Programming for New Media Artists

Devices

ranked from easiest to hardest

OSX:
- Works great
- Easy setup
- Runs on specialized hardware
- $$$
Windows
- Requires extra setup for good audio performance
- Can be tricky to configure for best real-time performance
- Runs on a large array of hardware
- $$
Linux
- Some learning curve
- Can achieve excellent performance
- Free, not corporate owned
- Runs on almost anything, including the $30 Raspberry Pi
- The only decent option for older or slower hardware, performance-wise
- If you go deep enough with Pd, you'll end up looking hard at Linux...

Do the ethics of the corporation behind the product(s) you use to create or to be a part of your art say anything about the art itself?

not listed in any particular order

Processing:
- A text-based language based on Java.
- This is great for visuals but its core does not support sound.
- The tutorials and examples are wonderful, with tons of interactive help
- Open Source: runs on Linux

Pure Data:
- Graphically based
- Draw a diagram of what you want
- Data flow
- Open Source: runs on Linux
- Originally audio only. Supports video with extended library (Gem)
Max/MSP
- commercial cousin of Pure Data
- Larger user base than Pure Data
- Probably the documentation is better than with Pd
- This is getting some attention at WSU School of Music (Aleks Sternfeld-Dunn)
- will not run on Linux
SuperCollider
- Text based, powerful for sound
- Not sure if it supports video
Csound
- The grandaddy audio synthesis language
- Supports some video with extensions.
- Not the best starter language?
Open Frameworks
- The fastest, bestest, and hardest
- Usually overkill
- Runs on everything including your phone
- Open Source: runs on Linux

Arduino
- great for simple sensors (proximity, motion, light)
- often interfaced to a computer. Hooks up to any language easily