Developer-user social distance changes over time as a social media service evolves. Early on, the distance between developers and users of Habbo was small, as developers actively participated in the service. But as Habbo grew with more features, users, and geographic expansion, differences increased between developers and younger users. Developer participation in communities decreased as volunteer user participation in development declined. Fansites also changed roles as forums allowed more direct discussion between developers and users. The relationship shifted from close involvement to requiring more bridging activities as uncertainty between the groups grew with the service's success and complexity.
Valuing Social Networks Through Creative PotentialRichard Wood
Presentation of a paper-in-progress presented to the Fiscar 2010 conference on Activity Theory. The paper looks at the the creative potential in social networks as a value base. The paper also looks at the implications on deigners.
Bryan Alexander's: Emerging technologies for teaching and learning: a tour of...Alexandra M. Pickett
SLN SOLsummit 2010
http://slnsolsummit2010.edublogs.org
February 25, 2010
Bryan Alexander, Director of Research, National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education.
Emerging technologies for teaching and learning: a tour of the 2010 horizon
How is the landscape for teaching and learning with technology changing this year? We begin with an overview of current methods for apprehending emergent technologies, including Delphi, futures markets, networks, and scenarios. Drawing on those methods we identify a series of emerging trends, from interface changes to open content to gaming. Next we delve into several high-impact fields. Social media has already transformed the general cybercultural world, and is reshaping the academy. Mobile devices have begun to revolutionize many levels of our technological interactions.
I research and develop programs on the advanced uses of information technology in liberal arts colleges. My specialties include digital writing, weblogs, copyright and intellectual property, information literacy, wireless culture and teaching, project management, information design, and interdisciplinary collaboration. I contribute to a series of weblogs, including NITLE Tech News, MANE IT leaders, and Smartmobs, when not creating digital learning objects (like Gormenghast). I’ve taught English and information technology studies at the University of Michigan and Centenary College.
http://blogs.nitle.org/let
http://twitter.com/BryanAlexander
http://www.slideshare.net/BryanAlexander
In this paper we suggest a design research method for eliciting
affordances and new meanings for Smart Objects in the Internet of Things Era.
After an introduction to the topic and the description of some open issues, we
propose to adopt a Critical Design approach, where the role of Ambiguity is
twofold: on the one hand, it is the objective of the observation for defining a set
of ambiguous objects or affordances; on the other hand, it is the result of a
design conceptualization of smart objects aiming at provoking cognitive
dissonance and finalized to understand people adaptation processes and
behaviors.
Valuing Social Networks Through Creative PotentialRichard Wood
Presentation of a paper-in-progress presented to the Fiscar 2010 conference on Activity Theory. The paper looks at the the creative potential in social networks as a value base. The paper also looks at the implications on deigners.
Bryan Alexander's: Emerging technologies for teaching and learning: a tour of...Alexandra M. Pickett
SLN SOLsummit 2010
http://slnsolsummit2010.edublogs.org
February 25, 2010
Bryan Alexander, Director of Research, National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education.
Emerging technologies for teaching and learning: a tour of the 2010 horizon
How is the landscape for teaching and learning with technology changing this year? We begin with an overview of current methods for apprehending emergent technologies, including Delphi, futures markets, networks, and scenarios. Drawing on those methods we identify a series of emerging trends, from interface changes to open content to gaming. Next we delve into several high-impact fields. Social media has already transformed the general cybercultural world, and is reshaping the academy. Mobile devices have begun to revolutionize many levels of our technological interactions.
I research and develop programs on the advanced uses of information technology in liberal arts colleges. My specialties include digital writing, weblogs, copyright and intellectual property, information literacy, wireless culture and teaching, project management, information design, and interdisciplinary collaboration. I contribute to a series of weblogs, including NITLE Tech News, MANE IT leaders, and Smartmobs, when not creating digital learning objects (like Gormenghast). I’ve taught English and information technology studies at the University of Michigan and Centenary College.
http://blogs.nitle.org/let
http://twitter.com/BryanAlexander
http://www.slideshare.net/BryanAlexander
In this paper we suggest a design research method for eliciting
affordances and new meanings for Smart Objects in the Internet of Things Era.
