Around the Table: Studies in Co-located Collaboration

Abstract

Abstract. This video illustrates how pervasive technology can be designed to support more effectively collaborative working. To begin, it shows what happens when small co-located groups try to work together using a single PC or whiteboard: it can be frustrating and encourage one person to dominate. The video then explains our ‘multiple entry points ’ framework, intended to inform the design of shared workspaces, that can facilitate numerous and natural ways of taking control and contributing to the ongoing work by all group members. Two set-ups are presented with increasing number of entry points; (i) a shared touch screen tabletop and (ii) a large physical-digital space comprising a tabletop interlinked with tagged physical objects. The findings from two user studies are outlined; the tabletop was found to facilitate more collaborative decisionmaking for a simple design task while the extended version, with a larger number of entry points, promoted more fluid and diverse collaborative interactions. Furthermore, it was found that the quiet group members participated considerably more in the physical design activities.