German Geeks Turn Building Into Huge Video Game

[Gauracandra 1]

This is seriously geekism taken all the way Check out the link at the bottom to see what is being described in this article. Basically they use the lights of a building to write messages, and play pong. The lights turn on and off to animate the cursors. Its actually kind of cool... um... err... forget I said that.... yeah... Stop looking at me like that... I'm not kidding, stop it... GOSH DANGIT I'M NOT A GEEK... now leave me alone

 

Gauracandra

 

PS

 

King 'Pong' Strikes

German Geeks Turn Building Into Huge Video Game

 

Dec. 27 — A group of ethical German hackers has found a way to play a game of "Pong" on a screen that's 8 stories high.

 

The Chaos Computer Club has transformed the former East German Education Ministry in Berlin into a huge display dubbed "Blinkenlights."

The project celebrates the club's 20th anniversary.

 

The top eight floors on one side of the building have been turned into a 144-pixel "screen," with computer-controlled lamps behind the windows.

 

Three computers, software, and 144 electrical relays controls when each light should turn on or off, creating a giant moving display much like the news "tickers" or electronic billboards at many cities' public squares.

 

 

A Publicly Accessible Public Display

 

But the computer club has made Blinkenlights truly public by offering a free program called Blinkenpaint on the club's Web site. Users can use the program to create their own animated message and send it back to the club to be used as part of the Blinkenlights display.

 

The club has also invited local Berliners to dial in to a special phone number to play Pong, the classic arcade game of electronic tennis.

 

The Chaos Computer Club has set up a Webcam that allows non-Berlin residents to view the Blinkenlights display at http://berlin.ccc.de/~hans/cam2.jpg.

 

To find out more information — including how to play Pong — log on to the Blinkenlights site ( http://www.blinkenlights.de/interactive.en.html ) .

 

The Blinkenlights display is expected to be available until next February.

[This message has been edited by Gauracandra (edited 12-28-2001).]

[Tarun 6]

www.WBAI.org stream 2600.com had live correspondents in both Amsterdam & Berlin for New Year's Eve.

This bldg was described as 19 windows wide, 9 stories high.

8x18 = 144

Perhaps one vertical column of windows is also neutral.

This bldg is near Alexanderplatz where we often perform HarinAm!