After an introduction to the topic and the description of some open issues, we
propose to adopt a Critical Design approach, where the role of Ambiguity is
twofold: on the one hand, it is the objective of the observation for defining a set
of ambiguous objects or affordances; on the other hand, it is the result of a
design conceptualization of smart objects aiming at provoking cognitive
dissonance and finalized to understand people adaptation processes and
behaviors.
ICT4D lecture: HCI4D Human-Computer Interaction for DevelopmentVictor de Boer
Slides for the 5th lecture for the VU ICT4D course
HCI4D: Human-Computer Interaction for Development
Including Cross-cultural interface design and desiging interfaces for low-literate users.
An exploration of the connections between physical and digital collections, and how social media can further enhance teaching and learning. Presented at the State Library of Victoria's SLVLearn 2012 conference, October 10, 2012.
Discusses tools and tips for implementing innovative services with free social media tools and mobile apps applied in libraries and other working environments. Iincludes apps supporting the latest trends in cloud storage, crowdfunding, ebooks, makerspaces, MOOCs, news aggregation, photo and video sharing, self-publishing, social networking and bookmarking, video conferencing, visualization and wearable technology --all tailored to the needs of libraries and the communities they serve.
Social media in Libraries: Toolkit for Promotion, Productivity & Reference: a...Cheryl Peltier-Davis
Outline:
• Defining Social Media
• Social Media in Libraries : Benefits & Challenges
• Social Media Toolkit for Libraries: Promotion, Productivity, Reference
• Free Caribbean Reference Resources
ICT4D lecture: HCI4D Human-Computer Interaction for DevelopmentVictor de Boer
Slides for the 5th lecture for the VU ICT4D course
HCI4D: Human-Computer Interaction for Development
Including Cross-cultural interface design and desiging interfaces for low-literate users.
An exploration of the connections between physical and digital collections, and how social media can further enhance teaching and learning. Presented at the State Library of Victoria's SLVLearn 2012 conference, October 10, 2012.
Discusses tools and tips for implementing innovative services with free social media tools and mobile apps applied in libraries and other working environments. Iincludes apps supporting the latest trends in cloud storage, crowdfunding, ebooks, makerspaces, MOOCs, news aggregation, photo and video sharing, self-publishing, social networking and bookmarking, video conferencing, visualization and wearable technology --all tailored to the needs of libraries and the communities they serve.
Social media in Libraries: Toolkit for Promotion, Productivity & Reference: a...Cheryl Peltier-Davis
Outline:
• Defining Social Media
• Social Media in Libraries : Benefits & Challenges
• Social Media Toolkit for Libraries: Promotion, Productivity, Reference
• Free Caribbean Reference Resources
Inuse seminar 9.6.2014 - "The Active Energy Citizen:User Innovation, Prosumpt...inuseproject
In the energy sector, the end-user role is changing from passive consumer to active co-provider with de-centralized technologies. This presentation elaborates what kind of forms of active energy usership emerge with renewable micro-generation. The author draws from and contributes primarily to research on energy consumption, social shaping of technology, and user innovation research. The key findings demonstrate how homeowners have an evolutionary approach in building and configuring residential energy systems which should be recognized in energy policy and design. Flexibility to adapt to changes is an important factor and it fosters sustainable development pathways and proliferation of renewable energy generation in households.
This presentation is based on doctoral thesis work which has been recently submitted for pre-examination in Aalto University School of Business Organization and Management discipline.
