PresenceDisplays: Tangible Peripheral Displays for Promoting Awareness and Connectedness
Abstract
Peripheral displays allow users to monitor an information source while focusing on a separate primary task. In this report, we present work investigating what form tangible peripheral displays of awareness information from instant messaging programs may take and the role these displays could have in existing communication practices by allowing the user to develop a sense of awareness and connectedness. We describe several prototypes of tangible, aesthetic displays of awareness information which were motivated by several user-centered and participatory design techniques, including an affective probe technique introduced in this report. Two of the prototypes were built and then deployed to nine users for five weeks to determine how well the user can obtain awareness information from the display and if extended use promotes a feeling of connectedness with the person mapped to the display. Analysis of quantitative and qualitative data from the deployment suggests that awareness information contributes to a feeling of connectedness by provoking the user to think about the person mapped to the display more often. It was also found that awareness information can serve as a cue for heavyweight communications but this is not a prerequisite for developing connectedness.
Adding Peripheral Photo Browsing to the Music Listening Experience
Abstract
We present the Motorola Ambient Memory Player (mAMP), a digital music player that uses the metadata of the currently playing song to retrieve a photo tagged with similar metadata. mAMP combines music listening and photo browsing while still maintaining the lightweight nature of the act of music listening. We discuss the results of a two-week user study and describe how mAMP enhances the reminiscing experience sometimes associated with music listening and photo browsing and can serve as a catalyst for initiating a communication session by phone, IM, or face-to-face. We also found that mAMP sometimes allows for a serendipitous experience in the discovery and browsing of new photos.
Exploring the Design and Use of Peripheral Displays of Awareness Information
Abstract
Peripheral displays allow users to monitor an information source while focusing on a separate primary task. In this paper, we present our work investigating what form peripheral displays of awareness information from instant messaging programs may take and the role these displays could have in existing communication practices. We describe several prototypes of tangible, aesthetic displays of awareness information. A focus group involving users of instant messaging software revealed that the awareness information component of the software (such as sounds or flashing windows) is often used to trigger communication through more heavyweight means such as telephone or face-to-face conversation.