Virtual Design Studio

Sharing the Dream

Sharing the Dream Colin Seow Whil~ the initial conception of a piece of architecture is often the vision of an individual, its ultimate realization is in almost all cases a product of collaborative effort. Collaboration is synergetic in nature and relies on the communication of a vision, ideas, concepts and process. Does this occur best within a structured, often hierarchical environment? One of the important acts of collaboration is the exchange and sharing of information, or in computational terms - data. On reflection there appeared to be a strong correlation between the content which is to be expected, the nature and properties of shared data and the manner in which it was used by students and tutors alike. This is fundamentally significant because it gives us a reasonable expectation of how the data will be used and allows us to anticipate the value of sharing that data. When we consider the nature of data, we real ize that it can be denotative, connotative or both denotative and connotative. Based on these properties, we can categorize data into the following idealized states: (1) existential data (denotative), (2) representational data (connotative), and (3) instructional data. Existential data is purely denotative in nature. It exists merely (from our point of view) to be discovered, understood or experienced. Representational data on the other hand, is purely connotative in nature. It has no intrinsic meaning and only describes other data. Data, however, almost never exists in either of these ideal states, and is usually both denotative as well as connotative at the same time. Consider a drawing of a floor plan. It is connotative in that it represents a piece of architecture (idea or object). It is also denotative in that it contains information, perhaps unintentionally embedded, such as undiscovered patterns or proportional relations. As architects and students of architecture , we are all familiar with using this type of data both to communicate as well as explore ideas. Within the computer environment, it is therefore primarily a problem of establishing protocols, conventions and formats for exchanging this information. 38 Virtual Design Studio Instructional or leverage data is neutral in that it is neither connotative nor denotative. It, however, acts on other data, for instance, rendering it for observation or compiling it for correlation. This is especially relevant because the data within a computer system can only be acted upon or manipulated through software and hardware. This not only demands that we develop new and better tools in order to work in this environment, but it also suggests a new paradigm, one where the network is not merely a conduit but also a receptacle for data. This in turn further suggests that the data within this information net must be considered as virtual artifacts - abstractions of the collective visions of all participating collaborators. Experience from the Virtual Design Studio showed that correspondence (electronic or otherwise) lacks direct immediacy, and telecommunications still imposes inconveniences because of time and transmission rate differences. Although it is not simultaneous , and we have work to do on the organizational issues, it remains a huge improvement in potential choice of collaborative associates. If this conduit/ receptacle were to function instead as an intermediate agent, then perhaps it could assist collaboration instead of impede it. An ideal example might be an artificial intelligence entity acting as a proxy for all parties involved in the collaborative effort. Such an entity would allow every individual direct and interactive access to data and ideas, including, to some degree, the points of view of individuals. This utopian view suggests that we modify our paradigm of conduit/receptacle to include the computer network as conduit/receptacle/proxy, and perhaps someday even conduit/receptacle!collaborator ! Such hybrid potential challenges the imagination. Ironically, while the communications and computing revolution has given us the opportunity to collaborate over long distances, it has also become an obstacle to effective collaboration because it limits the intimacy with which we communicate and it also fragments ideas because different forms of data often require different formats. Thus, to effectively collaborate, this relatively new medium must be rendered either as transparent as possible or become the locus for the collective vision of the collaborators. Sharing the Dream 39 Icon from the Digital Pinup Board. Fig. 1 The DigitalPinup Boardasynchronously accessed for reading and writing. Note the divergent login times for each workstation. Workstation 1 Barcelona ~~~