Case Studies
Case Study : The Iphone Mom
Apr 29th
This was a case study I had found earlier when I first decided I wanted to design for kids. It is mostly about kids exposure of iPhone apps from their “iPhone owning mothers”
More than 59% of US mothers who own an iPhone say they let their children use it, and 61% of these moms download games or educational content specifically for their kids, according to a report on mobile advertising by mobile ad network Greystripe.
The Q3 Mobile Advertising Insights Report (pdf), which is based on user data and surveys of iPhone and iPod Touch users on Greystripe’s network, includes specific findings on and behavioral characteristics of “iPhone Moms,” a term the company coined to describe this audience segment, which it said includes “dominant purchasing decision makers for households with several members.”
iPhone Moms and Shopping
The study found nearly 60% of iPhone Moms depend on their phone to locate the nearest store around them, while 42% use the iPhone to keep track of shopping lists and 39% use their iPhone to comparison shop.
Other ways moms use iPhones while shopping:
Additional findings from the report:
- Just more than half of iPhone Moms use their phone at the grocery store, with 40% using it as a shopping-list tool and 23% using it as a recipe resource at the store.
- On average, 89% of iPhone Moms use their phone for entertainment purposes, whether it is listening to music, browsing the internet or using various entertainment apps.
- Email comes in at a close second place to entertainment, with 80% of iPhone Moms reporting they use their phone for checking messages.
- More than 64% of iPhone Moms use their phones for managing their calendar and schedule, which is 9% higher than the rest of the iPhone community as a whole.
About the report: The report is based on data gathered from Greystripe iPhone and iPod Touch users during Q3 2009. Statistics are based on internally run surveys run in the Greystripe network during this time period.
IDEO Case Study : IPhone Applications for children
Apr 29th
IPhone Applications for IDEO
Designing quality software for young children and their families
As the iPhone’s popularity soars, parents are increasingly using the handset as a means to entertain and interact with their children. IDEO Toy Lab is an ongoing experiment in developing applications that will enrich this mobile experience for both adults and kids ages 2 to 6.
Although toddlers have been quick to embrace the iPhone, few developers are building apps with this precocious demographic in mind. As a part of IDEO, a human-centered design and innovation firm, Toy Lab operates from the premise that every product should meet the real needs and desires of end users. So we assembled a team of child-development experts, veteran toy designers, and interaction designers to determine how the iPhone could foster learning among the preschool set.
Through interviews and observations with youngsters, the team gleaned many insights into what might make a kid-friendly mobile software app—and went away with little doubt that there was fun to be had in the field.
The first two Toy Lab products — Party Whistle and Balloonimals — are available on iTunes and offer an intuitive and playful experience. Party Whistle is a simple, lively iPhone app that mimics a paper noisemaker whenever the user blows into the microphone. Balloonimals is a creative, entertaining app that lets users make inflatable creatures, from a crab to a dinosaur, by blowing in the mic and then shaking the handset. Both experiences end with a slight twist designed to surprise and delight the user!
Fontstruct
Apr 19th
http://fontstruct.fontshop.com/faq
I think everyone interested in type should get an account. I have already found so many sweet typefaces, played around with the actual tool to inspire my application, and it seriously connects you to so many avenues… criticism, processes, downloads, tutorials ..etc
FontStruct is a free online font-building tool, devised and developed forFontShop International by Rob Meek.
The heart of FontStruct is the FontStructor, a web-application that lets anyone quickly and easily build fonts using basic geometric shapes in a grid — just like tiles or bricks. Fonts created with the FontStructor are called FontStructions. They can be downloaded as TrueType fonts and used in Mac or Windows applications.
More than a tool, FontStruct is a vibrant online type-design community. Type-design enthusiasts from all over the world use the FontStructor to experiment with letter shapes and to design fonts, and who give each other comments online on the FontStruct website. They are the FontStructors, the soul of FontStruct.
For non-FontStructors, FontStruct is a source of fresh fonts available under flexible, liberal CreativeCommons licenses.
Finally, for educators, FontStruct is an ideal environment to teach the basics of type design. The brick principle and the simplified, easy-to-use interface of the FontStructor help students to overcome the complexity inherent to type-design and focus on the most important aspects first
Zeo : Personal Sleep Coach
Mar 22nd
Step 1: Wear the Zeo Headband
You begin by wearing the Zeo Headband each night. The headband uses our patent-pending SoftWave™ sensor technology to accurately and safely measure your unique sleep patterns through the electrical signals naturally produced by the brain. As you pass through different levels of sleep – lighter to deeper and back again – the Zeo Headband tracks how you are sleeping. Find out more about the headband.
