space is the place

[kuniklo]

I find myself returning to hardware instruments and sequencers again and again even though I can easily persuade myself that an all-software approach is more practical, efficient, flexible, portable, and cost effective. I can't explain why but for some reason I just enjoy working with hardware more and find it more conducive to brainstorming ideas.

Anyway, I was re-reading parts of John Siracusa's controversial critique of the Os X finder:
http://arstechnica.com/reviews/4q00/mac ... ta-14.html

and it made me wonder if I have similar issues with software music making. His essential point is that the Os 9 finder was *spatial* - a particular folder always opened at the same position and size on the desktop which capitalizes on our natural inclinations towards spatial thinking and organization. Spatial associations with data allow us to push a lot of our interaction to a subconscious level and free our attentions for more conceptual thinking.

Reading this it struck me that one of my biggest frustrations with software is that all the interfaces are relative. To change a parameter or tweak a patch I have to dig around to an arbitrary sub-page of the UI each time, whereas with good hardware every function is at a fixed position. Auto-mapping controllers help somewhat but there's still enough variation that I'm constantly digging through lists of parameters and manually assigning knobs to new functions. With my current Machinedrum/Monomachine/Virus setup I can reach for the knob I need without even thinking about it and over the course of a few hours of working this really reduces my exhaustion and helps keep me in a creative zone.