Come see Cowbell Hero @ 360|Flex Europe!

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5266306673596536007.post-691938996187662472008-03-04T12:25:00.000-08:002008-03-04T15:42:57.172-08:00Come see Cowbell Hero @ 360|Flex Europe!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R822VQVotDI/AAAAAAAAAEE/4QpFc9bVE40/s1600-h/LaVictoriaArduinoEspresso.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R822VQVotDI/AAAAAAAAAEE/4QpFc9bVE40/s320/LaVictoriaArduinoEspresso.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173992023197791282" border="0" /></a>I'm excited to be presenting at <a href="http://www.360flex.com/360flex_europe/">360|Flex Europe</a> in Milan, Apr 7-9. When I first talked with Tom & John about the Milan gig last August, I said that I had wanted to present something that integrates hardware and physical interaction with the Flash platform. So over the past year I've been working on a number of home projects centered around the <a href="http://www.arduino.cc/">Arduino</a>, a low-cost open source hardware platform, which fittingly was designed in Italy. The Arduino is a 16 Mhz Atmel microcontroller with a USB interface and a number of digital I/Os and analog inputs. You can <a href="http://store.makezine.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=43">purchase a fully assembled Arduino controller for less than $40</a>. And open source IDE is available for Mac/Windows/Linux. So $40 plus a few spare LEDs and simple components can yield some interesting stuff. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R83drAVotHI/AAAAAAAAAEk/Xv1cIT5Q4og/s1600-h/ArduinoDiecimila400.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R83drAVotHI/AAAAAAAAAEk/Xv1cIT5Q4og/s320/ArduinoDiecimila400.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5174035277813429362" border="0" /></a> <h2>Cowbell Hero with an Arduino</h2>This Christmas my son got an Xbox 360, and I got Guitar Hero. Now my son (15) and daughter (11) routinely kick my butt at this game (but at least they unlocked <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpQmtjfsZU4">Trogdor</a>! for me). When I was planning for 360 Milan, I was trying to think of a fun way to engage the audience, and I thought it would be fun to create game in AIR. Natuarally, this game had to be Cowbell Hero. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R83dPgVotFI/AAAAAAAAAEU/TxmfiI2xZYY/s1600-h/CowbellHeroMobile3.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R83dPgVotFI/AAAAAAAAAEU/TxmfiI2xZYY/s320/CowbellHeroMobile3.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5174034805367026770" border="0" /></a> We'll be hooking up my Mac to the projector, the Arduino, and the sound system, and rocking out like <a href="http://www.c-eye.net/flash/WalkenCowbellSB.html">Bruce Dickinson</a> would want. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R83dbwVotGI/AAAAAAAAAEc/e-GyvTvtDWw/s1600-h/CowbellDemotivator.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_6JaaEqFT5bo/R83dbwVotGI/AAAAAAAAAEc/e-GyvTvtDWw/s320/CowbellDemotivator.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5174035015820424290" border="0" /></a> So sign up now for 360 Flex Europe, and I'll see you in Milan!Doug Schmidthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15320865990041483011noreply@blogger.com