People keep coming up with brilliant, intriguing suggestions for PTTP-based installations. We encourage the originators of these ideas to turn their enthusiasms into reality. If you'd like to help, feel free to get in touch.
There are 3 pools, each featuring 23 jets of water. When originally installed the jets could be turned on and off independently but plumbing problems mean that at present it's a choice of all or no jets at one time. There are also 10 lit columns with different coloured lights in them. If Bristol City Council fixes the fountains, PTTP could easily and cheaply be added to the system to provide control of the jets and lights through many different devices and user interfaces. The area already hosts several outdoor Internet terminals and public WiFi, greatly simplifying provision of control over the fountains.
Chris likes the idea of allowing the fountains to be controlled via the wider Internet as well as by local users. This would need one or more Webcams (what about existing CCTV cameras?). An annual contest for the best fountain patterns could prove quite popular on the Web and in the flesh.
Imagine lighting the walkway in front of the Watershed and its surrounding bars with different coloured lights. And then allowing people to play with them, making patterns which run up and down the walkway, or follow people, or who knows what!
As with the fountains, the presence of existing Internet terminals and WiFi network make this a particularly appealing project.
(Clare/Watershed)
It would be possible to have a slot in the Christmas Light Up Bristol scheme where the public could control the display (or part of it) themselves. But, arguably, Light Up Bristol is cool enough and doesn't need this.
(LEDs on fans etc)
(lots of people suggest this)
In Stockholm there is a 10 storey tower with red, green and blue coloured lights on each floor. By ringing a phone number you can mix the colours for each storey. Of course, if someone calls up then the system becomes engaged for anyone else who wants to access it. PTTP would provide queuing and allow control via different devices and user interfaces.
There are at least two different installations (in France and the USA), which allow people to play Tetris, in lights, on the side of a building. These work through mobile phones and have the same limitations as the Stockholm tower.
In a square in Rotterdam there are four giant, hydraulically controlled, “anglepoise” street lamps. Their movement is controlled through a panel in the centre of the square. PTTP would allow control from other devices and user interfaces. Wouldn't it be fun to link the movements of the four lamps to four different people and as the people moved so did the lamps.
Alek Komarnitsky allows people to turn his Christmas lights on and off, over the Internet. There is no queuing, everyone just battles for control. Interestingly, Alek got around many of the queuing and control problems by faking the installation up until 2004 (which was a fascinating project in itself).
(As work progresses on these projects we will create a separate area within the Wiki to support their development.)
