technical difficulties...

I had intended to supply the client with the necessary files for updating and altering the dvd content. However when i tried to compile this today i was faced with some annoying problems. The video content that was linked to the Encore DVD project was very large in size,
and i couldn't copy them from the courses folder into a new folder due to low disc space. Also, even if i managed to free up enough space it was going to be a very timely exercise copying such a mass of video and it was only a few hours til hand in. My plan was to group together all the video content and the individual menu files (photoshop) along with the Encore file and relink the associated videos and menus. This way i could simply burn this folder to a dvd and the client would have everything he needed. If the client was to run with our project then i would definitely endeavour to complete this but since the DVD that i produced was just a prototype and was incomplete anyway i decided to flag it.
I would have liked to supply this to the client today so that he could have a go at using Adobe Encore but if after seeing the prototype he does want to go in our direction i would definitely supply him with the material to be able to alter the dvd content.
I ended up handing in the student dvd and cover, my report, and the manual to updating the dvd content. I printed the manual as a small booklet which fits inside the dvd cover which would contain the disc with necessary files for updating the DVD.

finito!

Packaging our final Product

Mike and I discussed options for how we might present or final product. My solution consisted of a resource dvd for students, instruction manual for updating the content and a disc containing the necessary files for updating/altering the dvd content.
We acknowledged that a card envelope would be the cheaper option for packaging the discs but decided that a more durable plastic dvd case was the most appropriate packaging as the dvd is designed to aid in a full year of study - a card envelope just wont last.
I therefore designed a cover which can be slipped into the dvd sleeve. The cover is simplistic and is in keeping with the aesthetic of my dvd menu design. Little information is displayed on the cover. I did it this way so that when the dvd is updated from year to year only the year (ie 2007) needs to be edited. I included an area on the back for the student to write their name and student number so that if lost it can be returned easily.

Presentaion to Client

Today we presented our prototype interfaces to our client. It was a very informal occasion and each group explained the basics of their solutions. We decided to present all of our work- two website template designs and two interactive DVDs. Initially (when we decided to each design our own interface) we thought that we would chose our best ones to present and hand. Instead we offered all of our work so that our client could have a wider range to choose from and a greater selection of elements from which to pick and choose.

DVD interface

Problems regarding navigation through the dvd using remote control have been sorted - buttons on a menu can be numbered in Encore to indicate which one is selected upon entering the menu.
The following are some shots of the general style of my dvd interface.


I have used similar neutral tones to that of the current Otago Polytech website to create some continuity and familiarity (although the Polytech website is likely to change soon). The overall aesthetic is one of clean lines, cool neutral tones and modernist spatial layout which helps to communicate the cleanliness, hygiene and cool temperature of a good commercial kitchen. Literally simulating the kitchen space as a navigation system for the course resources proved difficult and not so effective in providing a simple navigation system. I therefore adopted a very plain, linear system for structuring the content.
The first menu has two options: Level 3 content and Level 4 content.
Each level has its content separated into one of three categories: Course Outline, Videos and Lectures and Notes.
The 'lectures and notes' button provides a link to further categories - hors douvres, fruit and veg, pasta etc.

Having built most of the dvd it has become apparent that with much more video content it may be that Level 3 and 4 would have to be on separate dvd's due to the disc space required. However, it makes things simpler for administration and cheaper for production to include both courses on the one dvd.

Results for Survey of Hospitality Students

We joined with the SUPER FRIENDS and circulated a survey for the students for whom we are building an interface and came up with the following results. 40 completed surveys were returned which did not provide a very big pool of data. Also, the students often selected more than one option for each question so it was difficult to calculate an accurate average. However, some conclusions could be drawn and it did help us to get a better understanding of our user's requirements.

Interactive Design Research SurveyCommunication Design Year 2

Gender
Male - 41.03%
Female - 58.97%

How often do you use a computer?
Almost never - 5.13%
A few times per week - 20.51%
Once a day -25.64%
A few times per day - 30.77%
Many times a day - 20.51%

Which website(s) do you use frequently?
Bebo - 17.72%
Facebook - 8.86%
Myspace - 3.80%
Youtube - 7.59%
Wikipedia - 8.86%
Blogs - 1.27%
Trade Me - 6.33%
Email - 6.33%
Travel Booking Sites - 1.27%
Internet Banking - 8.86%
Google - 2.53%
Forums - 1.27%
MotoGP Live - 1.27%
Yahoo - 12.66%
NZ Dating - 1.27%
Polytech Blackboard - 6.33%
Xtra - 1.27%MSN - 1.27%
Sports sites - 1.27%

What about these sites do you find appealing?
Easy to read - 7
Easy to use - 22Fun - 14
Familiar - 13
Informative - 15

What is your preferred method(s) of communication with the Polytech?
Phone - 9 Email - 21 Face to Face - 26 Text - 6 Web - 2

In what format would you like to receive course content in a digital form?
Text - 10
Text and pics/diagrams - 20
Pictures/diagrams - 4
Video - 7
Slideshow/Powerpoint - 20
Printed Handouts - 10
Digital PDF's - 1
Verbal instruction/Demonstration - 9


