Processing and Arduino in Tandem: Video Mixer and Audio Visualizer

This Online Training Course has Concluded

The sessions were presented live during March 2011.

Sessions (Purchase the videos for each session separately)

Session 1: Build a Video Mixer—February 25, 2011, 10 a.m. (PST)
Create a video mixing application from scratch with Processing, the Arduino board, and the projBox Kit. The finished application will let you load video files and live camera input, crossfade between video sources, and display the mix in real time. You'll also integrate effects, like color adjustment and playback speed. With the projBox, you'll integrate custom hardware to control your application. Purchase the video of Session 1, Processing and Arduino in Tandem: Video Mixer.

Session 2: Create an Audio Visualizer—March 11, 2011, 10 a.m. (PST)
Build an audio visualization tool from the ground up with Processing and the Arduino platform. Your finished application will animate graphics on screen that respond to live audio input. The app will listen to external audio from a built-in computer microphone or audio input jack, and analyze that audio to display audio waveforms in real time. The projBox hardware will give you manual control of the audio visualization. Purchase the video of Session 2, Processing and Arduino in Tandem: Audio Visualizer.

What you'll learn

• Create software applications with Processing and Arduino
• Use the projBox Kit to build custom hardware for controlling your applications
• Build a video mixing application from scratch
• Create an audio visualization tool from the ground up
• Use the native Processing video library and Minim audio library to create projects
• Create digital art with your own computer webcam and mic
• Make use of either project to start your own custom applications

About this online course

Build your own video mixer and audio visualizer with two new classes in the popular online course, Processing and Arduino in Tandem. These classes are particularly useful if you attended the original 5-week course in September 2010. But if you're familiar with the Processing programming language and the Arduino hardware platform, you won't want to miss these fun, hands-on workshops.

Learn how to use Processing, Arduino, and the projBox Kit to build your own software and hardware applications—one for mixing video from different sources, and another that responds to live audio input by producing animated graphics. You'll get step-by-step instructions throughout the process, along with direct access to the instructor via online Q&A.

The best part? These classes are free! They're a fun and inspiring way for designers, artists, and beginning programmers to learn basic graphics programming.

Who should attend?

• People who completed last September's course, Processing and Arduino in Tandem
• Anyone interested in creating their own custom software and hardware
• Creative people who want to learn how to build digital tools
• Intermediate to advanced artists, designers, inventors, and technicians who want to expand their digital toolkit—particularly those familiar with the Processing and Arduino platforms

Note: If you're a beginner familiar with some programming basics, you'll also find value in these classes, but you may have difficulty following along without supplemental materials.

What you'll need

• Newer version of Mac OS X 10.5 or above, Linux (Ubuntu 9 is well tested), Windows XP or Windows 7 (check Processing.org and Arduino.cc for a complete list of compatible systems)
• Processing IDE 1.2.1 or greater, freely available online at http://processing.org/download
• Arduino 0022 software, freely available online at http://arduino.cc/en/Main/Software
• The projBox Kit, available from O'Reilly. This electronics kit contains everything you need, with no experience necessary!
• Or build your own kit: You can also collect the parts to make your own electronics kit. You'll need an Arduino, Breadboard, 4 10k potentiometers, 4 SPST switches, 4 LEDs, USB cable and a basic electronics toolkit (such as wires, wire-cutters, solder, and a soldering iron). You'll also need a project box to hold everything together.
• Articles on Make Projects for a quick review of the projBox hardware and software

Instructor

Joseph Gray, a Seattle-based artist and designer, has taught workshops on Processing and Arduino at Metrix Create:Space in Seattle. After earning a BFA from Cornish College of the Arts in 1999, he began learning programming in the graphic design industry – which led him to create custom software and hardware tools for art installations and visual performances. His sculptural and performance work has been exhibited at Unit B Gallery in San Antonio, Meridian Gallery and The Lab in San Francisco, and a multitude of venues in the Pacific Northwest, including 911 Media, Bumbershoot, and the Seattle Art Museum Gallery. A portfolio of his work can be found at grauwald.com