Computational thinking and creative practice

End-user programmers have experiences of computation that are different from those of professional software engineers or people trained in computer science. We now understand that these different experiences arise from different motivations, different approaches to the task of programming, and different expectations about the outcomes. This talk reports results from a 10 year programme of research, engaging with collaborators who have been sought out precisely because their motivations, work methods and intentions are as different as possible from typical engineering programmers. These investigations have involved the development of a wide range of novel programmable systems and notations designed for use by choreographers, composers, musicians, and visual artists. The findings extend previous analyses of computational experience such as the attention investment model of abstraction use, and the cognitive dimensions of notations, drawing attention to ways of programming that are not only utilitarian, but playful and engaging. Research of this kind also helps us to understand that there are not necessarily different kinds of people in the world - those who are creative or not - but rather different ways of engaging with technology, available to all designers painting from the palette of human-centric computing systems.