The unstoppable coming
of Social Usability
Gianandrea Giacoma & Davide ‘Folletto’ Casali

unstoppable?!?

...ok, we have exaggerated, but...

Everything is social.

...even if you don’t think about it

...even if you don’t think about it
...even if you don’t want it

...even if you don’t think about it
...even if you don’t want it
...even if it doesn’t seem

The walkman
Designed to isolate oneself,
used to connect people.

Word
A personal tool
used to create text... to be shared.

The wall
Designed to divide,
it’s a meeting point for teenagers.

Positive
I want social
dynamics

Negative
I want to avoid
social dynamics

how does it happen?

USABILITY
Learnability
Efficiency
Memorability
Errors
Satisfaction

SOCIAL
USABILITY USABILITY
Learnability Interpersonal Relations
Efficiency Identity
Memorability Communication
Errors Group Emergence
Satisfaction

SOCIAL
USABILITY How easy is it to find other people?
How easy is it to connect to other people?
Interpersonal Relations How easy is it to keep those connections active?
How relevant are those connections?
Identity
Communication
Group Emergence

SOCIAL
USABILITY
Interpersonal Relations
How rich is one’s personal identity expression?
How much are interests and passions expressed?
Identity How much are personal distinctive traits shown?
How much is privacy management detailed?
Communication
Group Emergence

SOCIAL
USABILITY
Interpersonal Relations
Identity
How fast can a message reach the other person?
How many messages can one handle efficiently?
Communication How easy is it to handle conversations (1-to-1, 1-
to-some, 1-to-many)?
Group Emergence

SOCIAL
USABILITY
Interpersonal Relations
Identity
Communication
How easy is it to create groups?
How active are groups once estabilished?
Group Emergence How long do they last?
How much is it important to be part of a group?

How can I analyze it?
How can I evaluate it?

User tests
(you would have never guessed it, uh?)

let’s see it in action!

MySpace Facebook
PROFILE PAGE PROFILE PAGE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
?
better?
4. Group Emergence

MySpace Facebook
PROFILE PAGE PROFILE PAGE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
MySpace
better?
4. Group Emergence

MySpace Facebook
WHOLE SITE WHOLE SITE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
?
better?
4. Group Emergence

MySpace Facebook
WHOLE SITE WHOLE SITE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
Facebook
better?
4. Group Emergence

FriendFeed Facebook
HOME HOME
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
?
better?
4. Group Emergence

FriendFeed Facebook
HOME HOME
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
FriendFeed
better?
4. Group Emergence

LinkedIn Google Wave
WHOLE SITE WHOLE SITE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
?
better?
4. Group Emergence

LinkedIn Google Wave
WHOLE SITE WHOLE SITE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
Google Wave
better?
4. Group Emergence

Flickr DeviantArt
WHOLE SITE WHOLE SITE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
?
better?
4. Group Emergence

Flickr DeviantArt
WHOLE SITE WHOLE SITE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
DeviantArt
better?
4. Group Emergence

Twitter Jaiku
PROFILE PAGE PROFILE PAGE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
?
better?
4. Group Emergence

Twitter Jaiku
PROFILE PAGE PROFILE PAGE
1. Interpersonal Relations
2. Identity Who does it
3. Communcation
Twitter
better?
4. Group Emergence

interestingly enough...

an avatar isn’t just an avatar
same digital artifact
different psychosocial impact
World of Warcraft Second Life

is something missing?

Person
Socially-enabled system

Person
Social Usability
Social connects the person
Usability to a system with
social dynamics.
Socially-enabled system

Person
Alone, it isn’t
? enough: people
socialize, but why?
Social
Usability
Socially-enabled system

Person
We need the
Relational
Motivations people’s
motivation.
Social
Usability
Socially-enabled system

Person
Circadian
Functional
Activity
Needs
Flow
Relational
Motivations
Social
Usability
Socially-enabled system

Motivational Design

what do you think?

Gianandrea Giacoma
ibridazioni.com
@ibridazioni
gianandrea.giacoma@gmail.com
Davide Casali
intenseminimalism.com
@folletto
folletto@gmail.com
World Usability Day
Milan, 13 novembre 2009
worldusabilityday.org