Fiksun Kalasataman Nopeiden kokeilujen ohjelma ostaa pieniä (1000-8000e) kokeiluja, jotka tuovat innovatiivisia palveluja kaupunkilaisten käyttöön. Ohjelmalla halutaan edistää monen toimijan yhteisiä kokeiluja ja kiihdyttää hyvien konseptien kehittymistä palveluinnovaatioiksi sekä uudeksi liiketoiminnaksi.
ZombieTech (or ICT4Z): Why Do NGOs Keep Building Lousy Tools?Jed Miller
Presented at @OpenGovHub, October 1, 2014. See: http://opengovhub.org/blog/10/2014/brains-gore-and-user-centric-design-what-we-learned-about-zombie-tech-projects
Joy Mountford at BayCHI: Visualizations of Our Collective LivesBayCHI
The lines between art, design, and information are dissolving as we experience new places and objects. Consider, for example, the organic flow of air traffic over North America at daybreak, the bursts of search query memes spreading around the globe, and the pointillist surge of mobile phone usage on New Year's Eve. Using the new techniques of generative data visualization, a new generation of artist/designers/engineer/scientists are creating gorgeous, dynamic experiences driven by massive sets of data about our own lives. Their work comes to life in architectural spaces, on walls of wood and metal and light and shimmering glass clouds suspended overhead. Of course it must be touched to be appreciated and engaged with, simple gestures launch a thousand images and possibilities. Many of these projects have received international recognition. They are primarily 3D applications that can run in real time, but really can only be appreciated by watching them, as movies. These data movies aim to make information easier to understand while being enjoyable to watch. Surprising insights surface through looking at our 'data life' in new ways, and may compel us to design in different, even better ways.
In this session, we talk about the mobile and social web, and how it shapes economy, individual behavior and well-being, political events, and society as a whole.
"Open To The Public": Cultural Institutions, Digital Labor, and Local Network...jkmcgrath
Slides from a talk I gave as part of the "Public Humanities In A Digital Age" panel (organized by Nicky Agate) at ACLA 2016 (Harvard University). Additional context will be provided via a blog post about this talk; I'll update info here with the link when it's up.
Design For Online Community: Beyond the HypeLynn Cherny
Reviews academic (anthro, socio, linguistic) definitions of online and offline community, followed by principles for creating them online and measuring their success. (My Ph.D. was an early study of online community. I do data mining/vis now at @arnicas/www.ghostweather.com.)
Studying young people’s online social practices - Combining virtual ethnography, participant observation, online conversations and questionnaire data.
Guest lecture by Malene Charlotte Larsen, Assistant Professor at Aalborg University, at the PhD course: Mixed Methods Research: Theory and Practice, AAU, Jan 31 2013
Optimistic interpretations: ignoring social relations that influence the social distribution and impact of the new ICT. The new digital technologies function as commodities, and their distribution – at least initially – tends to follow existing divisions of class, race and gender. Rather than assisting with equalization, the new information and communication technologies tend to reinforce social inequality, and lead to the formation of socially and technologically disadvantaged and excluded individuals (Golding, 1996; Zappala, 2000).
Securing your Kubernetes cluster_ a step-by-step guide to success !KatiaHIMEUR1
Today, after several years of existence, an extremely active community and an ultra-dynamic ecosystem, Kubernetes has established itself as the de facto standard in container orchestration. Thanks to a wide range of managed services, it has never been so easy to set up a ready-to-use Kubernetes cluster.
However, this ease of use means that the subject of security in Kubernetes is often left for later, or even neglected. This exposes companies to significant risks.
In this talk, I'll show you step-by-step how to secure your Kubernetes cluster for greater peace of mind and reliability.
Accelerate your Kubernetes clusters with Varnish CachingThijs Feryn
A presentation about the usage and availability of Varnish on Kubernetes. This talk explores the capabilities of Varnish caching and shows how to use the Varnish Helm chart to deploy it to Kubernetes.
This presentation was delivered at K8SUG Singapore. See https://feryn.eu/presentations/accelerate-your-kubernetes-clusters-with-varnish-caching-k8sug-singapore-28-2024 for more details.
