34 research outputs found

    Seamless evaluation integration into IDS educational games

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    Serious games have recently enjoyed unprecedented interest among researchers. Despite the fact that the main focus of this domain remains on player entertainment and engagement, serious games have established themselves as an alternative educational paradigm. However, little interest has been given to investigating methods for the assessment of their effectiveness. Game evaluation focus remains on investigating usability and technical aspects. Those attempting to evaluate the educational impact typically rely on traditional questionnaires that typically negatively affecting user immersion and the overall game enjoyment. Among game genres, Interactive Digital Storytelling (IDS) is a fast growing genre that merges computer games, multimedia and cinematic storytelling with entertaining education. Like any other teaching intervention, educational IDS’s have to be evaluated against a defined set of Learning Objectives (LOs). In this paper we present a User-Centred Seamless Evaluation Framework for IDS games and describe the algorithm for the integration of knowledge assessment to measure knowledge improvement against given LOs without affecting player enjoyment. We implement this algorithm in an educational game and show that the framework has been perceived by the majority of the players as a positive enhancement to the game, 94% of the participants reported preferring this form of assessment as opposed to the more “traditional” methods. Statistically significant knowledge improvements were obtained after the game play

    Social Media & Place Making

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    My research addresses the intersection of two concepts: urban transformation and place making. Firstly, concerning Urban transformation, there is the crisis of the city that has created vacant and underused spaces. These areas invite interventions from the local communities and bottom-up solutions to real, local and social problems. Secondly, regarding the relation between people and surroundings, I consider place making that is a process intrinsically connected with socio-spatial relations of a community. In my thesis digital transformation is the interpretation key of the two concepts, technologies, new media and the increased interaction between local actors. The aim of this project is to verify the role of internet technology and social media in the process of place making. As part of the study there will be an interrogation about the social media: how digital networks changed the relations of space with the general public

    Born to be a teacher? : a narrative of becoming an art educator-artist-researcher

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    Expanding the magic circle in pervasive casual play

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    Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Doutor em InformáticaIn this document we present proposals for merging the fictional game world with the real world taking into account the profile of casual players. To merge games with reality we resorted to the creation of games that explore di-verse real world elements. We focused on sound, video, physiological data, ac-celerometer data, weather and location. We made the choice for these real world elements because data, about those elements, can be acquired making use of functionality already available, or foreseen in the near future, in devices like computers or mobile phones, thus fitting the profile of casual players who are usually not willing to invest in expensive or specialized hardware just for the sake of playing a game. By resorting to real world elements, the screen is no longer the only focus of the player’s attention because reality also influences the outcome of the game. Here, we describe how the insertion of real world elements affected the role of the screen as the primary focus of the player’s attention. Games happen inside a magic circle that spatially and temporally delimits the game from the ordinary world. J. Huizinga, the inventor of the magic circle concept, also leaves implicit a social demarcation, separating who is playing the game from who is not playing the game [1]. In this document, we show how the insertion of real world elements blurred the spatial, temporal and social limits, in our games. Through this fusion with the ordinary world, the fictional game world integrates with reality, instead of being isolated from it. We also present an analysis about integration with the real world and context data in casual en-tertainment.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia - grant SFRH/BD/61085/200

    A Design Framework for Engaging Collective Interaction Applications for Mobile Devices

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    The main objective of this research is to define the conceptual and technological key factors of engaging collective interaction applications for mobile devices. To answer the problem, a throwaway prototyping software development method is utilized to study design issues. Furthermore, a conceptual framework is constructed in accordance with design science activities. This fundamentally exploratory research is a combination of literature review, design and implementation of mobile device based prototypes, as well as empirical humancomputer interaction studies, which were conducted during the period 2008 - 2012. All the applications described in this thesis were developed mainly for research purposes in order to ensure that attention could be focused on the problem statement. The thesis presents the design process of the novel Engaging Collective Interaction (ECI) framework that can be used to design engaging collective interaction applications for mobile devices e.g. for public events and co-creational spaces such as sport events, schools or exhibitions. The building and evaluating phases of design science combine the existing knowledge and the results of the throwaway prototyping approach. Thus, the framework was constructed from the key factors identified of six developed and piloted prototypes. Finally, the framework was used to design and implement a collective sound sensing application in a classroom setting. The evaluation results indicated that the framework offered knowledge to develop a purposeful application. Furthermore, the evolutionary and iterative framework building process combined together with the throwaway prototyping process can be presented as an unseen Dual Process Prototyping (DPP) model. Therefore it is claimed that: 1) ECI can be used to design engaging collective interaction applications for mobile devices. 2) DPP is an appropriate method to build a framework or a model. This research indicates that the key factors of the presented framework are: collaborative control, gamification, playfulness, active spectatorship, continuous sensing, and collective experience. Further, the results supported the assumption that when the focus is more on activity rather than technology, it has a positive impact on the engagement. As a conclusion, this research has shown that a framework for engaging collective interaction applications for mobile devices can be designed (ECI) and it can be utilized to build an appropriate application. In addition, the framework design process can be presented as a novel model (DPP). The framework does not provide a step-by-step guide for designing applications, but it helps to refine the design of successful ones. The overall benefit of the framework is that developers can pay attention to the factors of engaging application at an early stage of design

