ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that one of David Rokeby's primary reasons for creating Very Nervous System was to draw attention to the experience of interacting with computers. The Indeterminate Archive developed by Caitlin Jones and the author is based on recognition of the archival value of both the artist's intent and the audience experience of the work. The technical developments of the work over 30 years offer a glimpse into the history of creative computing. Caroline Seck Langill has investigated the conservational challenges brought about by this lifelong link between artists and technological artworks. The sounds made by Very Nervous System are not intended to be listened to, he continues, but to create a kind of physical presence that the body can relate to: sound has a sculptural presence, both as an extension of the body and as a physical reality which one encounters with the body.
