Refining our Focus

In the past couple days we have been using various methods including SET Factors and AEIOU in order to define a more narrow focus for the project. The result: using technology to inspire recreational activity in a social atmosphere outside of the home or workplace. We are also researching the 'spontaneous' aspect of activities. A few questions we are investigating: On a beautiful spring day how do people who want to participate in an activity find a group of people to participate with? What makes pick-up games work? How do people break down barriers when they join a new group? Our initial thought for a user base is young moderns in order to help them develop a healthy lifestyle early in life.

In order to approach this goal we are investigating why people are motivated to particpate in activites, barriers to participating in social activities, and the current methods that groups use to communicate and gather for an activity. We are researching these questions in a variety of contexts: with the social butterfly, the less active, and the regularly active.

Balance

We had a long brainstorming session today. As a result we were able to pinpoint the value that we are trying to address in the project: Balance. Our aim is to use technology to help people achieve a balance between physical and virtual aspects of their lives.

Stage 1 Territory Map

As our deliverable for Stage 1: project definition, we created a Territory Map to illustrate our understanding of the project so far. Our goal is to synthesize the concepts: 'outdoors', 'activity', and 'escape from an overwhelming amount of technology'. Our current understanding combines them in the idea of a 'Park'. We use the term 'Park' to express not only green spaces, but also outdoor locations that are 'Park-like' spaces. Our current focus is very broad, but this allows us to evaluate needs to make our end result a benefit to others.

The Project

For the course, Graduate Design Studio II, at Carnegie Mellon University, we have the opportunity to take part in the 2006 Microsoft Design Expo project. The topic we are exploring is 'The Gigabit Connection - opportunities and issues in a high bandwidth ubiquitous computing world.' As a group of five graduate students: three Interaction Design students, and two Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) students, we have an exciting semester ahead of us!