stanford on Friday, Feb. 6, also with the title, Fictional Worlds, Virtual Experiences. The conference featured speakers from industry and academia addressing themes related to the significance and potential of computer games as narrative medium. These speakers included Will Wright, Haden Blackman, Sheldon Pacotti, Kevin O'Hara, Katherine Isbister, Henry Lowood, Scott Bukatman, Casey Alt, and Jane McGonigal.

Bang the Machine: Computer Gaming Art and Artifacts

The exhibition at the Cantor center coincides with the related exhibition at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco that opened on January 17. Bang the Machine: Computer Gaming Art and Artifacts is one of the first exhibits dedicated to the impact of computer and video games on social practices of communication and artistic production. It includes three related exhibitions and projects, Game Scenes, Game Commons (Gallery 3) and Playshop (in the former café space).

Telling the story of Wang Weilin in Tianamen Square via a video game.

The main gallery of Game Scenes features a range of projects from military simulations to virtual art galleries and dance clubs. Combat Simulation features one of the earliest and most significant war fighting simulations, “The Reconstruction of the Battle of 73 Easting,” and moves forward to the U.S. Army's official state-of-the-art game, America's Army, which allows players virtually to explore the reality of soldiering. Experiments in other realms can explore remarkably similar goals in a completely different context of values and technology. For instance, in the Synaesthesia section, Club Busta Buena, developed by the Center's Young Artists at Work Program, shows how game technology can use dance performance as the physical basis for a virtual experience.Game Scenes showcases the work of a wide variety of national and international artists whose works are heavily influenced by computer games and associated technology. Bang the Machine was co-curated by Rene DeGuzman of the Yerba Buena Center and guest co-curator Henry Lowood.

A panel focused on discussion of issues raised by the exhibit was convened at the Yerba Buena Center on February 5, moderated by Henry Lowood, and featuring Casey Wardinski, Rainey Strauss, and Howard Rheingold.

Get in a conversation about email, and it won't be long before someone is talking -maybe more than talking! -about how much junk mail (spam) they get. Most spam is just annoying, but some is downright offensive. ITSS gets calls every day from faculty, students and staff asking how they can stem the tide of this problem.

The summer of 2003 taught a sobering lesson about computer security - that in today's highly connected computing environment, reacting to attacks is not good enough. The speed at which worms and viruses spread is so great that by the time you're aware of the threat it's probably too late. In a situation like this, prevention is the only cure.

Stanford's top officials are committed to taking this lesson to heart and pro-actively protecting the thousands of computers at the University. At the same time, Stanford wants to maintain the open, research-oriented nature of its network to support its academic mission. A cross-campus working group was formed in October to come up with a solution that would achieve both goals; the result is the Managed Host Security project.

Managed Host Security Project

The objective of managed host security is to “scale the solution to the problem”. That is, since vulnerabilities can appear on each of thousands of computers, prevention must also take place on each individual machine.

The project has three parts: patch management, configuration management, and controlled network access. Patch management makes sure that critical security updates are automatically applied to each machine before exploits have a chance to appear “in the wild”. Configuration management makes sure that basic security standards (like good passwords on all accounts and no unwanted open services) are maintained. Controlled network access makes sure that machines that don't play well with others are kept away from the larger user community.

November's ITSS Customer Satisfaction Survey received a significant number of responses asking for automatic updates, quarantine of infected machines, and help in setting up secure systems. All of these needs are addressed by the Managed Host Security project.

What's Been Done

By the time you read this, the pilot phase of the project should be complete. ITSS will be deploying the BigFix patch management system to Windows-based computers all over the campus to keep them automatically updated. (Other platforms such as MacOS and Linux will follow later.) The project's goal is that the BigFix client should be “...the last patch you'll ever need.”

What's to Come

A self-help tool will be available shortly to identify and optionally fix many common configuration problems. Controlled network access is projected to be in place by the start of the next academic year.

Keeping computers secure is everyone's responsibility. With Managed Host Security, that responsibility could be as easy as clicking Yes.

