_A workshop by Cristina Cochior and Manetta Berends for the department of Communication Design/Information Design at the University of Arts and Design, Halle (Germany) 2020._<br>
_Based on a workshop Cristina Cochior and Joana Chicau did for Constant's work session [Collective Conditions](http://constantvzw.org/site/-Collective-Conditions,220-.html), Brussels 2019._
[Varia](http://varia.zone/en/) is a collective-space [^1] in Rotterdam focused on everyday technologies. We keep a [trail of photographs](https://vvvvvvaria.org/archive/) of what we've done.
Together, we try to experiment with various free software [tools](https://varia.zone/en/pages/collective-infrastructures.html) for collaborative processes, as well as collective infrastructure making and [self-hosting](https://varia.zone/images/variaecosystem.png).
## Bots as Conversational Tools
**Infrapunctural Bots for Stress Relief**
Inspired by the potential of [digital infrapunctures](https://www.slideshare.net/debver/towards-a-model-of-digital-infrapuncture) by Deb Verhoeven, we would like to propose considering what a bot logic might look like:
@ -33,41 +25,26 @@ A few examples:
**Bots as Tools to Intervene in Conversations**
What would it mean to become more entangled with bots, redistribute the labour of making and maintaining a collective, but without falling into the metaphorical understanding of bot as a servant?
Varia members use [XMPP](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XMPP ) as a chat protocol because it enables us to self-host our own instance and [federate with other chat servers](http://varia.zone/images/varia_s2s_federation.svg). We use bots both to communicate and to document our exchanges. Our initial idea was to develop new forms of note-taking based on our interaction habits. We share a lot of different types of information in group chats, from news to recommendations of articles to instigations to clean the fridge. Starting from the conversational nature of our exchanges, we are experimenting with two different bot-users in the chat: one that gathers images shared on the main Varia channel and displays them online, and another one, focused specifically on the topic of digital interdependencies, that gathers images, quotes and looks for books' citations.
Working on our own digital infrastructure allows us to adapt the tools to our own needs and behaviours; meaning that these bots make sense to us, but they may not make sense to someone else.
* [Streambot](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/varia/xmpp.streambot): a bot that saves the images sent to the main Varia group chat and creates an [html page](https://vvvvvvaria.org/stream/) for them.
* [Logbot](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/varia/logbot): a bot that [logs](https://vvvvvvaria.org/logs/) the quotes that are sent to it.
* You can find a genealogy of the bots around Varia in this footnote [^2]
<br>
**Bot as Conductor or Bot as Conductive**
* create an account and [choose nickname](https://conversejs.org/fullscreen.html#converse/register ) on conversejs
* once you are logged in, join the group chat named botsofconduct@muc.vvvvvvaria.org
_Conducting: "the art of directing the simultaneous performance of several players or singers by the use of gesture." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conducting. There are many roles as conductors https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conductor also, in connection to the enviroment: "a substance, body, or device that readily conducts heat, electricity, sound"._
* You can find a genealogy of the bots around Varia in this footnote[^2]
<br>
Let's look into the bots [examples](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/ccl/bots-of-conduct):
#### Transit
### Transit
**_name:_** transit.py;
@ -77,7 +54,7 @@ Let's look into the bots [examples](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/ccl/bots-of-condu
<br>
#### Gather
### Gather
**_name:_** gather.py;
@ -87,7 +64,7 @@ Let's look into the bots [examples](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/ccl/bots-of-condu
<br>
#### Greet
### Greet
**_name:_** greet.py;
@ -97,7 +74,7 @@ Let's look into the bots [examples](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/ccl/bots-of-condu
<br>
#### Spark
### Spark
**_name:_** spark.py;
@ -107,8 +84,7 @@ Let's look into the bots [examples](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/ccl/bots-of-condu
<br>
#### Whisper
### Whisper
**_name:_** whisper.py
@ -118,22 +94,7 @@ Let's look into the bots [examples](https://git.vvvvvvaria.org/ccl/bots-of-condu
<br>
### 16:00-16:30 — _Creating Situations_
We move to [an Etherpad](https://pad.vvvvvvaria.org/botsofconduct.workshop-Burg-Halle).
### 16:30-16:45 - _Break_
### 16:45-18:00 - _Bot in the Situation_
* experimenting with bots: either adapt the ones we provided (experiment with code) or enact the bots' behaviours iteratively (bot behaviour);
* bot behaviour: iterations, repetition, ...
#### _Installing and Running the Bots_ (optional)
## Installing and Running the Bots
During this workshop we will use:
@ -146,7 +107,7 @@ Some installation guides can be found under the following links.
**python3 + pip3**:
*For computers running Windows OS or Mac OS*:
*For computers running **Windows OS** or **Mac OS***:
1. check what version of Python you have on your computer with `$ python --version`
2. if you have python 2.x, try also the following, to be sure that you don't have python3 already: `$ python3 --version`
@ -156,10 +117,11 @@ Some installation guides can be found under the following links.
You can check if it installed correctly by running: `$ pip3 --version`
*For computers running Linux OS*
<br>
*For computers running **Linux OS***
* open the terminal
* check which version of python you have:
@ -193,17 +155,14 @@ This is the Python library we use to make the bots. You can install it by runnin
* if you dont have a code editor, we can suggest (among others) [Sublime Text](https://www.sublimetext.com/)
* to install the conversations app on your phone, you could use either Conversations or [Quicksy](https://quicksy.im/) for Android phones (among others)
### 18:00-18:30 - _Discussion and Performing with the Bots_
### Footnotes
## Footnotes
**Link to references [pad](https://pad.vvvvvvaria.org/Bots_of_Conduct_References) — further references and materials assembled by Joana and Cristina - feel free to add your own!**
[^1]: Varia is not merely a collective, nor merely a space. Varia is an interdependent concatenation of both
