Industry Participation Wanted

The fourth Irish Human Computer Interaction (HCI) Conference will take place at Dublin City University on September 2nd & 3rd 2010.

Based on the success of the IxDA Industry session organised last year, IxDA Ireland was invited to organise a similar industry session for iHCI 2010. The industry session will take place in the afternoon of September 2nd 2010.

The organisers are looking for practitioners whose work relates to the fields of HCI and Interaction Design to present their work to this forum, which will attract academics, researchers, practitioners and students from Ireland and from abroad.

This year, the general conference theme is “Crossing Boundaries”, so they are particularly interested in work that explores new realms and crossed boundaries in Interaction Design practice. They are also looking for contributions that address the boundaries between academia and industry, as well as the boundaries between the designer, stakeholders and end users.

submissions related (but not limited to) the following topics are of interest:

* Accessibility & Universal Access
* Case studies
* Collaboration, groupware and social networks
* Context-aware systems
* Ethnographical and field studies
* Evaluation methods and frameworks
* Evaluation and usability
* Group interaction and mobility
* Human-centred design practices, tools and methods
* HCI Theory and Practice
* Information visualization and presentation techniques
* Novel user interfaces, interaction techniques and technologies
* Mobile, Ambient, Augmented or Tangible HCI
* Multimodal interaction and interfaces
* Multi-cultural interaction
* Ubiquitous, pervasive, and mobile interaction
* User-centred design
* Usability investigation and evaluation
* Wearable computing, smart clothes, new devices and sensors

Please submit a 150 word abstract, describing the content of your suggested presentation and how it relates to the conference theme. Abstracts will have to be submitted via email to info@ixd.ie .

The deadline for abstracts submission is the 30th of June 2010. Presenters will be notified by the 16th July 2010. Presentations will take place on the afternoon of the 2nd September 2010.

IxDA Ireland is the Irish chapter of the Interaction Design Association. We are a national network dedicated to the academic and professional practice of Interaction Design. IxDA Ireland is an ongoing collaboration between the Dublin and Limerick local chapters of the IxDA. The two groups host their own regional meetings on a regular basis and, from time to time, join forces to organise national events.

Ea Into The West

Just to make my industry survey even more out of date it was announced this week that EA is to establish a European office in Galway and the company will create 200 jobs.

Full press release below but more importantly for recruitment opportunities visit : www.bioware.com/bioware_info/jobs

Aphra

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EA TO OPEN CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER IN GALWAY, IRELAND
26/05/10

Geneva, Switzerland, May 26, 2010 — Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS), today announced plans to open a European customer service and operations center for its BioWare™ studio, to be based in Galway, Ireland. The new facility will provide BioWare with greater proximity to European players. This investment is being supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.

The new Irish location for BioWare will help us get closer to our fans in Europe. Galway gives us the right mix of solid technology infrastructure and international recruitment opportunities as we continue to focus on bringing the highest quality gaming experiences to market.

Dr. Ray Muzyka, Senior Vice President, EA and Group General Manager, BioWare.

Welcoming today’s announcement, the Prime Minister of Ireland, Taoiseach Brian Cowen TD said, “EA is the global leader in interactive entertainment and a very important addition to the thriving games industry in Ireland.”

“The new Irish location for BioWare will help us get closer to our fans in Europe,” said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Senior Vice President, EA and Group General Manager, BioWare. “Galway gives us the right mix of solid technology infrastructure and international recruitment opportunities as we continue to focus on bringing the highest quality gaming experiences to market.”

Barry O’Leary CEO of IDA Ireland said, “EA joins a vibrant digital media sector and is a key endorsement of the skills and expertise available in Ireland for this sector.”

EA will maintain its existing BioWare studio locations in Edmonton, Montreal, Fairfax, Virginia and Austin, Texas. The new location in Galway is expected to be up and running in 2011, starting with roughly 200 staff.

The new Irish company is a wholly owned EA subsidiary. EA has existing European game teams based in Guildford, UK, Stockholm, Sweden, Ingelheim, Germany, Bucharest, Romania and Madrid, Spain.

Dogfighter Release Date Announced

Dark Water Studios have just announced that they are releasing ‘DogFighter’ on Steam on June 14th at £12.

The arcade style aerial combat game can be played single player or in multiiplayer mode with up to 7 players. For more on the game see http://www.dogfighter-game.com/

The game has also just been mentioned on the front page of Rock Paper Shotgun – see http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2010/05/17/counter-terrierists-dogfighter

Well done to all involved and we look forward to hearing more about future plans!

Darkwater Studios are based in London/Derry in Northern Ireland. For more see http://www.dark-water-studios.com/

Bsc (Hons) In Entertainments Systems, Wit.

BSc (Hons) in Entertainments Systems – WD168 – Waterford Institute of Technology

Entertainment Systems is the study of content generation for digital multimedia systems, its motivations, qualities and technical frameworks and the presentation of computer-based content to mass audiences in a clear and cohesive manner.

The course on offer has two thematic streams-Games and Music Technology. As part of his/her study, the student will be introduced to computer science, gain expertise in software development and understand the architecture of computers, their networks and infrastructure so as to fully understand the lifecycle of data on ICT systems. The student will understand the different forms that multimedia data can take.

With respect to games, the student will learn to understand the games development process, games design theory, 2D and 3D games creation and how to exploit the potential of a range of games consoles. With respect to audio, the student will learn about acoustics, psychoacoustics, music theory, audio creation and editing tools and production techniques. All students will be conversant in multimedia trends and be able to apply generic solutions to specific emerging trends.

What area could I expect to work in?
• Audio Production environments
• Broadcasting Studios
• Games design and development
• 3D Design Studios
• Multimedia and software development
• Web design and development

Follow on Study
• MSc Communication Software
• MSc Multimedia Development

Course Outline

BSc Entertainment Systems is a 4 year honours degree course at NQAI Level 8. Each year contains two semesters. All subject modules are common for the first two semesters (Year 1). In semester 3, students choose whether to opt for the Games Development or Music Technology streams, with the course becoming increasingly specialised as the student progresses.

All of year 3 is taken up by a 9-12 month structured work placement, where the student gains real-world practical experience. This paid placement takes place in a relevant working environment, be it a games development studio, audio recording suite or software development house. WIT has a long history of work placement on other IT-related courses and students have found it to be an invaluable experience.

Upon completion of the work placement, the student returns for the two final semesters. During these semesters, as well as attending classes, the student works on a self-driven project which showcases their talents and demonstrates the skills they have learned.

Examples include:
• Developing a console game from conception to playability
• Building a piece of software for audio production
• Creating an integrated multimedia package for a portable device (such as an iPhone)

(Note: full list of subjects available via course link at bottom of page)

Course Facts
Course Title: BSc (Hons) in Entertainment Systems
Course Code: WD168
Course Level: 8
Duration: 4 years

Entry Requirements
Total number of subjects at grade D or better: 6
Number of subjects at higher level grade C or better: 2
English/Irish: OD3/HD3
Mathematics: OB3/HD3

Applications
Applications for entry from September 2009 is through the CAO.

Recent Entry Points: 2009: 280

Course leaders:
• Robert O’Connor – Tel. +353 51 302073 or roconnor@wit.ie
• Karl Sandison – ksandison@wit.ie

For further information

See http://www2.wit.ie/StudyatWIT/UndergraduateCourses/Science/BScHonsinEntertainmentsSystems-WD168/

And

http://www2.wit.ie/AboutWIT/GettingHere/