a Digital Media Design student's FYP

Editing and now report-ing

2010-03-26T12:49:00.000Z

I've really only been doing editing for the video prototype recently. It's looking good but it'll have to take a back seat along with the Flash animation as I need to concentrate on the report coz it's due first. I hadn't made many changes to the report bar a little bit of re-writing the literature review as I'd been waiting for feedback on the draft I submitted. Time to get cracking on it now though, I have my feedback and two weeks to get it totally finished. Roll on the summer!

Meeting with Supervisor (8)

2010-03-26T12:40:00.001Z

Wk 9 Sem 2 26/3/10
Just had a meeting with my supervisor to discuss my draft report which I handed in. Here are the results:

Discuss the academic/theoretical element of the design process used.
Number the Chapters in the sections
Organise the literature by themes-Why are the papers useful to you?
Create links between papers- What did each paper help you with.
The Design Chapter - write a connection with what comes before, a smooth transition
Introduce the process- why you started with observations and conversations, refer to books
Explain why you did the design workshop
Do footnotes of the Belltable etc.
Explain Scenarios - why do them,why they're useful, ref 5 reasons for Scenario based design
Explain Paper Prototyping - like above
Technology - possibility if it was taken on for development but it's not the purpose of this work
Video Prototyping - same as above
Conclusion - speak about feedback on FYP day, what you'd do if you carried on with the project

Video Prototype Filmed! Progress!

2010-03-18T12:05:00.000Z

Hurray! I filmed the video prototype yesterday and got some storyboarding done before that, this is all good as there's not much time left!

It was a bit of a conundrum trying to figure out how to film a phone spray painting a wall but we managed it in the end. I actually ended up using stop motion, it's not rocket science but it gets the point across.

I need to draw up the interface in Flash and get the film edited. I also submitted my draft report last Thursday so hopefully I'll get some feedback on that too.

First Paper Prototype

2010-03-04T17:13:00.000Z

Just did up the first paper prototype of how the application would look and work on the phone. I'll try put a few pictures up soon, need to load them onto the computer.
On to working on the report and the storyboard!

Alternate Scenarios for Graffiti Concept

2010-03-04T15:02:00.003Z

Ok, so because it scored the highest in terms of having the most elements required by a solution and because it was one of the preferred scenarios according to participants, I'll be running with the virtual graffiti concept.
I developed the starting scenario for it and now I have come up with some scenarios for alternate users of the system.
I need to do a detailed storyboard of the concept and also a feasibility study in terms of the technology it would use.
I've already been looking into tagged objects and markers so with a bit more research I'll see if that will be a good direction to take.

Also need to start a paper prototype of the interface that will be on the mobile asap!

Scouting for Signs

2010-03-04T14:16:00.003Z

I went out armed with my camera and tried to find signs of UL in the city centre. This was pretty unsuccessful, I really only managed to find two things that would tell you that the University of Limerick did in fact exist.

1. A road sign that says "University" on it.

2. The front of a bus going to the University.

There were a few other indirect signs, a poster in the window of the now closed Spirit Store which mentioned some people from UL, a poster for the show Man in the Mirror which was being shown in the University Concert Hall, (however the part of the poster that said the venue was torn off.) and a brochure for student travel which included a mention of UL.

Overall in the city UL related signs were more sparse than I expected.

So then it was UL's turn. I tried to find signs of the City at UL. Slightly more joy than in the city but that was to expected because a lot of UL organised events take place in the city.

1. Posters of UL-related events in the city - there were tonnes of these.

2. Brochure for Limerick City Bus Tour

3. Map of UL with the city noted as "Limerick" with an arrow

So that was it, the results of this exercise pretty much validate the idea that there is separation between the two. There are events constantly taking place at both locations but they are not being advertised in both places.

Meeting with Supervisor (7)

2010-03-01T16:32:00.000Z

Results of meeting with supervisor 1/03/10 wk 6 semester 2

FYP Report

Intro/Background- reasons for the project
Literature/Background Readings
Design Chapter
Scenario/Prototype
If I were to complete this - feedback from participants/Creative Limerick as a possibility?

Storyboards

Need to be scanned in so should be mainly in A4
Take photos of possible locations and make collages
Paper prototype of interface

Flash

Use Flash to make a prototype of the phone app interface

Technology

Infra red
Webcam tracking
Bluetooth
Need to do a feasibility study - of the technology and the means to complete the project

Video Prototype

Use the video and the whole concept to get feedback from the participants
Asking would this solution work? Would it create a connection?
Use this feedback in the final chapter

Scenario - develop final concept more

Consider multiple other uses
City use
UL use
Passers-by viewing it as art work
Special commissions from organisations for events, Riverfest, Charity week etc
Crucial to highlight the UL/CITY link that this installation would create
Explore how would the link work? Who sees it?

Scenario Update

2010-02-26T19:54:00.000Z

I've expanded my 2 "winning" scenarios and very roughly storyboarded them. I'm meeting my supervisor on Monday 1st March so hopefully then I'll be sorted for doing a proper storyboard, a video prototype and my FYP draft report due in wk 7. I'm gonna get working on that report some now!

