2008, 2009

So, it’s the last day of the year. Time for a little aftermath.

2008 was a year of awakenings for me. A self-critical process which I entered in summer 2007 reached a point where I feel that I can be happy with how I changed and what the change helped me to achieve. I will continue to go into my current direction.

What were the most important things that happened this year?

• New Blog: Starting this my new blog at WordPress on July 1 was a very important move. It made me more productive and created some sort of presence for me which I wouldn’t have been able to create otherwise. I believe that what accumulated here over the past six month has been very valuable for me. My blog created recognition and awareness about me and some of my work.
• New teaching policy: My decision to go for practice over theory in my courses yielded good results for both me and my students. The productivity in my courses has rised and my student profile seems to cope much better with the course material when it is confronted with practical problems. It is easier for them to see theory as something that helps them to understand the problems I let them face. It also takes the stress off of students because it is not exam-oriented but process-oriented evaluation of performance. Being a participator is now the core of activities and they seem to like it.
• Back to PhD: I still can’t believe that this happened, but it is a phantastic opportunity for me to take over things from where they have been dropped. I’m very happy and exited that my new topic will be on video games. What has been even more delighting for me is the fact that I almost could have had two PhD’s at once! I still can have two, but at the moment they can be consecutive only.
• IGDA Game Design SIG: This has been a great experience so far, despite the trouble that it brought with it sometimes. I met phantastic people and made a lot of friends. I have been appointed to the Interim Steering Committee, which is definitely a very important achievement, given that I’m not a professional game developer and thinking of the fact that I’m living in a country that does not have even a game industry.
• Release from Legal Obligations: I’m finally freed from all legal obligations in regard to military service and all other burden that came with it. Definitely a very important development for me.
• Productivity: Starting with the month of August, a wave of productivity hit me, resulting in a variety of articles, translations, drawings, product designs, publications etc. This was inspired by new friends I made -Sande and Josh from the IGDA- or trough friends whom I already knew but with whom I got closer in recent months: Ümit, Senih and Fırat from the VACD department at our faculty; Guita and Kağan from the Product Design department; Barış and Cengiz whom both returned from their military services.
• New books!: I was busy purchasing a lot of books this year. And meanwhile I can be proud of my design library. It has some phantastic pieces really.
• Peace and Bliss: I spent some great weeks with my friends Soner and Funda. It was one magical time with them! I want more of it in 2009!
• I grew. Yes, I did.

Uhm, not bad, really.

And what are my goals for 2009?

• To create a studio environment at home where I can work more comfortable on my own projects.
• To get some papers published and attend a few conferences; to organize a few workshops.
• To carry my work at the IGDA to a satisfactory point for both me/my friends and IGDA.
• To expand my blog and add some new sections to it, especially a “digital games” section where I can showcase my first video games.
• To make a nice trip through Europe in summer.
• To deliver my PhD in August, so that I can start with the new one in September.
• To have my beloved ones around. Sucks to be isolated!

What a year this 2008 was…

What a year this 2009 will be!

I wish you all a happy new year…