Step 2: Review Your Sleep Data on the Bedside Display
The Zeo Bedside Display puts last night’s sleep data at your fingertips and will store up to two weeks of data for easy viewing. When you wake up, it gives you a personal sleep score – your ZQ – and shows a graph of your Light, Deep and REM sleep over the course of the night. The bedside display will also present you with information about last night’s sleep and how it compares to previous nights. The optional SmartWake™ alarm feature will look for a “natural awakening point” based on your sleep patterns to decrease the grogginess associated with waking from Deep sleep. When SmartWake is selected, Zeo will find a time to wake you within a half-hour of your set time, never later. The result should be a slightly easier way to wake up. Learn more.
Step 3: Upload and View Your Sleep Data
Your personal sleep discovery doesn’t stop with the bedside display! The Zeo Bedside Display allows you to store your sleep information on an SD memory card (like the memory cards used with digital cameras). With your SD card and its USB adapter, you can easily upload all of your sleep information to the myZeo Personal Coaching website, and begin to spot trends in your sleep that you have never been able to see before.
Sleep Journal
Uncover the links between how you live – including exercise, diet, stress, and environment – and how you sleep. Available both online and on paper, your Zeo Sleep Journal allows you to record lifestyle, environmental, and consumption factors that can disrupt your sleep. You’ll learn about the 7 Sleep Stealers™ and how much they can affect your sleep data each night. You can also define your own lifestyle factors to record. The more sleep stealers you track, the more insights you’ll find about how your actions may be affecting your Sleep Fitness.
Sleep Tools
Using Zeo’s online tools, you can begin to understand how your ZQ and morning feel scores change from night to night. You’ll also spot any connections between your daily lifestyle choices and your nightly sleep and find out for yourself some of the cause and effect patterns in your sleep.
Step 4: Start Your 7 Step Sleep Fitness™ Program, Your Personal Guide to a Better Night’s Sleep
The 7 Step Sleep Fitness Program is a guided self-discovery process for your sleep. This personalized sleep coaching program asks you to set goals for your sleep and then provides you with customized strategies to help you to achieve these goals. In addition, you can learn more about the latest sleep research, and receive recommendations on how to track the items that are most beneficial for you. Through this program, you’ll experience the power of seeing your own sleep data and learn about which factors may be affecting your sleep. You will have full control over the program to skip, repeat or start-over any step you wish. Special features of the program include:
- A series of personalized e-mails that incorporate effective sleep tips and advice, customized to your sleep data, lifestyle and goals.
- A customized action plan to deal with each of the 7 Sleep Stealers as they relate to you and your sleep.
- Goal-oriented assignments that are realistic and achievable, and will not require you to drastically rearrange your lifestyle or even your sleep style.
- Positive, supportive, and easy to understand suggestions and exercises, in everyday language that is easy to follow.
- The Zeo Sleep Information Center is an online library for sleep information and science. In addition to offering another kind of self-guided, personal coaching tool, you can use the Sleep Information Center to discover what sleep is, and why it’s important.
ethnography of a DJ bro
Mar 9th
Henry pt. 1 from LoganSayles on Vimeo.
Henry pt. 2 from LoganSayles on Vimeo.
Copia “Read Better Together”
Mar 7th
Welcome to Copia: the first social eReading experience designed so you can discover, connect and share what’s meaningful.
We read to learn, to discover and to entertain, passing along bits and pieces as we go. Sometimes we pass thoughts, stories or behaviors. Other times it’s the whole book, or just an excerpt. Regardless of what we pass or how, when the cycle of reading, learning and sharing begins, it keeps on going. And with Copia’s wide range of digital books, magazines and newspapers, it’ll never end.
Women more socially mobile
Mar 3rd
demographics of social media use on mobile devices
Nielsen posted these mobile social stats from December 2009 about the gender differences when accessing social networks via mobile devices. You may be surprised to discover women were found do use their phones to “tweet” and “friend” 10% more than men.
Nielsen research also showed the 35-54 age group had more active mobile social networkers than any other group.
demographics of mobile social use – breakdown by age
This was exactly the data I was looking for I wrote a post last year about how iPhone was shaping mobile social use and was driving a lot of mobile content creators. 9 months on, and I feel the impact of iPhone and other smart phones is just starting to hit the mainstream, and the statistics support this. AdMob report growth of nearly 300% in iPhone and iPod touch use in Australia alone, between January and November 2009
So how can we use these insights?
optimising websites – making them mobile and smartphone friendly
making social sharing easier – sophisticated scripting to know whether you’re logged in to social network so you don’t have to log in every time you want to share on the move
social shopping, both real and virtual- Facebook announced a strategic partnership with PayPal, Read Facebook Credits “give users a fast and easy way to buy virtual goods on Facebook, including items from the Facebook Gift Shop”
geo location social- hot for 2010. Watch Foursquare – the sponsorship pieces like Pepsi & Bravo, and the localized business offers
social games – ones that work on the move. Foursquare encourages repeat use through reward. There are so many social mobile game opportunities, its the “how to monetize” which is the hardest nut to crack.
extending social media marketing to older audiences – Facebook’s fastes growing demographic in US is also reflecting the shift to 35+, whilst in Australia 25-34 is still growing fastest.