Feedback received - time to expand scenarios and get storyboarding

2010-02-25T17:29:00.001Z

Just got all the responses back about which scenario the participants of the design workshop prefer as a solution.
I filled all the scenarios in on a table at the recommendation of my supervisor, to see which have the most elements of the solution needed.
The scenario that came out on top was the Graffiti related one while the Abstract Clock wasn't too far off.
I've already done a rough storyboard for one so I'll have to meet with my supervisor to discuss doing a proper storyboard and also to talk about the FYP draft report for which the deadline is looming!
Better get back to work on expanding my scenarios!

Scenario evaluation

2010-02-16T11:32:00.000Z

I've put all my scenarios in a table as recommended, to see which fulfil which needs. I've also put out a call for feedback on then from some of the participants of the design workshop. When I get that information I'll look at it and the table and decide on which two scenarios would make the best solutions. I'll then develop them a bit more and then storyboard them, and then decide which one will be the final design. That's the plan anyway!!

Meeting with Supervisor (6)

2010-02-12T14:18:00.001Z

12th Feb 2010 wk3 semester 2

Discussed during the meeting:
Scenarios

How does each scenario address issues arising from the design workshop e.g.space, person to person interaction, students all over Limerick, digital info mapped over space etc
Explain how they fulfil the needs
Find the one that fulfils the most needs and the most important needs, in order to determine which scenarios should be developed further
To do this put them all in a table with a sumary of the topics they address to see which is the strongest- get feedback from participants. e.g.
Choose two and develop them more in writing then storyboard and choose one for video prototyping and justify choosing it.

Report

Document as much of the process as possible in the report

my observations
first person wprk
findings/reflections
brainstorming

Other

need to refresh on Flash coz will be using that

Writing the FYP Report

2010-02-11T13:01:00.000Z

Here's some pointers I was given for writing the report during the last meeting with my supervisor on 26/01/10

Update the Literature Review
Write a chapter on the design workshop
What came out of it
Attach the scenarios in the appendices

Include in the report:

Background reading
Exploratory workshop
Design Phase - scenarios
Prototype

Scenarios typed up, looking at the Iterative Design Process

2010-02-10T19:48:00.000Z

I have 7 scenarios in total now, they're all typed up and I need to meet my supervisor to discuss them. Meanwhile I'm trying to get a head start on my FYP report. I'm looking at the iterative design process right now in doing the report. As that's the process I'm using in my project, I need to do some research on it. I'll post up some sites I find of use.

Resources for Scenarios

2010-01-28T15:44:00.000Z

Just gonna post up some links to scenario related sites.

http://www.infodesign.com.au/usabilityresources/scenarios

Great Project: I Want You to Want Me

2010-01-28T14:43:00.003Z

When looking at the direction I should be taking for my FYP, from the design workshop material I remembered a project I came across last year. It was shown at the exhibition Design and the Elastic Mind at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 2008.
You can read about it on the MoMA website here but you should get a good understanding of it from the video. It's a really nice project and it would be great to see it for real and get to use it.
There's also a lot of other cool stuff on the exhibition website so check it out http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2008/elasticmind/

Meeting with Supervisor (5)

2010-01-28T14:24:00.002Z

26/Jan/10 semester 2 wk 1

Results of the meeting:

Information feeds from all points and respresent them- in a teaser, to get people curious, to generate awareness. Example: the Local Barometer project.
A focal point in the city and on campus. Possibly use Creative Limerick? (more info here)

Maybe linking the cafes in town with those on campus? Concentrate on students? - linking students on campus with those in the city.

Using existing information feeds to generate representations that will allow people to access some info in a non-literal way.
Need to list the crucial activities carried out in town and on campus, traffic etc

Need to write up some scenarios, considering when, where, how...

Time - day/night, weekday/weekend
Spaces - indoor/outdoor, public/private - on the bus, in the home, in a cafe.
Application - mobile/website/iPhone app/large display/projection etc

Create scenarios based on variants of these.

Design Workshop Results

2010-01-28T14:01:00.002Z

I've typed up the myriad of sticky notes and the main points from the discussion we had and here's a few things that emerged:
Overall
Lack of student participation in the city
Demand/desire for information about events in both areas
Needed: a central point for all relevant information, a central feed

City centre
People in city centre not involved with UL totally unaware of it
Facilities, nightlife and shops in city centre - is why people visit town
Cafes - very popular
No student space in the city centre

Campus
Restaurants, pubs, Student Union events and gym very popular
Has natural surroundings and the countryside nearby
Not much sense of community on campus
Wanted on campus: a place like Dolan's

Now that I have this information I can write up some scenarios. Finally feel like I'm getting somewhere!

Interesting!

2010-01-27T18:40:00.001Z

Was just sitting in the library working on this FYP when someone came around handing out survey sheets. Happy enough to participate coz I know what it's like to need people to fill in surveys, I began to answer the tick-the-box questions.