Stanford University has joined forces with three other institutions, the University of Michigan, Indiana University and MIT, to develop the next generation of course management tools. This landmark venture, called the Sakai Project, aims to create open-source course management tools and related software for the higher education community. It is being launched with a grant from the Andrew Mellon Foundation, with a commitment of resources and adoption from the core institutions that will swiftly integrate and synchronize the educational software.

The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) offers workshops, resources, and individual consultations on pedagogical aspects of technology, includ ing the following highlights for this quarter.

Faculty Workshops

Use of Images in the Classroom Wednesday, April 21

Are you a faculty member who uses (or would like to use) images in the classroom? From cultural images in the humanities to rock formations in geology, images are a powerful aid in teaching and learning. Jeremy Sabol (CTL's Academic Technology Specialist) will host a workshop focused on the pedagogical use of images and will introduce technology that can facilitate it, including an easy-to-use web-based tool developed at the Center for Teaching and Learning.

Student Participation in Large Classes Thursday, June 3

Do you teach medium-sized to large classes? Then you may be interested in learning more about the Personal Response System, a mechanism that facilitates students to participate in the classroom and allows getting real-time feedback on how they are learning the main concepts. Marcelo Clerici-Arias (CTL's Associate Director for Social Sciences and Technology) will lead a workshop on the basics on PRS, with a follow-up advanced workshop in September.

TA Workshops

Basic Hands-On PowerPoint (Tuesday, May 4) and Advanced Hands-On PowerPoint (Tuesday, May 11), both led by Jeremy Sabol.

Other

A typical undergraduate student spends only 15-18 hours a week in the classroom. Far more time is spent in technology spaces such as those in libraries and residences, where learning, research, and course project collaboration take place. For example, courses in Stanford's Program in Writing and Rhetoric (PWR) and design courses offered by the Center for Design Research (CDR) both require group collaboration and problem solving among student teams. Survey results gathered from the 11,000 residential students also reveal a strong desire for collaborative spaces enhanced by technology designed to further group interaction. See also, “Student Computing Survey Results for 2003-2004” on page 14.

The TeamSpace will be located in the southeast corner of Meyer Library

Meyer TeamSpace, to be located on the first floor of Meyer Library early in Spring Quarter, will offer Stanford students increased productivity and collaboration with plug-and-play document and information sharing, displayed on a big group screen which is collectively controlled by all plugged-in laptops.

Stanford's Academic and Residential Computing groups and the Computer Science Department are working together to produce and operate the TeamSpace. Clara Shih, a graduate student in Computer Science played a key role in getting this project up and running and is excited about bringing this technology to all students.

What Is It?

Professors, TAs, and students who participate in the residence-based Structured Liberal Education (SLE) program at Florence Moore Hall (FloMo) used to have lectures and discussions in a lounge equipped with an overhead projector - the old kind - and a big-screen TV. Thanks to a joint project of Residential Education, SLE and its parent organization, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education (VPUE), and Residential Computing, they now use state-of-the-art presentation and audio-visual equipment in Stanford's first residential “Smart Lounge.” In addition, when classes or discussion groups aren't in session, the facility is used for residential programming such as guest speakers and movie nights.

"Smart Lounge" in Florence Moore Hall

The FloMo lounge, modeled after the “SmartPanel” technology-enhanced classrooms provided at Stanford by the Registrar's Office, includes a ceiling-mounted LCD projector, remotely operated retractable screen, multi-format VCR and DVD players, wireless microphone system, CD recorder for archiving lectures, and six audio speakers. Multiple inputs on the SmartPanel allow concurrent connections by two computers and other sources, such as game boxes. Another device allows real-time web-based control and monitoring of the SmartPanel across the network.

“The new technology has already made a big difference,” says Greg Watkins, who is a SLE instructor as well as Resident Fellow for Florence Moore East. “We had a lecture from Professor Hinton (Music) this week on Mozart's The Magic Flute. He incorporated into his lecture two tracks from audio CDs and a chapter from a DVD -- now projected on a screen large enough for the 80 students plus teaching staff to have a good view from anywhere in the room.” As for weekly SLE film screenings, adds Watkins, “when you're studying film as text, it's important that students have a good viewing situation.”