Interview with James
Mar 2nd
I talked with James about backpacking. I would say he’s a good mix of novice and expert since he’s a novice to international backpacking, which he’s never done before, but he’s a vagabond within the states living mainly out of a backpack and his car.
James on facilitating social interaction…
The best way to find and meet friends and stuff when traveling is to be utterly lost, penniless, and scared. Because when you hit rough times, that’s when you have to start scrounging and be creative and rely on what you’ve got…if you don’t have a place to sleep that night is when you have to meet people and rely on friends.
When you’re backpacking, the best way to do it is to go to a place and stay there for two weeks, at least, cause if you just go there for four days or whatever, you don’t get to experience the place…it’s just a whirlwind of sites and you don’t get to experience the culture. And I think the less money the better.
James on frugal traveling…
The less money you have, the more creative you have to be, the resourceful you have to be, cause instead of, “I went to Europe and stayed at the Holiday inn” your story will be, “I slept on the street when the guy at the hostel crapped his bed.”
…and being swindled and stole from and making mistakes are the best parts….the more difficult the situation, the more rewarding and fun it is. Backpacking isn’t really like a vacation; it’s more like a journey or adventure. Its not supposed to be relaxing.
James on solo travel….
I think traveling alone is better because if you have a friend, it’s harder to meet new people because you can get lumped into someone else’s social group instead of bringing people into your social group. And if you want to talk to someone, you have to talk to someone new instead of relying on your old friend. And traveling makes you learn about yourself and makes you make decision and mistakes by yourself, which you can’t blame on other person, and you can spend more time learning about yourself. Once you’ve accomplished something, getting through a hard time, you know you’ve done it by yourself and you can’t use your friend as a crutch.
The language barrier…that’s a whole other thing that I’ve never had to deal with.
Have you ever looked at any sort or website or resource to see what is in the new area you’ll be traveling to?
Yeah I have, I make some plans. Generally I’m looking for a specific thing cause I have something in mind, but I’m not going to go to the town’s website. But, I’m a very unorganized person so… I think you experience more when you’re unorganized cause you’re just going with the flow and you don’t have to be here at a certain time cause when you’re watching the clock you’re not being present.
What’s the first thing you think, what are your immediate needs when you get to somewhere new?
Where am I going to sleep tonight?
Do you have any tips for new travelers?
Make mistakes. People are generally nice
Can you think of a time where your experience was shaped by interactions you had with new people?
Yeah, I met really good friends that I still have today. I asked a person for a light and he’s still one of my friends today.
Emily and Jeremy Case Study
Feb 28th
This weekend I joined Emily Millette and Jeremy Purser for cooking dinner in their home, Chana Masala. They were very helpful in answering some questions I had prepared for them (and made me a delicious meal). Here is a snippet of our conversation:
Me: “How do you usually begin to find recipes?”
Emily: “I usually go to epicurious.com, but sometimes I really just don’t like what I’ve spent all that time making.”
Me: “So do you think it would be helpful to have some sort of recipe generator, where you fill out a profile to begin with foods you like/dislike, and then get recipe suggestions from your profile…kind of like pandora for recipes.”
Emily: “Yes, definitely, I really like the pandora-like idea. It would be nice to do a thumbs up or down option at the end, maybe create a rating system that way. And the profile idea also sounds helpful. You can think about people with food allergies as well.”
Me: “So how do you feel about an option to generate recipes by either choosing to shope for supplies, or use supplies already in your home?
Emily: “During the week, by the time I get home from work I don’t want to go out and get things. If I were good I would go to the store and buy things for everyday of the week but I can’t really think that far ahead.”
Jeremy: “Yeah, and we don’t really like eating out a lot. We usually try new recipes on weekend.”
Emily: “Yes, we like using things we already have, but go shopping for new recipe supplies on weekends. We use CSA so we try to keep that as the bulk of things we use in our meals, so it would be nice to have something that could show me the things I could make using what I already have. Just something to surface an idea of what I can make.”
Me: “So what are some problems you run into while you are cooking where you feel like you could use some sort of visual aid?”
