I needed to transform a memory game I’d made for a client into an XML based generic memory game with several dynamic parameters. So I needed some dummy graphics for the flip cards, and came to think of the downloadables from informationactivism.org, a site I’d discovered a few days earlier. Using the graphical material I’ve been able to make a mix between the 10 tactics cards and the classic memory game. (although I’ve only used 3)
The organization helps campaigners get their message across and to push for change within an organization or community. They do so by making 10 communication practices – tactics- tangible as cards. Campaigners can download a pack of 10 tactics cards and a video to arrange a screening in their community. And they state on their download page:
10 Tactics uses a Creative Commons license Attribution Share Alike license and we encourage you to copy, distribute, re-mix, adapt, translate it and to use it in any way that will support your rights advocacy.
Along with the 10 tactics pack, they have these badges on their site, that visitors could embed in their own sites, to spread the word about the organization:
The XML points to the location of these badges and the game loads them, and adds them on the cards – two cards for each badge.
The XML looks like this:
[code]]czoxOlwiIFwiO3tbJiomXX0=[[/code]
[code]]czoxOlwiIFwiO3tbJiomXX0=[[/code]
The s within each [code]]czoxOlwiIFwiO3tbJiomXX0=[[/code] may look like duplicates – and in this case they are. But this structure is necessary as it makes it possible to match two different pieces of content – say an image of a knife with an image of a fork.
From the 10 tactics pack I took some screen dumps to get a larger image representing each match being found in the game. Each time a pair is found, this images loads. Then I added some graphical elements from the site and added them statically to the stage of my flash file, and to the backside of the card prototype:
A click on their logo takes my visitors to their site, so I guess they will forgive me for a little screen scraping. I ended up with a little piece of infotainment, that could be used to create awareness about the organization. What a great new phrase: “information activism”. I did this thing a day. The thing could be enhanced with some animation on the large images and I could easily spend another day one going through the content of the 10 tactics pack, to find ways of integrating all the little pieces of information. With a pack like this I feel inspired in the same way as when looking a open data and API’s.
