Dr. Jason W. Ellis' Blog on Science Fiction, Computers, Artificial Intelligence, LEGO, Skateboarding, and More
This is another image created using my fMRI brain scan images with Stable Diffusion, A1111, and controlnet. My brain’s folds turned into pipes and took on this heat map coloration. The lines of connection surround the brain–kind of like the path of your ship in Konami’s Gyruss video game.
For the next few weeks, I’m going to be sharing some of the images that I have created using Stable Diffusion, an opensource generative AI text-to-image model created by Stability.AI. Today begins the series with images based on a classic video game.
Earlier this year, I used the low-resolution screenshot of Williams’ 1982 Moon Patrol video game from its Wikipedia page and manipulated it with Stable Diffusion and Automatic1111’s stable-diffusion-webui tool. After many, many iterations with img2img and some inpainting, I arrived at the image above. The most difficult part of the image was creating the moon buggy with six wheels, something that most SD 1.5 derived models seem to abhor.
Later, I took another stab at transforming the gameplay screenshot to a high resolution version. This time, I used controlnet to create the moon buggy based on the Alvis Stalwart. With inpainting, I was able to achieve great detail and lighting on the buildings.
Wouldn’t it be cool to see a new Moon Patrol game with high resolution graphics and ray tracing? Layer on backstory, mythos, and a brooding protagonist and it could be the next Halo series!
For the second Vintage Computer Festival Southeast (VCFSE 2.0) in 2014, I went with my Georgia Tech Library colleagues Sherri Brown, Lizzy Rolando, Alison Valk, and Wendy Hagenmaier (I wrote about the first VCFSE and shared photos last week here).
For me, it was great to bridge my professional and hobby worlds–one about studying and preserving our software and hardware digital culture and one about geeking out about retrocomputing–fixing it, using it, and playing with it. Sharing this event with my colleagues who were also negotiating these two overlapping worlds made it memorable to me.
Below, I share photos from the Digital Archivists presentation panel and photos of the Apple Pop-Up Museum and other installed exhibits, and many photos from the individual exhibitor hall.
When we first got there, we had a chance to talk with the founder Lonnie Mimms (right) who was wearing a green t-shirt emblazoned with the rebranding for the space as the Computer Museum of America.
Wendy and I co-presented about “Digital Archives and Vintage Computing at Georgia Tech” during the Digital Archivists panel. Our notes from the event can be found here.
Apple I in Wood Case
As I’ve written before here and here, I really like BeOS, so it was a special joy to see a BeBox in person for the first time at VCFSE 2.0.
Soon after the Nintendo Game Boy launched in 1989, I was gifted one. Being able to carry video games with me wherever I went was a ground-shaking experience. Even though I enjoyed Castlevania: The Adventure, Batman: The Video Game, Alleyway, Super Mario Land, and F-1 Race, I always returned to Tetris for hours of play eliminating lines while driven by the best chiptune music. Yet, all of these games were immersive experiences that were available nearly anywhere. Unlike a console, you didn’t have to monopolize the family TV. You had your own albeit small and black-on-green screen, a window to miniaturized interactive worlds.
Eventually, it became a habitual companion everywhere I went, including Italy with my high school Latin Club (though, I didn’t play it on the trip–I let my friend Brian hold it on the trip to play Star Trek, which he had bought to play even though he didn’t own a Game Boy). This nylon belt pouch was my favorite on-the-go accessory for carrying my Game Boy. The main compartment held the Game Boy with a cartridge loaded. The back pouch accommodated extra batteries (stretched) or a manual or sheet of paper with codes. And, the two front click button
The industrial design of the Game Boy was well thought out. It was as pleasant to hold when I first got it when I was 12 as when I was a teenager or now in middle age. It has a good weight that is balanced. Playing for hours doesn’t fatigue my fingers, hands, or arms.
As long as the ambient lighting it good, the non-backlit screen is pleasing to watch during extended game play.
The cartridges and cases are equally designed well. The long oval space above the game’s logo sticker allows for easy grasping of the game cartridge when removing the game. The power switch locks the cartridge into place when turned on.
Despite how much I love the Game Boy, I think that Nintendo has become a garbage company by the actions of its executives to unfairly bully and litigate against its fans instead of acknowledging fair use rights and finding ways to work with its fans (see TechDirt for details and the long history of Nintendo’s actions toward fans). I suppose it all comes down to control on Nintendo’s part. When the Game Boy first launched, control was built into the product. And, there wasn’t yet a widespread medium for participatory culture that the Internet made possible that could riff and build on new cultural art forms like video games. Now we can but Nintendo tends to take a copyright maximalist approach to their IP and most fans who get caught in the company’s crosshairs don’t have the deep pockets to establish their fair use rights through litigation. It’s for those reasons that I haven’t bought any Nintendo products in many years and I encourage others to do the same. There are good games made by better people on other platforms that are as enriching, engaging, and entertaining.
The New York Times asks, “Is it time to wear a mask again?”
I haven’t stopped. While I want to protect myself from getting ill, I also don’t want to run the risk of passing on the virus to others who are unable to get vaccinated or have compromised immune systems.
I think about mask wearing and vaccination and social distancing like I would playing World of Warcraft. A mask, like any armor, cannot protect you 100% from all potential damage, but if it is used in the right way, in the right circumstances, it significantly decreases your chance of bodily damage. Vaccination is akin to resistance to specific types of magic. It doesn’t make you invincible to that specific kind of magic, but if you are hit by it, having resistance reduces how badly you are injured. And, social distancing is like avoiding aggro or attracting enemy attackers. Don’t be like Leeroy Jenkins and charge directly into danger! Avoiding situations or using social distancing in situations where the virus might be passed around gives you a chance to fight another day!
I recently switched to wearing 3M’s 9105 Vflex mask. It is flat packed and gives you a large space around your nose and mouth. The side handles are good for gripping when putting it on or taking it off. When you are hot and sweating, it maintains form and stays comfortable. I find it a good compromise between the other two I wear described below.
This past year, I’ve mostly been wearing 3M’s 9205+ Aura. It is flat packed and smaller than the 9105. However, it feels soggy when you’re sweating. It’s elastic bands are less resilient than those on the 9105 or the 8210.
When I was teaching, I preferred to wear the old school 8210. It’s tough, but bulky as it doesn’t pack flat. When you’re sweating, this mask maintains its shape and doesn’t get uncomfortable. However, it’s elastic bands do not have long life—the rubber gets stretched and will break after repeated wearing more quickly than the 9105 but lasts longer than the 9205.
Dynamic Subspace 