Thing+13a

Online Art. It comes in many shapes and sizes, but these two applications for online art should work for even those of us who have problems with stick people. In this Sub-Thing, we'll be looking at the use of comic strips and online artistry.

This week we will have some fun with our work and play around at making comic strips. There are a lot of online comic strip makers and some you can even upload your own pictures to play with. There is a list of them at the end but we will focus on [|ToonDoo] from Jambav. Here's a preview of the easy fun you have ahead: (this practice toon was made in about 4 minutes)
 * Let's start with comic strips!**

The website runs in Flash so be sure you have the latest version to get the full options. If you are a bit out of date you can create using their images but to upload your own to your gallery you need the latest versions of your web browser and Flash player. Other online comic makers are: [|Make Beliefs] - targeted to kids [|Read Write Think] - Kids again [|Comeeko] - loves MySpace [|Stripgenerator] - made for blogs [|Strip Creator] So for this part's Discovery exercise. 1. Go to [|ToonDoo] or one of the other strip makers listed above 2. Find a couple library related comics you like. 3. email, create a del.icio.us bookmark, or embed it in your blog 4. Sign up and create your own comic on whatever you want 5. Don't forget to write about your experience in your blog.

Have an urge to express yourself artistically? Try [|Mr. Picassohead]. It's a drawing program with Picasso-like pieces that you can drag and drop onto a “canvass.” Each piece can be enlarged or reduced, rotated, or colored. When finished, you can add your work of art to their gallery or send the link to family and friends. More time to kill? Then click over to [|String Spin] to create string art or try your hand at [|snowflake making]. Then for more fun and fascination, try one of the [|Falling Sand games]. Is this art or is it a game? You decide. Here's the general idea. You are given materials (sand, oil, salt, water, seeds, etc.). You can use these materials to draw on a board (game field?). These elements interact with each other. For example, you draw a plant. You also have the option of drawing fire which will burn the plant. Or you can draw water which will put out the fire and also make the plant grow. There's absolutely no purpose to any of these sites except just idle fun. So if you’re feeling a little creative and would like to kill some time, check one or more of them out. Discovery Exercise: 1. Explore one of the following: 2. Blog about your experience.
 * Next on to online artistic expression**
 * [|Falling Sand]
 * [|Mr. Picassohead]
 * [|Snowflake Maker]
 * [|Sting Spin]