Concern about the impact of differential access to computer technology -- the digital divide -- has been expressed since at least the late 90's.  Today's students generally have access to computers, but the digital divide remains a significant concern.   Today's digital divide is found not in _lack of_ access but in _insufficient access_, sometimes to hardware but perhaps even more often to software. This can be especially critical for Media Arts students, who use a great deal of expensive software throughout the course of their undergraduate careers. It is not unusual for a media arts major to have coursework requiring a dozen different software programs over the course of an undergraduate career.  This paper addresses ways in which students and faculty alike can create opportunities for students caught on the wrong side of today's digital divide. I discuss specific tools that can be used in place of their much more costly counterparts. More important, given how quickly the tools we use change, I address how students and faculty can continue to locate acceptable, affordable replacement software.

The reach of the digital embrace extends far beyond that of screen and keyboard. It surpasses the illusive bits and bytes that form the building blocks of software, and extends beyond ubiquitous portable computing devices such as Blackberries and iPhones. Digital technologies are seeping into the corporal world. Binary code is transforming into atoms via physical computing, rapid prototyping, and electronic fabrication processes. Soon, physical computing will become as common a part of our everyday experience as printing a document or making toast. But more importantly, it is the erosion of perceived traditional boundaries that separate disciplines that has caused the greatest cultural transformation, allowing for an unprecedented fluid transmission of ideas and cultures. In an attempt to navigate this liminal state, this paper will examine the relevance of Intermedia philosophy, both historically and contemporarily. It will look at how an Intermedial model can be expanded conceptually by insights learned through creative practice, the study of evolutionary biology and teaching/pedagogy.

Medium and large-scale video screens have proliferated in public contexts. Like any new technology aimed at a mass audience, there has been an engagement by artists who seek to comment, critique and enhance its social and cultural impact. At first glance videos presented on large public screens look like big televisions mounted to the sides of buildings. However, the juxtaposition of “publicness” and artist-driven content facilitates an alternate voice in commercial spaces and extends beyond the frame of the screen to engage the viewer’s experience of the built environment. In this paper I will contextualize the effects of adding artists-created media layers to the built environment. I will transpose David Joslit’s use of the concept of feedback which he uses to describe early video artists appropriation of television to contemporary public media works. Case studies will include a series of collaborative projects titled v1b3 and personal creative research projects.he juxtaposition of