Abstract:
We often hear predictions of a
technology-rich future in which our environments will be
filled with artifacts that can sense and respond to us in
new ways - a world filled with cameras, microphones,
visual displays and audio speakers, to name but a few.
Although such a world may seem threatening or menacing in
some depictions, it is possible that such developments
will lead to more accommodating environments that
encourage more frequent and beneficial interactions and a
greater sense of awareness among the inhabitants of such
spaces.
A physical space that can sense
people in the vicinity, and has knowledge of their
interests, can use this information to create new informal
interaction opportunities for these people. For example, a
shared public display in a workplace, combined with a
tracking system, can display information of mutual
interest to the people passing by the display. People may
choose to take advantage of this information to initiate a
conversation with someone about whom they may know very
little, leading to an increased sense of community in the
workplace.
A physical space can also be used to
convey information about people to others, thereby
fostering greater awareness of each other's activities.
For example, information targeted by users for shared use,
such as the public portions of their calendar application,
can be displayed on one's private display. A person
viewing their display can learn that someone else in their
group may be attending an upcoming conference or will be
on vacation. Although it is possible for people to act on
this information (asking their colleague about the
conference), its primary purpose is to convey information
that is often not shared in today's dynamic workplaces.
We have built three applications to
explore the use and effects of peripheral displays in
three different workplace contexts: UniCast, a personal
display within an individual's office; OutCast, a personal
yet shared display on the outside of an individual's
office; and GroupCast, a shared display in a public area
of an office building, preferably a lounge or discussion
area. These will each be described briefly below, along
with some of the user interface issues that have arisen in
the design and implementation of these displays that are
intended primarily for background (as opposed to
foreground) interaction.
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