Epälineaarinen televisioitu urheilu – käyttäjätutkimus viivästettyjen sisältöjen katselukokemuksesta

Engaging with television is increasingly moving from viewing of linear broadcasts to time-shifted content. Sports is one of the most important but also one of the most time-dependent content genres. The objective of this thesis is to categorize time-shifted sports viewing behavior and clarify whether non-linear options can offer enjoyable viewing experiences. Our user research included contextual interviews, a survey and analysis of real-life usage data. The results confirm that live viewing is the dominant and preferred type of sports viewing experience. However, we identified three different paradigms of time-shifted viewing as well. They were perceived as secondary options, but relevant within certain circumstances. Our research shows that a number of peripheral activities affect non-linear viewing of sports. Social interactions, media use and betting are among the factors that seem to diminish the advantages of time-shifting. The findings support further development of services that offer non-linear sports content. Such services should let the viewers choose between a laid- back type of experience and more active involvement.Television katselu on yhä enemmän muuttumassa lineaarikanavien katselusta epälineaarisiin sisältöihin. Urheilu on yksi television tärkeimmistä mutta myös aikasidonnaisimmista ohjelmatyypeistä. Tämän diplomityön tavoitteena on luokitella urheilun epälineaarista katsomista ja selvittää, voiko se tarjota nautinnollisia katselukokemuksia. Käyttäjätutkimuksemme koostui kontekstuaalisista haastatteluista, kyselystä ja käyttödatan analysoinnista. Tulokset vahvistavat suorien lähetysten olevan suosituin tapa katsoa urheilua. Tunnistimme kuitenkin myös kolme erilaista epälineaarisen katsomisen mallia. Niitä pidettiin toissijaisina, mutta tietyissä olosuhteissa olennaisina vaihtoehtoina. Oheistoiminta vaikuttaa urheilun epälineaariseen katsomiseen. Sosiaalinen kanssakäyminen, median käyttö ja vedonlyönti voivat vähentää epälineaarisen katsomisen etuja. Löydökset tukevat epälineaarisia urheilusisältöjä tarjoavien palveluiden kehitystä. Uusien palveluiden tulisi tarjota mahdollisuus sekä rentoon ja passiiviseen katselukokemukseen että aktiivisempaan katselutapaan

Epälineaarinen televisioitu urheilu – käyttäjätutkimus viivästettyjen sisältöjen katselukokemuksesta

Engaging with television is increasingly moving from viewing of linear broadcasts to time-shifted content. Sports is one of the most important but also one of the most time-dependent content genres. The objective of this thesis is to categorize time-shifted sports viewing behavior and clarify whether non-linear options can offer enjoyable viewing experiences. Our user research included contextual interviews, a survey and analysis of real-life usage data. The results confirm that live viewing is the dominant and preferred type of sports viewing experience. However, we identified three different paradigms of time-shifted viewing as well. They were perceived as secondary options, but relevant within certain circumstances. Our research shows that a number of peripheral activities affect non-linear viewing of sports. Social interactions, media use and betting are among the factors that seem to diminish the advantages of time-shifting. The findings support further development of services that offer non-linear sports content. Such services should let the viewers choose between a laid- back type of experience and more active involvement.Television katselu on yhä enemmän muuttumassa lineaarikanavien katselusta epälineaarisiin sisältöihin. Urheilu on yksi television tärkeimmistä mutta myös aikasidonnaisimmista ohjelmatyypeistä. Tämän diplomityön tavoitteena on luokitella urheilun epälineaarista katsomista ja selvittää, voiko se tarjota nautinnollisia katselukokemuksia. Käyttäjätutkimuksemme koostui kontekstuaalisista haastatteluista, kyselystä ja käyttödatan analysoinnista. Tulokset vahvistavat suorien lähetysten olevan suosituin tapa katsoa urheilua. Tunnistimme kuitenkin myös kolme erilaista epälineaarisen katsomisen mallia. Niitä pidettiin toissijaisina, mutta tietyissä olosuhteissa olennaisina vaihtoehtoina. Oheistoiminta vaikuttaa urheilun epälineaariseen katsomiseen. Sosiaalinen kanssakäyminen, median käyttö ja vedonlyönti voivat vähentää epälineaarisen katsomisen etuja. Löydökset tukevat epälineaarisia urheilusisältöjä tarjoavien palveluiden kehitystä. Uusien palveluiden tulisi tarjota mahdollisuus sekä rentoon ja passiiviseen katselukokemukseen että aktiivisempaan katselutapaan