Do you play video games?
Never - 23.08%
Sometimes - 69.23%
Frequently - 7.69%

Which is your preferred learning style?
Visual - 13
Auditory - 3
Kinesthetic - 32

What is your preferred learning environment?
Home - 15
Classroom - 17
Kitchen - 13
A quiet room - 1
On the job - 1
Library - 1

Do you use a video iPod, video capable phone or similar device?
Yes - 69.23%
No - 28.21%

Would you like to be able to download and view your course materials with this device?
Yes - 38.46 %No - 56.41%

Most people play video games sometimes

Bebo favoured over facebook and myspace

easy to use’ aspect of websites was most appealing

Face to face communication with polytech preferable (email was second followed by phone, text, web)

Slideshow/powerpoints and text+pics/diagrams preferred format for digital course content

Kinaesthetic learning style prevalent

Classroom was the favoured learning environment followed by home then kitchen.

79% of those who responded used an iPod, video capable phone or similar device.

56% would like to be able to download and view course material with their devices.

It was unfortunate that we didn't get onto focus groups sooner in our design research paper because we felt that a qualitative approach would have been worthwhile.

Slight Problem Encountered

I had been designing a template for displaying the powerpoint slides supplied. It employed a simple layout as shown above but forgot to take into account a very important factor. The user would not be navigating with a mouse (my navigation for designing) but with a dvd remote which allows the user limited movement: up, down, left and right - not 'free' navigation as with a computer mouse.

I therefore had to re-jig my layout because as the user navigates to the next page the first button becomes highlighted (which in the case of my initial design would be the 'return' button. ) This is not desirable as i want to make it very easy and quick for the user to navigate directly through the slide show. In order to move from slide 1 to slide2 to the user would have to move from 'return' to 'previous' and then to 'next' to get to the next page. I need the 'next' button to be the first button on the page so that all the user needs to do is hit enter to get to the next page. Dvd players/menus are known to move relatively slowly any way so any measures to make it faster and easier should be taken.
I tried changing the configuration of the buttons but then hit a new problem:



In order for 'next' to be the first button highlighted it must be the top/left most button on the menu. In the layout above 'next' occurs before 'previous' which just doesn't make logical sense (since we read left to right). It isn't chronological and it seems a bit awkward. Not sure how to resolve this - can i just rely on the words to communicate?

It would be quite good if i could keep with my original template but program the menu so that 'next' is the first button selected even if it doesn't occur first in the layout. - need some technical advice.

The Power Point content which was supplied is to be included in the DVD as well as on the website so that it is readily available to the students (computer/internet not required). A simple linear structure would be appropriate (simulating the ppt structure). The buttons "Previous" and "Next" navigate from page to page and a return button can take you back to the last menu. This navigation style is very simple and easy to use. It is not great for skipping many pages (eg. trying to get from slide 2 to slide 16 - "Next" has to be clicked fourteen times ) however, this sort of use would probably be quite rare. It would be best if lecture slide shows had relatively few slides (one which was supplied had over 100!) However, it seems to cover many topics and could therefore be divided into a series of shorter slide shows or chapters. This should be easy to create on Adobe Encore by making each page or slide a separate menu and linking each page by the 'next' and 'previous' buttons.

Video Content Organisation

Mike and I tried to remember the vague floor plan of the commercial kitchen we had visited earlier so that we could have a go at structuring the video content (instructional recipes) according to which section of the kitchen the foods would be prepared in. If the kitchen plan was accurate to the commercial kitchen that the students would be practicing and learning in then grouping the recipes according to this model could help to reinforce basic kitchen knowledge (simply by navigating to the desired video) and provide a comprehensive system for categorizing the recipes.

Cooking Resource DVD structure

Much of the Course material for the level 2 and 3 Cooking Courses is video based (instructional cooking video clips) . As discussed in the client meeting, our group has decided that an interactive dvd is the best medium for this. It allows a good quality picture, is relatively cheap to produce, and access to it is restricted (as opposed to the youtube system employed currently). The interactive dvd could easily contain textual resources too which are important components of the course.

22/08/07 Client Meeting.

We met with our client for the kitchen interface to try and establish exactly what we need to do. We quizzed him as to what functions he wanted and which format would be most appropriate. We discussed the possibility of a secure website through which students could access course information and resources, including a discussion/memo board and a separate dvd containing instructional videos. This seemed to be a good solution as video is better accessed on dvd - waiting for download and poor quality is avoided.
Updating the material in both the website and dvd is a problem that we haven't completely solved. It would be ideal for our client to be able to update the material himself but this puts limitations on how we create the interface and what media/format is used. The other option is that a technician is employed to update the website and or dvd. We will have to reach a compromise here.

Kitchen Visit

9/08-2007

Our assignment is to design a prototype for an educational website for the Cookery Programmes of the Otago Polytechnic.

We visited the kitchen where the cookery students train so that we could get a better idea of their workspace, with the possibility of designing an interface based on the metaphor of a commercial kitchen.

joaquin.co.nz

joaquin.co.nz

The Embodied Computer/User

by Deborah Lupton
From The Cybercultures Reader
ed David Bell and Barbara Kennedy 2001

Lupton suggests an emotional attachment between computer and user 'which usually makes itself overtly known when something goes wrong.'

