Devin Smith: Portfolio
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Web Apps
Minimal Discogs
devinsmith.work/discogsA minimal search interface using the Discogs.com API. Originally designed for graphic design references (ie: covers from 80s New Age, 60s space jazz, etc). After adding search links, it became an interesting way to discovery music from unfamiliar genres.
The Prelinger Library Stacks Explorer
prelingerlibrary.org/stacksA visually-oriented, deprecation-resistant discovery service for SF's Prelinger Library. This project involved taking over 300 photos, entering thousands of tags, and building the interface from scratch using Processing Java to create HTML and JSON files. This standalone site was designed to be archivally stable, it involves no links to external code and can run offline.
Moby-Tix
devinsmith.work/tools/tixA small ticketing system designed for a book store. It uses SQL/PHP and the OpenLibrary API to auto-fill titles and authors from user-provided ISBNS. In the "pulls" screen, custom CSS is provided for printing the pull list.
The Fountain of Words (Poetry Generator)
devinsmith.work/tools/poem/A configurable poetry generator, made in JS using the RiTa library. Uses a combination of Markov, pure randomization, and grammar-based substitution. Source material from public domain adventure novels.
MIDI Paradise
devinsmith.work/midiparadiseNeed a vacation from reality? Welcome to MIDI Paraidse. Features 60 of the choicest MIDI files on The Internet, recorded on my period-appropriate Roland SC-155. See the "About" page for more info on provenance & curation.
Responsive Article Layouts
"All Heart" by Amy Smith
devinsmith.work/misc/heartVolunteering with the Heart of the City Farmers' Market, Amy Smith (my spouse) photographed and interviewed the vendors about the effects of the 2020 wildfires and COVID-19 on their operations. I built this dynamic layout for pitching, the final article was eventually run on The Bold Italic.
"Hard Lads as an Important Failure" by Robert Yang (Full Stop)
full-stop.net/2020/08/21/blog/robertyang/hard-lads-as-an-important-failureA 4,000-word article somewhere between queer theory and a design doc. Robert Yang details the creation of his latest video game, "Hard Lads," based on the 2015 viral video "British Lads Hit Each Other With Chair."
Data Analytics
What Can We Learn From 128 Million Checkouts At The Seattle Public Library?
http://devinsmith.work/portfolio/analyticsAn article drawn from a 30-minute presentation, using the SPL's "Monthly Checkouts by Title" dataset. Includes work in SQL and Socrata.
Visual Work
[Dataviz] Hello From The Other Side: Credits from Adele's "25" by Gender
devinsmith.work/portfolio/visual/Adele-HQ.jpegPart of an article about the stark gender discrepancies in the music industry's writing and production fields. Data from discogs.com, made with Processing.
[Cartography] Lim Bo Seng: Singapore to Calcutta
HQ image | article.Made for a longform article about the Singaporean S.O.E. operative Lim Bo Seng, this map charts his escape route after the country's fall. Made in QGIS and GIMP.
Writing & Editing
Writing
- [Outside Lands / SFAA Magazine] "Twin Peaks Falls: The Battle of Vista Francisco": As debates about SF’s housing crisis and high-density zoning rage on, let’s take a look back at how one viciously contentious development was approved in the early '60s.
- [Medium] "Lim Bo Seng: Millionaire. Activist. Romantic. SOE Operative": A longread about a pivotal figure in WWII's Pacific theater. Researched and written while living in Singapore. Includes several custom maps made with QGIS.
Editing
- [Full Stop] "Unrequited" by Anthony Russell: A short essay from a Jewish musician, reconciling his love for Chopin's work with the antisemitism in the composer's personal correspondence.
- [Full Stop] "Sharks; Circling" by Melissa McCarthy: A follow-up to her amazing book "Sharks, Death, Surfers" (Sternberg Press, 2019)
- [Full Stop] "Girl, Woman, Odor" by Kendra Stanton Lee: An article about smell, scent-shaming, and the ABCC11 gene.
Music
Client Work
- [Smule Presents] "Stressed Out" Hip Hop Cover by Diego Montana.
- [Smule Presents] "Adore" Cover by Cassandra Coleman.
- [Film Score] "ESPN 30 For 30: The U" I co-wrote and produced the soundtrack for this feature-length documentary together with a few other composers.
- [TV] "Windows 7 Was My Idea" I wrote the track for the international TV campaign for the launch of Windows 7.
Selected Discography
- FYI Birds, "Lourenço" (Elexve, 2020). FYI Birds is an experimental trio with Bob Woods-LaDue, Richard Haig, and myself.
- Miracle Cat, "Slow Year" (2017).
- Miracle Cat, "Chasing the Sunset" (2015).
- Airship Rocketship, "Avarice" (Honor Roll, 2009). Live band with Rainer Davies (Guitar), Richard Hargett (Drums), Patrick Hart (Keys), and Joe Rehmer (Bass).
- Cassette, "Beautiful California" (Honor Roll, 2005).