Summary
University students have found a new and creative application for mobile phones with built-in cameras. A forum called athLENS, founded by four students through one of their academic projects, allows participants to respond to text prompts - such as “name that tune” - by photographing, rather than typing, their replies. The project started April 18.
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http://www.redandblack.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/04/12/425b31d5cdd2a
Details
The novelty of taking covert pictures with a camera phone may have worn off as quickly as the controversy surrounding it, but a group of University students insist that these gadgets have a better use -- art.
As their capstone project for their New Media Institute certificates, Laurie Holcombe, Katie Lindsley, Elizabeth Griffin and Mary O'Keefe have created athLENS, a forum for expression powered by cell phones.
"We wanted to create a worthwhile use for camera phones," said O'Keefe, a senior from Atlanta.
To join, participants must commit to send a photo each day for five days and provide their cell phone number.
Each day, the athLENS group sends out a text message prompt to participants, who then photograph their responses to the prompt and send it back to the database by the end of the day.
Responses during the test run have ranged from the intuitive -- a picture of a record store in response to "Name that tune" -- to the cryptic -- chocolate chip cookies in response to "What's in your wallet?"
"The prompts leave a lot open to interpretation, and it's been very interesting to see how different people interpret the same thing," said Holcombe, a junior from Atlanta.
"Cell phone cameras are already outselling digital cameras, and they are going to get better," he said.
"This sense of immediacy that is possible with the use of technology makes the project a lot of fun to be a part of," she said.
Seven students are participating in the test run of athLENS, but anyone may sign up to participate in the program, which officially launches on April 18.
Any interested student can sign up or get more information on the Web site, (www.athlens.com).
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Monday, April 25, 2005
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