Generative AI Deep Dive: Advancing from Proof of Concept to ProductionAggregage
Join Maher Hanafi, VP of Engineering at Betterworks, in this new session where he'll share a practical framework to transform Gen AI prototypes into impactful products! He'll delve into the complexities of data collection and management, model selection and optimization, and ensuring security, scalability, and responsible use.
Alt. GDG Cloud Southlake #33: Boule & Rebala: Effective AppSec in SDLC using ...James Anderson
Effective Application Security in Software Delivery lifecycle using Deployment Firewall and DBOM
The modern software delivery process (or the CI/CD process) includes many tools, distributed teams, open-source code, and cloud platforms. Constant focus on speed to release software to market, along with the traditional slow and manual security checks has caused gaps in continuous security as an important piece in the software supply chain. Today organizations feel more susceptible to external and internal cyber threats due to the vast attack surface in their applications supply chain and the lack of end-to-end governance and risk management.
The software team must secure its software delivery process to avoid vulnerability and security breaches. This needs to be achieved with existing tool chains and without extensive rework of the delivery processes. This talk will present strategies and techniques for providing visibility into the true risk of the existing vulnerabilities, preventing the introduction of security issues in the software, resolving vulnerabilities in production environments quickly, and capturing the deployment bill of materials (DBOM).
Speakers:
Bob Boule
Robert Boule is a technology enthusiast with PASSION for technology and making things work along with a knack for helping others understand how things work. He comes with around 20 years of solution engineering experience in application security, software continuous delivery, and SaaS platforms. He is known for his dynamic presentations in CI/CD and application security integrated in software delivery lifecycle.
Gopinath Rebala
Gopinath Rebala is the CTO of OpsMx, where he has overall responsibility for the machine learning and data processing architectures for Secure Software Delivery. Gopi also has a strong connection with our customers, leading design and architecture for strategic implementations. Gopi is a frequent speaker and well-known leader in continuous delivery and integrating security into software delivery.
Epistemic Interaction - tuning interfaces to provide information for AI supportAlan Dix
Paper presented at SYNERGY workshop at AVI 2024, Genoa, Italy. 3rd June 2024
https://alandix.com/academic/papers/synergy2024-epistemic/
As machine learning integrates deeper into human-computer interactions, the concept of epistemic interaction emerges, aiming to refine these interactions to enhance system adaptability. This approach encourages minor, intentional adjustments in user behaviour to enrich the data available for system learning. This paper introduces epistemic interaction within the context of human-system communication, illustrating how deliberate interaction design can improve system understanding and adaptation. Through concrete examples, we demonstrate the potential of epistemic interaction to significantly advance human-computer interaction by leveraging intuitive human communication strategies to inform system design and functionality, offering a novel pathway for enriching user-system engagements.
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 4DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 4. In this session, we will cover Test Manager overview along with SAP heatmap.
The UiPath Test Manager overview with SAP heatmap webinar offers a concise yet comprehensive exploration of the role of a Test Manager within SAP environments, coupled with the utilization of heatmaps for effective testing strategies.
Participants will gain insights into the responsibilities, challenges, and best practices associated with test management in SAP projects. Additionally, the webinar delves into the significance of heatmaps as a visual aid for identifying testing priorities, areas of risk, and resource allocation within SAP landscapes. Through this session, attendees can expect to enhance their understanding of test management principles while learning practical approaches to optimize testing processes in SAP environments using heatmap visualization techniques
What will you get from this session?
