The world is entering an increasingly digital age when everything is based on the abilities of the latest technology. Mark Shepard is trying to deviate from that dependence and get back to the basics.
Shepard, an assistant professor of architecture and media study at UB, has developed a mobile app for the iPhone and iPad that, in the most basic sense, gets you to your destination by helping you get lost.
The app, cleverly entitled Serendipitor, is "an alternative navigation app that helps you find something by looking for something else."
But, how does that really work?
The concept is simple: the app uses the power of Google Maps to direct a route from point A to point B, giving the user a set of directions with a twist. For example, the first direction will start off pointing the user in the right direction—until the user is told to pick a random person to follow for two blocks.
"[The app] takes routing instructions from Google Maps and uses playful directions to put you off of the route," Shepard said. "[This] gets people thinking more about what's around them."
The user can choose to pick a destination or be assigned one at random, and the app will work its whimsical magic to route the user on an exploration.
Follow a pigeon until it flies away and take a photo of it flying. Ask someone to take you to the part of the city he is afraid of and photograph it. Get on the closest subway, bus, or tram and ride for one stop.
These types of directions take the users out of their monotonous and secure bubbles and, in turn, lead them to discover their cities in different ways. The thrill of exploration is what fuels this app.
Along the journey, the user is prompted to take pictures of discoveries or the products of the directions. These photos, along with the steps taken to reach the user's destination, can be uploaded to an e-mail format to be shared with family, friends, and other users.
"[The Serendipitor] helps people see the city in a different way and find things that they didn't know existed," Shepard said. "Most [GPS] apps are designed to find exactly what we are looking for. [Serendipitor] finds something we did not think we were looking for."
The Serendipitor tries to deviate from relying on a GPS system for navigational purposes and lets humans rely on their innate navigational skills to get from point A to point B. It tries to take the dependency on technology out of something that humans naturally know how to do: take a leisurely walk without their eyes glued to a screen.
The app has been welcomed with positive feedback from technical, professional, and civilian critics.
"The concept for the app is unique and fun," said one review on the iTunes store. "It puts you in situations you would have never imagined. It's a great activity to do when the weather is great and you have nothing to do."
Many users have also reported to Shepard that they like to "have to interact with people they don't know" and enjoy the fact that the app "gets them lost."
The Serendipitor has also been nominated for the Transmediale Award 2011, which honors works that "reflect visionary and innovation expression, originality in practice and exemplary in their contributions to the discourse that address our technological, societal and global digital cultures," according to the award's website.
The concept behind the Serendipitor may not be one understood by all, but it conveys a message to society that anyone can appreciate: it's time to value the whimsy and serendipity associated with exploration and "getting lost" in a city.
The Serendipitor was developed by Shepard at the V2_Institute for the Unstable Media as a part of a larger project named the Sentient City Survival Kit. More information about the app and Shepard's projects can be found on his website at http://www.andinc.org/v3/.
The Serendipitor app is available as a free download for the iPhone and iPad through the iTunes online store.
E-mail: news@ubspectrum.com
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
