namwenkram's fieldstudy [5 articles]

Abstract

This paper investigates emergent practices around 'microblogging', changing and sharing status within a social group. We present results from a trial of 'Connecto', a phone based status and location sharing application that allows a group to 'tag' areas and have individuals' locations shared automatically on a mobile phone. In use the system moved beyond being an awareness tool to a way of continuing the ongoing 'story' of conversations within the group. Through sharing status and location the system supported each groups' ...

Abstract

How do mobility and presence feature as aspects of social life? Using a case study of paroled offenders tracked via Global Positioning System (GPS), we explore the ways that location-based technologies frame people's everyday experiences of space. In particular, we focus on how access and presence are negotiated outside of traditional conceptions of "privacy." We introduce the notion of accountabilities of presence and suggest that it is a more useful concept than "privacy" for understanding the relationship between presence and sociality. ...

Abstract

Being mobile influences not only the types of information people seek but also the ways they attempt to access it. Mobile contexts present challenges of changing location and social context, restricted time for information access, and the need to share attentional resources among concurrent activities. Understanding mobile information needs and associated interaction challenges is fundamental to improving designs for mobile phones and related devices. We conducted a two-week diary study to better understand mobile information needs and how they are addressed. ...

Abstract

Through an iterative design approach, we have proposed and evaluated ways of incorporating user-created information into context-aware systems. We implemented and tested a location-sensitive college campus tour guide called Campus Aware that allows users to annotate physical spaces with text notes. The goal was to provide visitors to the campus with a sense of the activities going on in the environment. Our evaluation of Campus Aware revealed that users provided unique content that was interesting and useful to others. They also ...

Abstract

Mobile experiences that take place in public settings such as on city streets create new opportunities for interweaving the fictional world of a performance or game with the everyday physical world. A study of a touring performance reveals how designers generated excitement and dramatic tension by implicating bystanders and encouraging the (apparent) crossing of normal boundaries of behaviour. The study also shows how designers dealt with associated risks through a process of careful orchestration. Consequently, we extend an existing framework for ...