Emily: “I often look up how to weigh things, like how to weigh a cup of packed brown sugar. Or conversion charts. I do have a book called Cooks Illustrated that has really good illustrations of how to cut up complicated things, like Artichokes or pineapple. I’ve learned a lot from this book. It also has things like complicated skinning, like cabbage is a difficult thing to understand how to cut. It helps to see it in the illustration”
Me: Do you ever look up videos of how to cook things, or cooking shows in general?”
Jeremy: “Not usually, maybe if I happen to be watching a cooking show where they are making something I might like I might look up a recipe from there. But I don’t think it would be very helpful to be referencing a video while cooking, because you’d want to keep pausing and rewinding.”
I continued to observe and ask questions as they were cooking. I thought it was interesting that they kept walking back and forth to their computer to follow the recipe, and reading it to each other out loud. At that point they agreed it would be helpful to have that reference in the palm of their hand. I thought the illustrations in the book she was showing me were very clear & helpful-something I’m sure someone who was a novice at cooking could really appreciate.
The idea was brought up that it would be helpful in the beginning when you choose to go out and shop for your supplies to have a grocery list on your mobile device. This meal also took a little big longer to make than expected, so they brought up the idea of having an accurate indicator that shows you how far away you are from completing your meal. (Dinner Time.)
When the Chana Masala was finally ready, we just had to garnish it with some basal and wala! A delicious meal. At this point we discussed how we would rate the meal…maybe using forks up/down, or having a way to start bookmarking recipes and sending them to friends to share.
Not to mention I got my Karl Fix!
Blaise Aguera y Arcas (Microsoft)
Feb 17th
In a demo that drew gasps at TED2010, Blaise Aguera y Arcas demos new augmented-reality mapping technology from Microsoft.
Blaise Aguera y Arcas leads a dazzling demo of Photosynth, software that could transform the way we look at digital images. Using still photos culled from the Web, Photosynth builds breathtaking dreamscapes and lets us navigate them.
Blaise Aguera y Arcas’ background is as multidimensional as the visions he helps create. In the 1990s, he authored patents on both video compression and 3D visualization techniques, and in 2001, he made an influential computational discovery that cast doubt on Gutenberg’s role as the father of movable type.
He also created Seadragon (acquired by Microsoft in 2006), the visualization technology that gives Photosynth its amazingly smooth digital rendering and zoom capabilities. Photosynth itself is a vastly powerful piece of software capable of taking a wide variety of images, analyzing them for similarities, and grafting them together into an interactive three-dimensional space. This seamless patchwork of images can be viewed via multiple angles and magnifications, allowing us to look around corners or “fly” in for a (much) closer look. Simply put, it could utterly transform the way we experience digital images.
Interactive music table
Feb 16th
While thinking about how and why people learn to play instruments I came across this project— an interactive music table. While it’s not exactly mobile, the interactive table affords musical exploration while eliminating some of the technical skills required to produce notes on an instrument. Many digital music programs also allow musical exploration sans-technical skills but this puts tactility back in the mix. I like to imagine how devices like this could be used to create a wave of next-gen electronic music where the musicians physical movements and fine motor skills could be re-introduced into the note producing process.
Augmented reality
Feb 11th
Augmented reality animation in GOOD magazine
Augmented (hyper)Reality: Domestic Robocop from Keiichi Matsuda on Vimeo.
http://www.good.is/post/what-augmented-reality-could-actually-look-like
N Building from Alexander Reeder on Vimeo.
http://www.good.is/post/behold-tokyo-s-new-augmented-reality-architecture/
SixthSense – Mobile Interactin in the Physical World
Jan 30th
Pranav Ministry: The Thrilling Potential of Sixth Sense Technology
Sorry it’s a link, I tried to embed it but I failed. This is truly fantastic. Capabilities are going to be endless.
Noshi: Community driven finding + knowing service
Jan 26th
Matt Muñoz, the co-founder of New Kind in Raleigh and recent graduate of the NC State MGD program, posted the presentation for a mobile app proposal (created in 2007).
I don’t know what I don’t know. This core idea propelled the creation of a mobile mapping application and service ecology. I sought to design a finding service that enables a mobile user to leverage community driven knowledge in service of new information and experiences. Note: this project was created before the iPhone was actually released.
Designing for Small Screens / by Studio 7.5 (2005)
Jan 5th
Designing for Small Screens provides a guide for professional designers and students to developing functional concepts and good design for the small screen.
The design of interactive applications or presentations on small screens is becoming an increasingly pertinent field, given the advancement of technology in mobile phones, palm-top computers and other small-screen devices. However, design of this nature can be challenging for the designer. Not all design concepts that are valid on larger screens can be implemented on the small screen. Devices in this category differ in size and type of their display, in the nature of their physical interaction and in their performance.
Designing for Small Screens, therefore, equips the student or practitioner with the appropriate tools with which to develop functional concepts and realise good designs for small screens.