    Enhanced Virtuality: Increasing the Usability and Productivity of Virtual Environments

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    Mit stetig steigender Bildschirmauflösung, genauerem Tracking und fallenden Preisen stehen Virtual Reality (VR) Systeme kurz davor sich erfolgreich am Markt zu etablieren. Verschiedene Werkzeuge helfen Entwicklern bei der Erstellung komplexer Interaktionen mit mehreren Benutzern innerhalb adaptiver virtueller Umgebungen. Allerdings entstehen mit der Verbreitung der VR-Systeme auch zusätzliche Herausforderungen: Diverse Eingabegeräte mit ungewohnten Formen und Tastenlayouts verhindern eine intuitive Interaktion. Darüber hinaus zwingt der eingeschränkte Funktionsumfang bestehender Software die Nutzer dazu, auf herkömmliche PC- oder Touch-basierte Systeme zurückzugreifen. Außerdem birgt die Zusammenarbeit mit anderen Anwendern am gleichen Standort Herausforderungen hinsichtlich der Kalibrierung unterschiedlicher Trackingsysteme und der Kollisionsvermeidung. Beim entfernten Zusammenarbeiten wird die Interaktion durch Latenzzeiten und Verbindungsverluste zusätzlich beeinflusst. Schließlich haben die Benutzer unterschiedliche Anforderungen an die Visualisierung von Inhalten, z.B. Größe, Ausrichtung, Farbe oder Kontrast, innerhalb der virtuellen Welten. Eine strikte Nachbildung von realen Umgebungen in VR verschenkt Potential und wird es nicht ermöglichen, die individuellen Bedürfnisse der Benutzer zu berücksichtigen. Um diese Probleme anzugehen, werden in der vorliegenden Arbeit Lösungen in den Bereichen Eingabe, Zusammenarbeit und Erweiterung von virtuellen Welten und Benutzern vorgestellt, die darauf abzielen, die Benutzerfreundlichkeit und Produktivität von VR zu erhöhen. Zunächst werden PC-basierte Hardware und Software in die virtuelle Welt übertragen, um die Vertrautheit und den Funktionsumfang bestehender Anwendungen in VR zu erhalten. Virtuelle Stellvertreter von physischen Geräten, z.B. Tastatur und Tablet, und ein VR-Modus für Anwendungen ermöglichen es dem Benutzer reale Fähigkeiten in die virtuelle Welt zu übertragen. Des Weiteren wird ein Algorithmus vorgestellt, der die Kalibrierung mehrerer ko-lokaler VR-Geräte mit hoher Genauigkeit und geringen Hardwareanforderungen und geringem Aufwand ermöglicht. Da VR-Headsets die reale Umgebung der Benutzer ausblenden, wird die Relevanz einer Ganzkörper-Avatar-Visualisierung für die Kollisionsvermeidung und das entfernte Zusammenarbeiten nachgewiesen. Darüber hinaus werden personalisierte räumliche oder zeitliche Modifikationen vorgestellt, die es erlauben, die Benutzerfreundlichkeit, Arbeitsleistung und soziale Präsenz von Benutzern zu erhöhen. Diskrepanzen zwischen den virtuellen Welten, die durch persönliche Anpassungen entstehen, werden durch Methoden der Avatar-Umlenkung (engl. redirection) kompensiert. Abschließend werden einige der Methoden und Erkenntnisse in eine beispielhafte Anwendung integriert, um deren praktische Anwendbarkeit zu verdeutlichen. Die vorliegende Arbeit zeigt, dass virtuelle Umgebungen auf realen Fähigkeiten und Erfahrungen aufbauen können, um eine vertraute und einfache Interaktion und Zusammenarbeit von Benutzern zu gewährleisten. Darüber hinaus ermöglichen individuelle Erweiterungen des virtuellen Inhalts und der Avatare Einschränkungen der realen Welt zu überwinden und das Erlebnis von VR-Umgebungen zu steigern

    Internet of Things and Sensors Networks in 5G Wireless Communications

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    The Internet of Things (IoT) has attracted much attention from society, industry and academia as a promising technology that can enhance day to day activities, and the creation of new business models, products and services, and serve as a broad source of research topics and ideas. A future digital society is envisioned, composed of numerous wireless connected sensors and devices. Driven by huge demand, the massive IoT (mIoT) or massive machine type communication (mMTC) has been identified as one of the three main communication scenarios for 5G. In addition to connectivity, computing and storage and data management are also long-standing issues for low-cost devices and sensors. The book is a collection of outstanding technical research and industrial papers covering new research results, with a wide range of features within the 5G-and-beyond framework. It provides a range of discussions of the major research challenges and achievements within this topic

    Internet of Things and Sensors Networks in 5G Wireless Communications

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    This book is a printed edition of the Special Issue Internet of Things and Sensors Networks in 5G Wireless Communications that was published in Sensors
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