User Experience in Virtual Reality, conducting an evaluation on multiple characteristics of a Virtual Reality Experience

Virtual Reality applications are today numerous and cover a wide range of interests and tastes. As popularity of Virtual Reality increases, developers in industry are trying to create engrossing and exciting experiences that captivate the interest of users. User-Experience, a term used in the field of Human-Computer Interaction and Interaction Design, describes multiple characteristics of the experience of a person interacting with a product or a system. Evaluating User-Experience can provide valuable insight to developers and researchers on the thoughts and impressions of the end users in relation to a system. However, little information exists regarding on how to conduct User-Experience evaluations in the context of Virtual Reality. Consecutively, due to the numerous parameters that influence User-Experience in Virtual Reality, conducting and organizing evaluations can be overwhelming and challenging. The author of this thesis investigated how to conduct a User-Experience evaluation on multiple aspects of a Virtual Reality headset by identifying characteristics of the experience, and the methods that can be used to measure and evaluate them. The data collected was both qualitative and quantitative to cover a wide range of characteristics of the experience. Furthermore, the author applied usability testing, think-aloud protocol, questionnaires and semi-structured interview as methods to observe user behavior and collect information regarding the aspects of the Virtual Reality headset. The testing session described in this study included 14 participants. Data from this study showed that the combination of chosen methods were able to provide adequate information regarding the experience of the users despite encountered difficulties. Additionally, this thesis showcases which methods were used to evaluate specific aspects of the experience and the performance of each method as findings of the study

Understanding the Behavior of Workshop Facilitators in Systems Analysis and Design Projects: Developing Theory from Process Modeling Projects

Organizational and technological systems analysis and design practices such as process modeling have received much attention in recent years. However, while knowledge about related artifacts such as models, tools, or grammars has substantially matured, little is known about the actual tasks and interaction activities that are conducted as part of analysis and design acts. In particular, key role of the facilitator has not been researched extensively to date. In this paper, we propose a new conceptual framework that can be used to examine facilitation behaviors in process modeling projects. The framework distinguishes four behavioral styles in facilitation (the driving engineer, the driving artist, the catalyzing engineer, and the catalyzing artist) that a facilitator can adopt. To distinguish between the four styles, we provide a set of ten behavioral anchors that underpin facilitation behaviors. We also report on a preliminary empirical exploration of our framework through interviews with experienced analysts in six modeling cases. Our research provides a conceptual foundation for an emerging theory for describing and explaining different behaviors associated with process modeling facilitation, provides first preliminary empirical results about facilitation in modeling projects, and provides a fertile basis for examining facilitation in other conceptual modeling activities

