This is a list of some of the basic tools that any student of interaction art/design/play/whatever should have access to. This is very much a work-in-progress document and was principally designed for my students and colleagues at the Master Media Design and the needs of the larger community at the HEAD – Genève.
This list of tools has been integrated into a larger collection of video and text-based tutorials that you will find at abstractmachine.net/tutorials/tools.
There is an infinite variety of possible tools that can be used in any project, so this list is by definition incomplete. These are just some of the current basic tools that should be downloaded/configured on your personal computer. Mastering one or two of these tools is a good idea. But just as importantly, learn to move from one to the other, depending on the needs of your projects. Do not get stuck in one single technical workflow.
This list is oriented more towards the creative coding, and/or the make-stuff-break-stuff approach, than the mockup UX or UI style of teaching interaction design.
Not everything here is open-source, although there are open-source alternatives listed, when available. Important student discounts, and/or free-versions exist for all of the paid tools listed here.
Photo by Manuel Braun