Dust or Magic

"Bob Hughes "has worked in many media, from medieval manuscripts to television ads, before discovering the computer in 1989. Since becoming hooked, he has developed CD-ROMs, learning games, kiosk systems, websites - and deep sympathy for everyone who strives to do "good stuff", whatever the medium. Dust or Magic is the result of 10 years of enquiry, travel and hands-on graft.

1. Cyberia. Introduction: The Emancipation of the Serfs. The Computer as a "Medium." The Computer as a Landscape. Cyberia's Geological Past. Bush, Engelbart, Nelson, and the Quest for Xanadu. Early Explorations: From "Time-Sharing" to the Personal Computer. The Beginnings of a Mass Medium: Interactive Video. From the Mac to the Seedy ROM: Cyberia Opened to the Masses, Then to the Corporate Bulldozers. 2. Eminent Cyberians. Introduction: "Tomorrow's Establishment is Today's Lunatic Fringe." Voices from Nowhere. Voyager: Cyberia's First Viable Community. The Power of "Primary Evidence": Curtis Wong Develops the Voyager Vision at Corbis. The "Book as Hero" in Romain Victor-Pujebet's "Le Livre De Lulu." The Nationwide Building Society and its "Interact" Project. 3. Working in Cyberia. Introduction: Do We Really Have to "Get Real"? Crying All the Way to the Bank: Microsoft's "Sendak" Saga. Get Yourself a Theory, And Make It a Good One. Audience: Who Are You Making This For - And Where Are You Taking Them? Emotion, Interaction, Participation, Carnival. "Cognitive Dynamite": Multi-Sensory Effects that Blow You Away. "Cognitive Train Wrecks" and "User Expectations." Storyspace: From The Path to the Landscape Itself. Working in Cyberia: From Storyspace to the Real World. Trust, and the Paradox of Self-Absorbed Work. Conclusion: Rediscovering Workmanship. Bibliography. Index.