Don't walk like an Egyptian : Coping with shared attention in a mobile 3D system

This thesis presents our study of a system using real-time three-dimensional graphics on handheld computers focusing on the impact of the shared attention problem. The main objective is to investigate whether a mobile RT3D system can be both usable and useful. We postulate that one of the greater challenges to such a system is the problem of shared attention. The dynamic context of truly mobile IT use means that the user will have to share his attention between operating the system and relating to the world around him. In order to investigate this issue we developed a prototype of a Mobile 3D system. We relied on literature studies, interviews with experts and other research of relevance. As a result we formulated a set of system requirements with the intention to cope with the shared attention problem. We then performed an experiment to test how the mobile 3D system developed was utilized and how our design choices affected shared attention among the test subjects. The resulting system was received favourably by the test subjects. We observed the subjects obtaining a dynamic pattern of use where they located the destination of each task prior to movement, then checked while moving that they were on the right track. The attention demand of the system was not observed to be intrusive as the subjects appeared to be able to make efficient use of the system while moving. Although the system was received favourably by the test subjects, we suspect that our initial suppositions need to be revised. Our finds indicate that our focus on shared attention may have blinded us to other important factors. There were indications that the subjects had constructed a mental map of the geographical area prior to beginning movement and so did not use the system to aqcuire new information while they were walking. This interpretation leads to several needed revisions of our shared attention model. In our discussion we argue that focusing our design on shared attention to such an extent is not necessarily ideal for M3D systems. However the start/stop paradigm of the subjects indicates the need for a dynamic interaction design: aimed at rapidly switching between high and low attention modes

Motion Hollow: A WebVR experience for annotating movement qualities on dance content

Η εκτενής έρευνα που πραγματοποιείται στον τομέα της ανάλυσης κίνησης έχει οδηγήσει στη δημιουργία πολλών θεωρητικών πλαισίων και κανονισμών για την αναγνώριση και επισημείωση κινητικών ποιοτήτων που παρατηρούνται στην ανθρώπινη κίνηση. Παρά το γεγονός αυτό, τα πλαίσια αυτά είναι δυσνόητα για ανθρώπους με ελάχιστο ή μηδενικό επιστημονικό υπόβαθρο σχετικό με τον τομέα. Για αυτό τον λόγο, η διαδικασία επισημείωσης κινητικών ποιοτήτων από απλούς χρήστες παρουσιάζει μέχρι στιγμής πολλές δυσκολίες. Η πτυχιακή αυτή στοχεύει στην επίλυση αυτού του προβλήματος, αναπτύσσοντας μια διαδικτυακή εφαρμογή επισημείωσης των κινητικών ποιοτήτων που παρατηρούνται στην κίνηση τρισδιάστατων ανθρωπόμορφων μοντέλων που εκτελούν χορευτικές κινήσεις. Η εφαρμογή παραθέτει στον χρήστη ένα σύνολο προτάσεων που περιγράφουν με απλό τρόπο τις διάφορες ποιότητες και ζητά από τον χρήστη να επιλέγει ποιές θεωρεί ορθές για κάθε χορευτική κίνηση που συναντά. Η πτυχιακή αυτή ερευνά επίσης τους διάφορους τρόπους που μπορεί η εφαρμογή να γίνει πιο ελκυστική για τον χρήστη, έτσι ώστε να τον παρακινεί να ολοκληρώσει την εμπειρία. Γι’αυτό το λόγο, για την ανάπτυξη της εφαρμογής επιλέχθηκε ο συνδυασμός του MEAN Stack μοντέλου και του A-Frame, μιας τεχνολογίας που χρησιμοποιείται συχνά για την ανάπτυξη 3D/VR/AR διαδικτυακών εμπειριών. Μετά την ολοκλήρωση της ανάπτυξης του πρωτοτύπου, πραγματοποιήθηκε διαμορφωτική αξιολόγηση με 8 χρήστες. Κατά τη διάρκεια της αξιολόγησης, προτάθηκαν εναλλακτικές για την βελτίωση της ευχρηστίας και του περιεχομένου της εμπειρίας, δίνοντας χώρο και στην ανάδειξη πιθανών μελλοντικών επεκτάσεων. Ωστόσο, παρά τα όποια ζητήματα, οι συμμετέχοντες δήλωσαν πως βρήκαν την εμπειρία ενδιαφέρουσα και ευχάριστη. Ολοκλήρωσαν την εμπειρία πληθοπορισμού δίχως να χάσουν το ενδιαφέρον τους, κάτι το οποίο δεν συμβαίνει συχνά σε παρόμοιες δραστηριότητες και καθιστά αυτή τη πτυχιακή επιτυχημένη στον στόχο της.There are a lot of conceptual frameworks derived from the extensive research conducted in the field of movement analysis that are being used in the process of the identification and annotation of qualities in movement. However, these frameworks are not easily comprehensible by people with minimal or no scientific context related to the field, especially when used raw without being molded and expressed in a more user-friendly manner. In the interest of tackling this problem, this thesis covers the process of developing a web-based crowd-sourcing experience where a set of simple questions are used as a theoretical framework for the annotation of movement qualities in dance moves performed by 3D animated models. This thesis also investigates ways of making the crowdsourcing experience more appealing, in order to encourage the full engagement of the users. Therefore, the MEAN Stack model was chosen along with A-Frame, a web framework for building 3D/AR/VR experiences, for the development of the application. After developing a first prototype for the experience, a formative evaluation was carried out. 8 people participated in the evaluation suggesting improvements regarding the usability and the content of the experience. Moreover, the participants’ feedback led to the formation of ideas regarding possible future extensions. In conclusion, setting all issues aside, all the participants found the experience very interesting and pleasant. They were able to complete the whole experience without losing interest, a fact which is not frequently the case when it comes to crowdsourcing activities and renders this thesis successful in its goal