As I read down the sheet I realized the survey was about the city and the university and how they're very separated. I spoke to the person who handed them out and found out that some people in Architecture here are looking into the issue. They said it's because they found, just from observation that there's a disconnection between the city and campus in Limerick, which is not there in other colleges! That's pretty neat :)

Design Workshop

2010-01-20T10:06:00.000Z

Back in week 12 of the 1st semester, on the 25th of Nov, I held a design workshop in the Interaction Design Center, University of Limerick.
Five design-savvy volunteers participated in the workshop. The theme or narrative was of UL and Limerick city as separate entities. Using markers and sticky notes, the participants sketched out their use of the campus and city centre, as well as their hopes for an ideal campus and ways to link the two communities.
The exercise really highlighted the disconnection and creative ways of establishing a new connection were brainstormed.
I recorded the session via audio and photographs. I've typed up all the sticky notes and the main points from the discussion. I'm going to go through them now and see what kind of a direction I should be taking for my design.

Meeting with Supervisor (4)

2009-11-16T16:02:00.000Z

11/Nov/09 wk 11 term time

Results of the meeting:

Presentation went fine, positive feedback,

To do:

Organize design workshop session with participants.

In the process involve participants who are:

students - with design background and without
non-students

Literature review for interim report - talk about each paper.

Presentation!

2009-11-16T14:51:00.000Z

Ok, don't think I can get the presentation up here but comment if you'd like a copy.

1hr and 19 mins to the Presentation...

2009-10-30T11:44:00.001Z

The Powerpoint is prepared, the cue cards written out.
I'll somehow get the presentation up here afterwards.

All the best!

Meeting with Supervisor (3)

2009-10-20T16:20:00.002+01:00

19th Oct 2009

Run through of what needs to be amended in the slides for the FYP presentation on the Fri 30th Oct, between 1 and 3pm:

A summary of what I got from the papers I read.
A slide on Contributions(Objectives)
Methods for the design process; storyboards, video scenarios, body storming etc.
Time- own personal timeline, when each part of the project will be completed.
Put in a link to the blog.

Notes:
The process is a major part of the project, it is more important than the demo.
The mock-up is just a representation of the process, it's not full scale.
Make the methods(design process) specific to the project, what will work for this project)
Be prepared for the question: "What will you actually build?" i.e. the answer to this will be established through the interaction design process.
Use cue cards.
The demo will need to be interactive.
It's a possibility to use a video prototype to show the idea working.

About interfaces...

2009-10-09T17:05:00.000+01:00

As I'm reading Windows and Mirrors, a question is occurring to me, should interfaces be enjoyed, rather than disappear? That is, instead of making a computer ubiquitous, should we be making it 'present' so that people can appreciate its design?
But then if we use something frequently enough we can and perhaps usually do, stop noticing it, we just see the task we need to do.

What to do next :)

2009-10-09T16:37:00.000+01:00

Group read papers into related topics
Begin working on presentation
Find more papers
Continue reading Windows and Mirrors

Meeting with supervisor(2)

2009-10-05T15:17:00.001+01:00

30/Sep/09 wk 4 term time

Results of the meeting:

Discussion of the presentation due in wk 8-

Provotyping- justify using or mentioning it
Observations about how things are between the city and the university campus i.e. not connected
Playful ways to generate interaction between the city and the campus
specific examples of projects that do what you want to do(i.e. similar projects)

Things to take note of-

Try to find something about the city centre on the campus and vice versa.
Look at people who are trying to do something about the disconnection between the city centre and the campus.
Limerick Co-ordinatin Office
ilovelimerick.com

Outline of the presentation-

Title
Brief Description/Abstract of the project
Background readings-put related papers into chunks(don't need to talk about each paper separately)
Outline how you'll progress(Things to do-list):leading your design process i.e. body storming etc.
Timeline- in a schematic form(include deadlines)

Further reading-
Fiasco: game interface for location-based play by Michele Chang and Elizabeth Goodman

Meeting with Supervisor (1)

2009-10-05T14:38:00.004+01:00

22/Sep/09 wk 3 term time

Results of meeting:

Sources for more reading material -
Tangible and Embedded Interaction (TEI) http://www.tei-conf.org/10/
IP City http://www.ipcity.eu/
SIGGRAPH http://www.siggraph.org/
Disc - unable to find the site for this conference atm.
Book, Windows and Mirrors, Interaction Design, Digital Art, and the Myth of Transparency by Jay David Bolter and Diane Gromala
Book, (Re)searching the Digital Bauhaus by Jonas Lowgren and Thomas Binder

Tags-
connection/awareness
non-literal representation of activity
connected city
urban computing

Project Report-
Literature Review: Groups of papers
Statement of Idea

Design Process-
Possible methods: probe packs, body storming

General-
Document everything in a project diary

Title chosen, away we go!

2009-09-30T16:00:00.001+01:00

The title of my fyp is: Campus to City Social Awareness Portal

Here's the description:
Design and prototyping of an interactive "Portal" to link the university of Limerick Campus with Limerick City Centre. The installation should provide ways to create social awareness between the campus community and locations of the city centre. The project will entail research and specification on social awareness systems, development of design concept and scenarios and implementation of a mock-up. The details of interaction and choice of technology is left to the student as they are part of the interaction design process.

Now to do some research and the like!