1. Insights into SAP testing best practices
2. Heatmap utilization for testing
3. Optimization of testing processes
4. Demo
Topics covered:
Execution from the test manager
Orchestrator execution result
Defect reporting
SAP heatmap example with demo
Speaker:
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
Why You Should Replace Windows 11 with Nitrux Linux 3.5.0 for enhanced perfor...SOFTTECHHUB
The choice of an operating system plays a pivotal role in shaping our computing experience. For decades, Microsoft's Windows has dominated the market, offering a familiar and widely adopted platform for personal and professional use. However, as technological advancements continue to push the boundaries of innovation, alternative operating systems have emerged, challenging the status quo and offering users a fresh perspective on computing.
One such alternative that has garnered significant attention and acclaim is Nitrux Linux 3.5.0, a sleek, powerful, and user-friendly Linux distribution that promises to redefine the way we interact with our devices. With its focus on performance, security, and customization, Nitrux Linux presents a compelling case for those seeking to break free from the constraints of proprietary software and embrace the freedom and flexibility of open-source computing.
Elevating Tactical DDD Patterns Through Object CalisthenicsDorra BARTAGUIZ
After immersing yourself in the blue book and its red counterpart, attending DDD-focused conferences, and applying tactical patterns, you're left with a crucial question: How do I ensure my design is effective? Tactical patterns within Domain-Driven Design (DDD) serve as guiding principles for creating clear and manageable domain models. However, achieving success with these patterns requires additional guidance. Interestingly, we've observed that a set of constraints initially designed for training purposes remarkably aligns with effective pattern implementation, offering a more ‘mechanical’ approach. Let's explore together how Object Calisthenics can elevate the design of your tactical DDD patterns, offering concrete help for those venturing into DDD for the first time!
DevOps and Testing slides at DASA ConnectKari Kakkonen
My and Rik Marselis slides at 30.5.2024 DASA Connect conference. We discuss about what is testing, then what is agile testing and finally what is Testing in DevOps. Finally we had lovely workshop with the participants trying to find out different ways to think about quality and testing in different parts of the DevOps infinity loop.
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
A tale of scale & speed: How the US Navy is enabling software delivery from l...sonjaschweigert1
Rapid and secure feature delivery is a goal across every application team and every branch of the DoD. The Navy’s DevSecOps platform, Party Barge, has achieved:
- Reduction in onboarding time from 5 weeks to 1 day
- Improved developer experience and productivity through actionable findings and reduction of false positives
- Maintenance of superior security standards and inherent policy enforcement with Authorization to Operate (ATO)
Development teams can ship efficiently and ensure applications are cyber ready for Navy Authorizing Officials (AOs). In this webinar, Sigma Defense and Anchore will give attendees a look behind the scenes and demo secure pipeline automation and security artifacts that speed up application ATO and time to production.
We will cover:
- How to remove silos in DevSecOps
- How to build efficient development pipeline roles and component templates
- How to deliver security artifacts that matter for ATO’s (SBOMs, vulnerability reports, and policy evidence)
- How to streamline operations with automated policy checks on container images
State of ICS and IoT Cyber Threat Landscape Report 2024 previewPrayukth K V
The IoT and OT threat landscape report has been prepared by the Threat Research Team at Sectrio using data from Sectrio, cyber threat intelligence farming facilities spread across over 85 cities around the world. In addition, Sectrio also runs AI-based advanced threat and payload engagement facilities that serve as sinks to attract and engage sophisticated threat actors, and newer malware including new variants and latent threats that are at an earlier stage of development.
The latest edition of the OT/ICS and IoT security Threat Landscape Report 2024 also covers:
State of global ICS asset and network exposure
Sectoral targets and attacks as well as the cost of ransom
Global APT activity, AI usage, actor and tactic profiles, and implications
Rise in volumes of AI-powered cyberattacks
Major cyber events in 2024
Malware and malicious payload trends
Cyberattack types and targets
Vulnerability exploit attempts on CVEs
Attacks on counties – USA
Expansion of bot farms – how, where, and why
In-depth analysis of the cyber threat landscape across North America, South America, Europe, APAC, and the Middle East
Why are attacks on smart factories rising?