FloMo East RCC (Resident Computer Coordinator) Peter Deng reports that residential uses have included casual student activities as well as formal residential education programs, with a group of students playing X-Box video games one night, to a multimedia presentation by famed sleep researcher and Stanford professor William Dement another night. For Parents Weekend in February, the Resident Assistants secretly obtained baby pictures of FloMo residents and showed them in a continuous computer slideshow during a reception for parents and students.

“Staff and students in the residences have been requesting this kind of presentation equipment for years, but there's been no funding for it,” says Rich Holeton, Head of Residential Computing, who co-managed the project with Watkins. “The FloMo project was made possible by a unique partnership between VPUE and ResEd, combining academic and residential programming in an unprecedented way.” Residential Computing will support the Smart Lounge the same way it supports residence computer clusters. RCC Deng provides training for staff and students using the room, along with troubleshooting and first-tier support for problems; central Residential Computing staff are available for second-tier support and maintenance. The audio-visual equipment will be upgraded in a regular replacement cycle.

One of the Digital Language Lab's ongoing tasks is the virtualization of the Lab's collection of foreign language content stored on audio and video tapes, CDs, and other static media. The collection is diverse, ranging from the tape series to accompany the most recent Spanish textbook to rare recordings of threatened indigenous languages. Located on the second floor of Meyer Library, the Lab serves much of this otherwise unwieldy content in digital form from the its web site at:

During the winter term, English Department Academic Technology Specialist, Matthew Jockers, teamed up with English Professor Franco Moretti to offer a graduate course titled Electronic Data, Literary Theory. The course explored various ways in which literary material can be quantified, turned into literary “data,” and how to study, explore, and mine large electronic corpora.

New Ways to Analyze Text

The course and methodologies were typical neither to literary scholarship, in general, nor to the field of Humanities Computing, in particular. Rather than doing typical text analysis where, for example, an electronic version of some text is fed to a concordance program that looks for word frequencies or collocations, Jockers and Moretti sought new ways of defining what constitutes the subject of literary study, choosing to analyze pieces of many texts, rather than one or two whole texts.

Just days before the course was to begin, Moretti was interviewed by the New York Times for an article titled “Studying Literature by the Numbers” in which Moretti outlined some of his thoughts on the quantification of literature. Among other things, he noted that the traditional study of literature, a study of a few select texts from a given period, provides us with a rather distorted slice of literary history. The remedy, Moretti said, is to replace close reading of a limited number of texts with the sort of abstract models that we find in the sciences.

Preparation

In preparation for the course, Moretti and Jockers, assisted by several dedicated graduate students, created three datasets for the class to investigate. The datasets included a file of 8000 19th century novel titles and publication dates, another file containing the first paragraphs from 250 novels from three specific years, and a final database of Irish-American fiction, which included some 700 records each one including specific information about the text such as its title, publication date, fictional setting, regional setting, and author gender.

Tools Used

To analyze this data, the instructors employed several freely and commercially available applications, but the thrust of the analysis was achieved by using a suite of tools that Jockers developed specifically for the course. The beta version has been named “CATools”, short for Corpus Analysis Tools, and is an Internet-based application written in PHP.

CATools shows word counts.

The tools are designed to mine the literary datasets for features that would be of particular interest to scholars of literature. One of the tools, for example, has been used to analyze the evolution of literary titles over a period of 100 years. Via the Internet, users of CATools submit their data to the processor which provides them with statistical summaries of the data, based on pre-defined criteria.

In the case of the 8000 19th century titles, the program outputs a year-by-year summary of title lengths along with descriptive statistics including mean title length, range, and standard deviation. The program also assesses the “distinctiveness” of the titles for that year by weighing the frequency of unique words versus repeated words, and provides a concordance of the most frequently occurring words. Users of the tool can then choose to graph any one of the various features, seeing graphically, for example, how the mean title length from 1800 to 1900 decreases by more than 100 percent.

