Hacking the Wii

 

 

 

Oh my goodness I have been deep in code for days. My thesis is looking to be centered around what the media is calling ‘natural gesture interfaces’ – basically what the Wii and Kinect are right now. I am totally in love with the idea of controlling the world using movements of my hands that are already natural!

So long story short, I am attempting to hack my wii so I can control my computer through gestures. This has been fraught with peril. Paris Mitton, programmer extrordinare,  is what my thesis advisors are calling my ‘Subject Matter Expert” or SME, for short. This is a ridiculous name and already my class and I are throwing around this term like it’s LOL. …there may be a hint to the root of this problem in that I assume everyone knows and uses LOL. Hrm.  Anyway, a SME is someone who can help me and oversee my work in areas that I’m not actually trained in – such as programming.

So we’ve been attempting to get my laptop to find and accept inputs from the wii but so far it is rough going and there are multiple steps. I am having to force my mac into working with Windows code and software and that means going through the Terminal and I haven’t coded Terminal in… shoot, 20 years? (BTW it is NOT, no matter what any SME tells you, “like riding a bicycle” and in fact no, this knowledge doesn’t lie dormant in one’s brain awaiting to be reawakened. In fact because talking with your computer so close to the source is SO DANGEROUS it’s like learning to ride a motocycle!) But it’s humming along and making ALL SORTS of changes and screens are flashing which I have been assured are fine fine fine sheesh don’t freak out so much ok?

I am not freaking out I am just – worried. And way out of my element.