Cyber risk predictions
Axis of attacks – Europe
Systemic attacks in the Middle East
Download the full report from here:
https://sectrio.com/resources/ot-threat-landscape-reports/sectrio-releases-ot-ics-and-iot-security-threat-landscape-report-2024/
Encryption in Microsoft 365 - ExpertsLive Netherlands 2024Albert Hoitingh
In this session I delve into the encryption technology used in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Purview. Including the concepts of Customer Key and Double Key Encryption.
1. How Social Media Changes !
User-Centred Design
INUSE Seminar
May 16, 2013
Mikael Johnson
D.Sc. (Tech)
Aalto University, Finland
http://people.aalto.fi/mikael_johnson
2. Introduction
! Concern for current state of user-centred design methods
“Research that assesses usability evaluation methods has been in a crisis
for over a decade.” (Woolrych et al. 2011)
• Developments
• UX broadening scope of usability:
consumers, fun, leisure
• Value as co-created with users and
business partners, instead of thinking it as
produced and sold
• Relating users to their social networks and
communities instead of understanding
them as isolated entities
• Emerging empirical research on
developers’ practice
• Challenges
• “factors (contexts and situations) that
shape the use of particular resources and
their combinations within usability work”
• Social media confusion
• User involvement after market launch
• Theories for understanding “community”
• Process guidance: “project” and informal
engagement
3. Weak Signals… (Holzapfel’s mini cases 2008)
UCD here:
user research,
personas,
scenarios,!
prototypes,!
testing.!
4. How Social Media Changes
User-Centred Design
Cumulative and Strategic User Involvement with
Respect to Developer–User Social Distance
D.Sc. Thesis by Johnson, 2013 at http://is.gd/johnson_2013_thesis
5. Study Setup: How Social Media
Changes User-Centred Design
• Research questions
1. How do users’ actions in and around a social media service shape its design?
2. How do social media developers’ user involvement practices evolve over time?
3. How does user categorisation change with social media?
• Method: explorative case study
• Real life software design, Case-based qualitative inquiry
• Both users and developers, Long-term commitment
• Reflective HCI: seeks means from social and behavioral sciences to address so far
unaddressed aspects of human-computer interaction
• Here: Science and Technology Studies, Biography of Artefacts
6. Case Habbo
• Social game and online community for children and teenagers,
launched in 2000
• A place to hangout with friends, meet new people, play, and have fun
• Johnson has followed Habbo’s development 2003–2010 in several
research projects
Quick Habbo Facts (Feb 2012)
- 11 language versions
- Customers in over 150 countries
- Registered users: 250 000 000
- Unique visitors: > 10 000 000 / month
- Page impressions: 1 730 000 000 / month
- Age distribution: 90% between 13-18 years old
- Average visit: 41 minutes / session
www.sulake.com/habbo
10. What is Habbo?
Developers
Users
Media
It’s a game
It’s a
community
It’s a graphical
chat
It’s a social
virtual world
Games researchers
It’s NOT a
game
It’s a social
networking site
I hang out
with my
friends there
I can meet
new people
there
It’s a
business
success
It’s a crime
scene
It lures children
to consume
It’s a place for
youth work
It’s a pop
culture arena
It’s a means for
online security
education
It’s Macromedia
Director, Lingo, Java
server, Shockwave,
Flash, Fuse
It’s a new
ICQ
I collect and
trade “furni”
there
I can make
up my own
game there
Neither my
parents nor my
teacher are
there
It’s where I go
after school
Parents
Teachers
I use it in
my class
I don’t know
It’s where
the kids
hang out
Youth workers
Johnson (2013), Appendix A
Board of education
We organize a
“language bath”
Advertisers
Good
channel to
reach 10-15
y.-olds
It’s where the
money comes from
It’s a virtual
hotel
11. Social Media is as Computerization
Movement and Design Context
• Commonalities among social networking sites, virtual worlds, graphical chats,
discussion forum services, blog services, MUDs, CVEs…
• Social media as a computerization movement (Kling & Iacono): technological
frames – public discourse – organisational practice.
• Other CMs: urban information systems, artificial intelligence, personal computing, office
automation, computer-based education…
• Design Context key characteristics
• Specific software business
(Low cost, non-trad. revenue models)
• Group communication features (à)
(more than groupware)
• Active user communities
(dialogue, interaction, production)
A collection
of groups
|
|
|
|
|
One group
|
|
|
|
|
One person
Low – – Real-Time Workspace Awareness – – High
Usenet
Newsgroups
IRC Network
Discussion
List (E-mail)
Chat Room
Personal software:
word processor,
spreadsheet
Multiplayer
Games,
MUDs
Social Network Sites:
Facebook
Virtual Worlds:
Second Life
Shared
Workspace
12. Research Strategy
• Sustained search for appropriate social science research
methodologies to capture service developments and pick up
particular emerging issues
• Co-construction of the user: Thesis Article III!
Johnson M 2007. Unscrambling the "Average User" of Habbo Hotel, Human Technology, 3 (2), 127–153.
• Theories of consumption: Thesis Article IV!
Lehdonvirta, V, Wilska T-A, Johnson M 2009. Virtual Consumerism: Case Habbo Hotel. Information,
Communication & Society, 12 (7).
• Subcultures: Thesis Article V!
Johnson M, Sihvonen T 2009. On the Dark Side: Gothic Play and Performance in a Virtual World, Journal of
Virtual Worlds Research, 1 (3).
• Symbolic interactionism: Thesis Article VII!
Johnson M, Hyysalo S, Tamminen S 2010. The Virtuality of Virtual Worlds, or What We Can Learn from
Playacting Horse Girls and Marginalized Developers, 603-633. Symbolic Interaction 33 (4).
13. Conceptual Clarifications: User-Centred Design
• User-centred design is here treated as a specific form of design practice
• a particular way of designing (with the intention of putting users first), which
includes a set of interrelated ideas, guiding principles, methods, and
techniques, as well as what user-centred designers do in practice.
• Umbrella concept (Keinonen 2010)
• Socio-cultural-material practice bound by time and space: UCD 1986 different from UCD
1996, different regions and organisations have adopted different flavours
• Turns
• Design Based on Usability Evaluation
• Turn to the Social and Contextual
• From Evaluation to Business Process
• A Focus on User Experience
• Centering Design on Value(s) and Activity
• Where to?
• X-centred design is always protest against mainstream design
14. Conceptual Clarifications: User
• Not so relevant as a question of identity: people rarely think about themselves as users
• More interesting here: role of users in development
• “The user is a complex idea:
• on the one hand, it is a category used by engineers and developers to refer to those who may
eventually use their systems, on the other it can refer to a range of other individuals and institutions,
imagined and real, some of which begin to develop various kinds of engagement with a technology
over time.” (Stewart & Hyysalo 2008)
• Cf. “person interacting with the system” (ISO standards)
• Focus also on user representations, not only on actual people and realised computer-mediated activity
• E.g., the abstraction processes between user categories used by developers and the everyday lives of
thousands, if not millions, of unique users
• Relational category, not entity category
• Object-specific: user of what? Multiple levels of granularity
• What can one do? Pay attention to
• different stakeholders’ capacity to act, who did what
• categories that interviewees employ & abstractions in design talk
• i.e. social constructionism 3.0 (borrowing from Science and Technology Studies)
15. Habbo in Everyday Life of Teens
— Utopia or futile consumption?
◦ Neither
— Brief Consumption Analysis
◦ Economic aspects
– 13% of users spend money!
ave. 10€ / month (TS 3.9.2008)
◦ Material aspects
– Habbo characters, rooms, navigation,
communication devices, home pages, list
of friends, etc.
– Computer, network, power, etc.
