Daroc Alden

This will be a beginner's guide to creating text-based, first person interactive (computer) fiction using the Inform software. We'll discuss what kinds of stories work, how to make interlocking loops of choices for our readers/players, and how to create a world with only a small text box to work with! From installing the program through learning a core group of commands, from designing a non-frustrating game through adapting to the fast-paced nature of these games, we will laugh, try things, and have fun. How do we help our readers create the ending that's best for them?

Note: For more information about the Collaborative Feedback Method in SPACE, please check out our video here.

What does a computer scientist wish that writers knew? That we are building aliens right here on Earth? That perception is not what we think it is? Join us for four weeks of learning, writing, and feedback. In "How Does Hacking Actually Work?" we'll learn to write far more complex and realistic scenes than Hollywood. In "Computer Perception" we'll talk about detecting the simple presence of volts and the most subtle patterns of the cosmos. In "Computer Interfaces" we're going to cook up stories about the Alien, the Understander, and the Quality of Misunderstanding. Finally in "Atemporal Decision Theory" we're going to ask enough questions about Truth, sentience, and honor to fill adventure after adventure with artificial and artisanal intelligences. Each week we'll have a learning and discussion day plus a day to reflect on "This idea made me ask 'what if?' and reach for my keyboard."

Note: For more information about the Collaborative Feedback Method in SPACE, please check out our video here.