Another tool offers researchers the opportunity to conduct searches based on “semantic clusters,” groups of words denoting similar sorts of ideas or themes. A researcher using the Irish American Literature dataset, might, for example, wish to explore what correlations may exist between watershed moments in Irish history and the literature being written by Irish immigrants and exiles in the United States. Using the semantic clustering tool to look for words denoting attitudes toward emigration and exile, the researcher might discover that while negative attitudes toward emigration, including anti-British sentiment, persist in the literature written and set in the East, Irish-Americans writing outside the urban centers of New York and Boston, tend to be more optimistic about the future and less inclined to dwell on the circumstances of their exile from Ireland.

For More Information

Oh no! Something happened…you lost some email. Maybe you accidentally deleted the message, or your mail program died, or the campus email system hiccuped in a bad way. It doesn't matter. You need to get the message back, or at very least discover who sent it, so you can ask them to send the message again.

Relax. The campus mail system has you covered. You can fix the situation. ITSS, the organization that runs the campus mail system, has created several self-service web tools that help you recover lost email. Want details? Take a look at:

The Sundial calendaring service is gaining widespread acceptance throughout the Stanford campus. Sundial provides the University with a fully featured, common calendaring system that is maintained centrally.

Sundial currently has over 1400 registered users from approximately 135 departments including ITSS, Chemistry, Music, Law School, Graduate School of Business, Institute for International Studies, Office of Sponsored Research, Residential & Dining Enterprises, Economics, Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Pediatrics, School of Earth Sciences, School of Education and School of Engineering.

Information Technology Systems and Services (ITSS) has launched a campaign, including funding for system upgrades, to help administrators who use Macintosh computers upgrade from operating system OS 9 to OS X.

Declining industry support for the older OS 9 technology has made it increasingly difficult to support applications on the Macintosh OS 9 platform - a trend that's already affecting the performance of a number of applications, say ITSS managers. With the introduction of new administrative software, using the old OS 9 systems “...is no longer just inconvenient, it's hampering [staff's] ability to work,” said Nancy Ware, ITSS director of strategic communications.

Although ITSS has a goal of upgrading all administrative users to OS X by December 2004, the upgrade is most urgently needed for Oracle Financials and ReportMart2 users who are currently running Macintosh OS 9.x.

“ReportMart2 users are already experiencing problems on OS 9 and the older system will not be certified for use after the Oracle Financials upgrade which is scheduled for implementation the weekend of April 9,” Ware said. “ReportMart2 users, in particular, need to start upgrading immediately,” she added.

In addition to the operating system upgrade, ITSS has set a G3 processor with 512 MB RAM as minimum standard required for Macintosh administrative users. “Depending on the type and amount of work that they perform, individual users' hardware needs will vary,” said Karen Gibbons, ITSS project manager.

To help Oracle and ReportMart2 users get upgraded to OS X as soon as possible, ITSS will provide:

The annual Information Technology Open House, jointly sponsored by ITSS and SULAIR, was held on January 14 in the Tresidder Student Union, Oak Lounge. Attendees met, asked questions of, and interacted with the representatives from about thirty campus-wide technology service groups who participated.

Despite rainy weather, the number of attendees, the level of interaction and the participants' enthusiam were high. Two emails received after the event were especially appreciative:

From a faculty member: “ It was very helpful to me. I came seeking to learn how to incorporate two new software components for my spring class. All the technical, server, support, and licensing people were in one place to get all my questions answered. I walked out with the problems essentially solved.”

From an administrator: “I really enjoyed seeing under one roof all the parts of the IT puzzle on campus. Because the campus is so decentralized, I've been piecing these very services together.... I put myself on one or two useful mailing lists... It was a great opportunity to connect in with all the IT services on campus at one time. I really enjoyed the networking and information sharing.”

Although this carefully coordinated event won't be repeated until next year, a useful web-artifact does remain at: