STARTUP tells of the development of the personal computer and the events that took place in Albuquerque: the development of the Altair, the first personal computer available to the public, and the beginning of Microsoft.

Pizza Run gives four visitors at a time a taste of the experience of software programming. It provides them with a limited set of commands with which they must create a program to get their car to move across a small town, stop by a pizza parlor, and arrive at a party with a hot pizza. Visitors can get a sense of the role of creativity in software engineering. The process is designed to emulate a programmer’s thought process by taking into consideration dependencies, contingencies, and constraints. The algorithm thus written by the visitor behaves like a real program where certain hardware elements and interaction with other users will unpredictably slow it down. Visitors can also learn to “debug” their program if their cars crash.

Allan Loucks created and designed the software for the intelligent multi-computer interactive installation, including the animation, audio-playback-engine, surround-sound audio processing, DSP, visual projections, TCP-IP networking communication protocols, scripting engine, database, display functions, adaptive control, and the hardware interfaces for the UI.

Rise of the Machines is a multi-sensory multimedia experience that tells the story of the development of the personal computer between 1975 through 1981. The story is told through the use of artifacts (a number of early microcomputers), in a multimedia theatrical experience which involves motion graphics, multi-track audio, music, video, robotics, and theatrical lighting. The microcomputers come to life to tell their own stories lit up from behind an 18’x9’ scrim, via a multichannel soundtrack that shakes the visitors’ seats with ‘70s and ‘80s music. Between shows, visitors play a game of Pong on the giant screen.

Allan Loucks created and designed the software for the synchronization, audio, PONG game software recreation, robotics, MIDI control and processing, RS232 serial communication and control, networking, and A/V control and monitoring, display functions, and the software and hardware interfaces for the UI.

YOUR SPACE is the culminating experience in STARTUP: ALBUQUERQUE and the Personal Computer Revolution. This multi-person interactive encourages visitors to share their thoughts about the role of computing in their life and their vision of the future. They also participate in a poll by answering a question of the day. The results are displayed in real time to show opinions of other visitors in the gallery. Each multimedia testimonial is displayed within two minutes along with other visitors’ contributions. Visitors also have the opportunity to email a postcard to themselves or a friend.

Allan Loucks created and designed the intelligent software for the automated video-capture, video-processing, audio-playback-engine, automated audio-capture, TCP-IP networking, display functions, adaptive control, the multi-computer software and hardware interfaces for the UI, and composed the music soundtrack.

In this interactive exhibit, visitors can touch the artifacts and experience the rapid evolution of user interfaces on computers ranging from the crude lights and switches of the Altair to the intuitive ease of the first Macintosh’s Graphical User Interface (GUI) and mouse. The activity invites visitors to use all of the user interfaces: the Altair (switch and lights), Altair and teletype (keyboard, paper tape), the Apple II (VisiCalc screen and command line text), and finally, the first Macintosh (mouse and GUI). Visitors learn what an interface is, how interfaces became more and more efficient and easy to use, and the complexity of the software behind the ease for the user.

Allan Loucks created and designed the intelligent software for the audio-playback-engine, and multi-screen display functionalities, adaptive control, and the software and hardware interfaces for the UI.