Designing and evaluating mobile multimedia user experiences in public urban places: Making sense of the field

The majority of the world’s population now lives in cities (United Nations, 2008) resulting in an urban densification requiring people to live in closer proximity and share urban infrastructure such as streets, public transport, and parks within cities. However, “physical closeness does not mean social closeness” (Wellman, 2001, p. 234). Whereas it is a common practice to greet and chat with people you cross paths with in smaller villages, urban life is mainly anonymous and does not automatically come with a sense of community per se. Wellman (2001, p. 228) defines community “as networks of interpersonal ties that provide sociability, support, information, a sense of belonging and social identity.” While on the move or during leisure time, urban dwellers use their interactive information communication technology (ICT) devices to connect to their spatially distributed community while in an anonymous space. Putnam (1995) argues that available technology privatises and individualises the leisure time of urban dwellers. Furthermore, ICT is sometimes used to build a “cocoon” while in public to avoid direct contact with collocated people (Mainwaring et al., 2005; Bassoli et al., 2007; Crawford, 2008). Instead of using ICT devices to seclude oneself from the surrounding urban environment and the collocated people within, such devices could also be utilised to engage urban dwellers more with the urban environment and the urban dwellers within. Urban sociologists found that “what attracts people most, it would appear, is other people” (Whyte, 1980, p. 19) and “people and human activity are the greatest object of attention and interest” (Gehl, 1987, p. 31). On the other hand, sociologist Erving Goffman describes the concept of civil inattention, acknowledging strangers’ presence while in public but not interacting with them (Goffman, 1966). With this in mind, it appears that there is a contradiction between how people are using ICT in urban public places and for what reasons and how people use public urban places and how they behave and react to other collocated people. On the other hand there is an opportunity to employ ICT to create and influence experiences of people collocated in public urban places. The widespread use of location aware mobile devices equipped with Internet access is creating networked localities, a digital layer of geo-coded information on top of the physical world (Gordon & de Souza e Silva, 2011). Foursquare.com is an example of a location based 118 Mobile Multimedia – User and Technology Perspectives social network (LBSN) that enables urban dwellers to virtually check-in into places at which they are physically present in an urban space. Users compete over ‘mayorships’ of places with Foursquare friends as well as strangers and can share recommendations about the space. The research field of Urban Informatics is interested in these kinds of digital urban multimedia augmentations and how such augmentations, mediated through technology, can create or influence the UX of public urban places. “Urban informatics is the study, design, and practice of urban experiences across different urban contexts that are created by new opportunities of real-time, ubiquitous technology and the augmentation that mediates the physical and digital layers of people networks and urban infrastructures” (Foth et al., 2011, p. 4). One possibility to augment the urban space is to enable citizens to digitally interact with spaces and urban dwellers collocated in the past, present, and future. “Adding digital layer to the existing physical and social layers could facilitate new forms of interaction that reshape urban life” (Kjeldskov & Paay, 2006, p. 60). This methodological chapter investigates how the design of UX through such digital placebased mobile multimedia augmentations can be guided and evaluated. First, we describe three different applications that aim to create and influence the urban UX through mobile mediated interactions. Based on a review of literature, we describe how our integrated framework for designing and evaluating urban informatics experiences has been constructed. We conclude the chapter with a reflective discussion on the proposed framework

Securing Personal Items in Public Space: Stories of Attacks and Threats

While we put great effort in protecting digital devices and data, there is a lack of research on usable techniques to secure personal items that we carry in public space. To better understand situations where ubiquitous technologies could help secure personal items, we conducted an online survey (N=101) in which we collected real-world stories from users reporting on personal items, either at risk of, or actually being lost, damaged or stolen. We found that the majority of cases occurred in (semi-)public spaces during afternoon and evening times, when users left their items. From these results, we derived a model of incidents involving personal items in public space as well as a set of properties to describe situations where personal items may be at risk. We discuss reoccurring properties of the scenarios, potential multimedia-based protection mechanisms for securing personal items in public space as well as future research suggestions

Interactive Multimedia Development to Increase Basic Movements at Curriculum 2013

This development aims to help the students in understanding dance art subject to the material of imitating movement based on space, time, and energy. The resulted product was interactive learning multimedia. The research was conducted by using developmental model which was adapted from developmental model of Borg and Gall. This product was through validation test which was conducted by 2 material experts, 1 media expert, small group test for 7 students and large group for 30 students. The user test was conducted in SMP Negeri (Public Junior High School) 1 Malang. Data collection technique was through Likert Scale. Data from test result that been conducted showed that the product of interactive learning multimedia obtained the percentage 84,2% with feasible qualification/no revision. Keywords: development, learning media, interactive multimedia, dance movement. DOI: 10.7176/ADS/71-02 Publication date:March 31st 201

