Our world is made of information that competes for our attention. What is needed? What is not? We cannot interact with our everyday life in the same way we interact with a desktop computer. The terms "calm computing" and "calm technology" were coined in 1995 by PARC Researchers Mark Weiser and John Seely Brown in reaction to the increasing complexities that information technologies were creating. Calm technology describes a state of technological maturity where a user’s primary task is not computing, but being human. The idea behind Calm Technology is to have smarter people, not things. Technology shouldn’t require all of our attention, just some of it, and only when necessary. How can our devices take advantage of location, proximity and haptics to help improve our lives instead of get in the way? How can designers make apps “ambient” while respecting privacy and security? This talk will cover how to use principles of Calm Technology to design the next generation of connected devices. We’ll look at notification styles, compressing information into other senses, and designing for the least amount of cognitive overhead.

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Calm Technology
Amber Case @caseorganic
UXWeek | 09 August, 2016 | San Francisco, CA
http://caseorganic.com | http://calmtech.com
How non-intrusive design will shape our future

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50 billion devices
will be online by
2020. -Cisco

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Sound good?

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Consider…

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The "Smart" Watch

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The "Smart" Fridge

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The Dystopian Kitchen of the Future

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An era of interruptive
technology

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We need a
Calm Technology

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XEROX PARC: mid-90s
Mark Weiser John Seeley Brown

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“A good tool is an invisible tool.
By invisible, we mean that the
tool does not intrude on your
consciousness; you focus on the
task, not the tool.”
Mark Weiser -- 1993

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Designing Calm
Technology

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I. Technology shouldn’t require
all of our attention, just some of
it, and only when necessary

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A Tea Kettle

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II. Technology should
empower the periphery

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LUMOBack Smart Posture Sensor
Buzzes you when
you exhibit poor
posture.

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Weather Status
Lighting
Hue Lightbulb
connected to a
weather report
Aaron Parecki
@aaronpk 2014

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III. Technology should inform
and encalm

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Compass
for iPhone
existence.io

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1. Machines shouldn't act like humans
2. Humans shouldn't act like machines
IV. Technology should amplify the
best of technology and the best
of humanity.

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Sleep Cycle
Sleep Tracker
and Alarm
Clock
sleepcycle.com

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Sleep Cycle
Sleep Tracker
and Alarm
Clock
sleepcycle.com

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V. Technology can
communicate,
but it doesn’t need to speak

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The Roomba Robotic
Vacuum Cleaner :)

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Weiser’s Status Tone
Alarm Clock
…”the kind of tune the computer plays to wake me
up will tell me something about my first few
appointments of the day. A quick, urgent tune: 8am
important meeting. Quiet, reflective music: nothing
until noon”. - Weiser, 1996
From { Open House }* March 1996, ITP Review 2.0, March 1996.

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VI. Technology should
consider social norms

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Restorative
Normal
Enhancing Fear-inducing
Accepted
Invisible
Technology Social EffectExample

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The arrival of the smartphone camera

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Google
Glass

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Compare to the iPhone Launch
• Improvement on an existing system
(smartphones)
• Developer onboarding
• Limited Features

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Results
• Play (thousands of apps in the
store upon launch)
• Excitement
• Widespread adoption

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VII. The right amount of
technology is the minimum
amount to solve the problem

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Street Lights Toilet Occupied Sign

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VIII. Technology should make
use of the near and the far

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Mainframes
Personal Computer /
Desktop
Internet
Remote
Mainframes
(Cloud)
Personal
Servers
2016 -
2020
2000 -
1994 -
1978 -
1994
1944 -
1978
Workstations
1968 -
1975
Far
Near
Mobile
2006 -
Evolution of computers over time

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Process as much as possible on the
device itself.
…

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I. Technology should require the smallest amount of our attention.
II. Technology should inform and encalm
III. Technology should empower the periphery
IV. Technology should amplify the best of technology and the best of
humanity
V. Technology should respect social norms
VI. Technology can communicate, but doesn’t need to speak
VII.The right amount of technology is the minimum amount to solve the
problem
VIII.Technology should make use of the near and the far
Eight Principles of Calm Tech | Calmtech.com

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Good design allows people to
accomplish their goals in the least
amount of moves

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Calm Technology allows people to
accomplish the same goals with the
least amount of mental cost

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A person's primary task
should not be computing, but
being human.

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The scarce resource in the 21st
Century will not be technology.
It will be attention. - Mark Weiser

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Calm Technology
from O’Reilly books
http://shop.oreilly.com

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caseorganic.com
More at calmtechnology.com!
Calmtech.com

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Thank you very much!
Amber Case | @caseorganic
http://caseorganic.com
http://calmtech.com

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The Future of AI
Self-driving cars and AI

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• 1500 times faster
3Scan:
1500
times
faster
than
humans

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Naturally Intelligent
Systems

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Thank you very much!
Amber Case | @caseorganic
http://caseorganic.com
http://calmtech.com