• The computer/user relationship becomes blurred as the role of the computer moves from an inanimate object to an extension of the body - typing has become faster and more natural than handwriting - 'an almost seamless transition of thought to word on the screen.' This shows an embodied relationship with the computer
  
• A disembodied model is also offered; the computer is a means of escaping the human body. This is exemplified by such sites as Second Life which allow the user to build their own avatar and interact with other virtual versions of other people.
• A challenge to the model of the disembodied computer user is the computer 'hacker'. Affected physically by their hacking addictions, their appearance contrasts their online profile.
  
• Lupton also analyzes the human/computer relationship in terms of anthropomorphism. Human qualities are applied to the computer. The computer goes through a life: it is born, it sleeps, it gets sick (viruses), it thinks, it has a language and it longs to be thin. Computer marketing frequently draws on an analogy between computers and humans to reduce computerphobia.
  

Lev Manovich: The Language of New Media

Lev Manovich is the Professor of Visual Arts at the university of California, teaching new media art and theory. Unlike Bolter and Gromala's window/mirror metaphor for interface design, Manovich sees the interface as a filter, shaping how the computer user perceives the content. He describes the emergence of this filter: 'The role of the computer shifted from being a particular technology (calculator, processor) to a filter for all culture; a media for cultural and artistic production.
A parrallel is drawn to the Whorf-Sapir hypothesis, stating that the interface is a non-transparent code affecting the user's understanding just as 'human thinking is determined by the code of natural language.' Just as the format of the interface affects the way it is interpreted, so too does the user's own cultural background.
The content cannot be separated from the interface. One does not exist without the other - the interface preexists the content.

Unreal Tournamnet 2004 and Laser Force

26/07/07 . . . the best day ever

On Thursday the class activity was to play a computer game called Unreal Tournament 2004. We all played against each other and the aim was to shoot as many people as possible. I was quite terrible at it and it made me feel car sick but it was so fun i just kept on playing. Afterwards we took a walk to Laser Force where we played the same game - minus the computer screen. Running through a dark maze shooting laser guns at the others was a very different experience to the online version. This showed us how the filter of the interface plays a huge role in affecting how we experience the content presented.

marimekko.com

Marimekko is a Finnish design company specialising in clothing and textiles. Its website is attractive and slick, displaying the company's catalogue of products. When entering the site you are presented with the display above, but the central yellow graphic fades between different images of various textile designs:


As the images fade out, so do the links which take you to the collection of the designer represented. So if you wait too long, the page changes and it seems that you have to wait for the button to turn up again. However, this is not so because every designer's page has direct links to the other designers' collections.


This page shows s collection of textile designs by Bjorn Dahlstrom. They are presented in a simple, attractive format which is easy to navigate through - basic buttons such as 'next page' and drop down menus to move between different designers and their collections. Each page is formatted similarly making it user friendly.

This site is much less interactive than the likes of the adidas site. Although you choose your own path, the site (to me) acts much more like a window than a mirror. As the site is not so big on interactivity, it does little to reflect the user.
The simple interface is not invisible but it is translucent - displaying information to the user in a one-way transaction.

Windows and Mirrors:

Interaction Design, Digital Art and the Myth of Transparency
(2003) by Jay David Bolter and Diane Gromala, MIT Press, Cambridge Mass, London


This reading talks about how interfaces shape our experiences of the material presented.
"The most visible, and in some ways the most important, part of any digital application is its interface - the face that the aplication presents to its users."

Bolter offers examples of digital art to illustrate the importance of interface, arguing that it is the interface that defines the whole experience.
Parallels are drawn between digital interfaces and windows and mirrors. The computer screen can be seen as a window, "openning up into a visual world that seems to be behind or beyond."
But when the user begins to interact with the interface (activating buttons and menus) the interface acts more like a mirror, "reflecting the user and her relationship to the computer."
No interface acts solely as the 'window' - it is never completely transparent.

adidas.com

adidas.com

The adidas site is an online gallery for its fashion products. As you go between pages you experience a sense of movement - it feels like you are in a real 3D space. The animations are very impressive with unfolding rooms and photo-quality graphics.

Navigation is not particularly easy. It is difficult to know whether you are going back or forward and this, combined with the large number of pages, makes it easy to get lost. I am unsure whether this is an intentional, 'designed' feature of the interface because although it is a bit annoying it means that you are exposed to much more of the content when you are trying to navigate.

At the top of each page there is a link to a 'site map' which is an unusually boring page. This gives you access to all the pages via named links.



Window or Mirror?

As with most websites adidas.com functions as both a window and a mirror. As a window it allows a view into the adidas range of products.As a mirror it is interactive - the user can navigate around the spatial site and even participate in a digital croquet game. This interaction creates a two-way communication as the computer responds to the users commands.

The interface shapes the way we experience the site. The realistic look of the models and the spaces that they occupy and the way the interface moves you between pages (rooms) creates a surreal 3D affect - pulling the virtual world closer to our physical one. This creates an effective selling point for adidas and a unique experience for the viewer.