MAKING PUBLIC OUTDOOR SPACE IN TRANSITION

In urban public outdoor space, the possibility to define multi-functional islands, to create “fusion” of socialization, leisure and work spaces ‒ for example lounges with wireless connectivity, quiet corners to work as well as areas for socializing and relax … ‒ reduces isolation and increases innovation opportunities. The development of electronic live/work areas and villages is becoming an attractive option for the rehabilitation of open space in historic and postindustrial cities. There are multiple application fields: pedestrian spaces, streets and meeting points, “relaxation” places, commercial spaces, multifunctions spaces, structures for temporary demonstrations or for urban art. The importance of public space is highlighted in providing support that can facilitate the different types of social interaction with new media technologies, to overcome the digital divide in deprived neighborhoods. A neglected dimension of the multimedia in European open space is the sound. The soundscape design corresponds to the visual design field of landscape design. Sound sculptures and sound digital installations can create symbiotic landscapes and contribute to the atmosphere of space to the creation of a livable and intelligent physical environment

Museum Experience Design: A Modern Storytelling Methodology

In this paper we propose a new direction for design, in the context of the theme “Next Digital Technologies in Arts and Culture”, by employing modern methods based on Interaction Design, Interactive Storytelling and Artificial Intelligence. Focusing on Cultural Heritage, we propose a new paradigm for Museum Experience Design, facilitating on the one hand traditional visual and multimedia communication and, on the other, a new type of interaction with artefacts, in the form of a Storytelling Experience. Museums are increasingly being transformed into hybrid spaces, where virtual (digital) information coexists with tangible artefacts. In this context, “Next Digital Technologies” play a new role, providing methods to increase cultural accessibility and enhance experience. Not only is the goal to convey stories hidden inside artefacts, as well as items or objects connected to them, but it is also to pave the way for the creation of new ones through an interactive museum experience that continues after the museum visit ends. Social sharing, in particular, can greatly increase the value of dissemination

Development and evaluation of a multimedia interactive CD: Public speaking interactive media

This paper reports on a study that endeavours to develop a Computer Assisted Learning (CAL) multimedia courseware namely, Public Speaking Interactive Media. This courseware was developed specifically for diploma students undergoing ENG4113 (Business English) and ENG 4153 (Public Speaking Skills) at Kolej Profesional MARA Indera Mahkota, Kuantan, Pahang. The objectives and goals of this study is to develop a CAL courseware which is in-line with the syllabus of the courses using multimedia elements together with the application of behaviorist, cognitive and constructivist learning theories as a basis in the design of the courseware. Moreover, the instructional design and implementation of this CAL multimedia courseware employ active and flexible learning strategies. Utilizing Hannafin and Peck’s Design Model, this courseware was developed using Macromedia Director and Macromedia Authorware to ensure that multimedia elements and simulations can be fully integrated. The findings of the study revealed that the courseware fulfilled its objectives in aiding students in comprehending the concept of public speaking skills better by using multimedia elements. In addition, the courseware is in-line with the syllabus and has incorporated the theories and strategies intended successfully

English Laboratory Management (A Site Study at SMP Semesta Semarang))

There are three objectives in this research are: (1) the characteristics of room management applied in English laboratory in SMP Semesta Semarang, (2) the characteristics of English lab materials in SMP Semesta, (3) the benefits of English laboratory in SMP Semesta Semarang. It is a qualitative research using ethnography design. The results of the research show: (1) Design of space in the language laboratory SMP Semesta Semarang using double separate table rows. Existing equipment in the lab of English instructor consoles among other, repeaters language learning machine, tape recorder, DVD player, video monitors, headsets and students booth mounted in a soundproof room. (2) The materials of lab are instructor console, repeaters language learning machine, tape recorder, DVD player, video monitors, headsets and students booth mounted in a soundproof room. Language Laboratory is a form of audio and video electronic devices consisting of instructor console as the main engine. It is also equipped with multimedia devices such as Tape Recorder, VCD / DVD player, there is also a repeater monitor or language learning machine. (3) English lab also has benefits for extracurricular activities. Extracurricular activities include Classic Speaking Club (ECC). ECC activities can be done in the lab. In SMP Semesta there are variety of extracurricular activities such as journalism, photography, theater, Home Public Speaking, etc.. Home Public Speaking is extra-curricular activities about English usage. Given the expected extracurricular English language skills will increase the student. In addition there is also a component of a multimedia computer as an additional component that can be combined with other apparatus. When it is fixed, the language lab and lab equipment as a multimedia language laboratory were built