The playthrough evaluation framework reliable usability evaluation for video games

This thesis presents the playthrough evaluation framework, a novel framework for the reliable usability evaluation of first-person shooter console video games. The framework includes playthrough evaluation, a structured usability evaluation method adapted from heuristic evaluation. Usability evaluation can help guide developers by pointing out design issues that cause users problems. However, usability evaluation methods suffer from the evaluator effect, where separate evaluations of the same data do not produce reliably consistent results. This can result in a number of undesirable consequences affecting issues such as: • Unreliable evaluation: Without reliable results, evaluation reports risk giving incorrect or misleading advice. • Weak methodological validation: Typically new methods (e.g., new heuristics) are validated against user tests. However, without a reliable means to describe observations, attempts to validate novel methods against user test data will also be affected by weak reliability. The playthrough evaluation framework addresses these points through a series of studies presenting the need for, and showing the development of the framework, including the following stages, 1. Explication of poor reliability in heuristic evaluation. 2. Development and validation of a reliable user test coding scheme. 3. Derivation of a novel usability evaluation method, playthrough evaluation. 4. Testing the method, quantifying results. Evaluations were conducted with 22 participants, on 3 first-person shooter action console video games, using two methodologies, heuristic evaluation and the novel playthrough evaluation developed in this thesis. Both methods proved effective, with playthrough evaluation providing more detailed analysis but requiring more time to conduct

Gay Data

Since its launch in 2009, the geosocial networking service Grindr has become an increasingly mainstream and prominent part of gay culture, both in the United States and globally. Mobile applications like Grindr give users the ability to quickly and easily share information about themselves (in the form of text, numbers, and pictures), and connect with each other in real time on the basis of geographic proximity. I argue that these services constitute an important site for examining how bodies, identities, and communities are translated into data, as well as how data becomes a tool for forming, understanding, and managing personal relationships. Throughout this work, I articulate a model of networked interactivity that conceptualizes self-expression as an act determined by three sometimes overlapping, sometimes conflicting sets of affordances and constraints: (1) technocommercial structures of software and business; (2) cultural and subcultural norms, mores, histories, and standards of acceptable and expected conduct; and (3) sociopolitical tendencies that appear to be (but in fact are not) fixed technocommercial structures. In these discussions, Grindr serves both as a model of processes that apply to social networking more generally, as well as a particular study into how networked interactivity is complicated by the histories and particularities of Western gay culture. Over the course of this dissertation, I suggest ways in which users, policymakers, and developers can productively recognize the liveness, vitality, and durability of personal information in the design, implementation, and use of gay-targeted social networking services. Specifically, I argue that through a focus on (1) open-ended structures of interface design, (2) clear and transparent articulations of service policies, and the rationales behind them, and (3) approaches to user information that promote data sovereignty, designers, developers, and advocates can work to make social networking services, including Grindr, safer and more representative of their users throughout their data’s lifecycle