◦ Symbolic aspects
– Habbo fashion, popularity contests,
property, groups
◦ Productive aspects
– Room decoration, profile creation, stories
& play & games
— Can be compared to a school yard
(for better or worse): play, games,
discussion…
— With Habbo, teens
◦ Keep in contact with friends
◦ Get current information about what’s
going on
◦ Interact as consumers with commercial
stakeholders
— Habbo is part of popular culture
◦ Commenting
◦ Irony
◦ Socialisation agent
Johnson M, Hyysalo S, Tamminen S 2010. The Virtuality of Virtual Worlds, or What We Can Learn from
Playacting Horse Girls and Marginalized Developers, 603-633. Symbolic Interaction 33 (4).
16. Imitating TV-show formats!
Idols
(User Interview 19.10.2005)
The Bachelor
(Fansite Kriisipalvelu.net
SirHamsterPepa: “Realityä”)
• Greed, Do you want to
be a millionaire, Big
Brother, Survivor,
America’s Next Top
Model, “Dating”...!
17. User-Owned Fansites
• Habbo’s amateur media world
• news, gossip, opinions, hints, events,
competitions, fun
• Development
• 2000: first user created sites
• 2001-2003: Official site by
developers
www.kultakalankuvalehti.com
• 2004: official fansite competition
• 4-5 official fansites: lifecycle ~3 years
• in Finland: ~200 fansites, most really
small (Dec 2004)
• 2006-7: Sulake-hosted groups
• 2009: 130 fansites globally
• Fansite roles
• tell the visitors about the social
worlds around Habbo
• complement the official site: e.g.
fashion
• influence norms of behaviour in
Habbo
Important “nodes” in the Habbo service ecology
18. Important in Habbo
• One’s own avatar
• clothing styles, character
description
• One’s own room and furniture
• collecting, trading, decorating,
browsing the furniture catalogue
• Habbo homepage
• one’s avatar’s homepage that is
visible to anyone on the web
• Friends
• school, hobbies, new friends,
dating, distant friends
• Play
• beaty contests (popularity), TV
shows, games of chance, Habbo-
sports, insider clubs, roleplay,
playing with the spatiality of the
virtual world
• Career
• celebrities, getting rich, popular
room, in a game or gang, being a
fansite author, being a Habbo guide
• Testing boundaries and rules
• expressing self, treating others (e.g.,
cheating, bullying), finding and
using glitches in the hotel
architecture
19. Data: Both Users & Developers
research
timeline
development
timeline
use
timeline
2000
2003
2006
2009
pilot
visitor
profile
survey
fan!
websites!
study
user!
interviews
developer
interviews
user feedback!
method set
community
manager
interviews
following fansites!
and new features
keeping uptodate
20. Service Evolution
Concept! Beta! Expansion! Complexity! Competition!
1999-2000!
Mobiles Disco!
Lumisota!
Hotelli
Kultakala!
2001-2003!
Habbo Hotel!
profit model
tests!
2004-2005!
~10 new hotel
countries
during one
year!
2006-2007
social
networking
service!
2008-2010
vs. Facebook!
!
resources! minimal! small! medium! medium! medium!
tech maturity! proto! basic
functionality
completed!
packaged
product!
new features!
rebuilding!
integration
with other
services!
market
competition!
small! small! medium! high! high!
users / month! <10000! < 1 mill.! 1-5 mill.! 5-10 mill.! 10-15 mill.!
hotels! 1! 4! 16! 19! 12-18!
Johnson M 2010. User Involvement, Social Media, and Service Evolution: The Case of Habbo. 43rd Hawaii
International Conference on System Sciences. Kauai, Hawaii, 5–8 January 2010. (Nominated for Best Paper Award).
22. Significant Changes in Developer–
User Relationship
• With an increasing number of users, more features, and
geographic expansion of the service, also the diversity of use
practices increased.
• The younger demographic of the users brought increasing
differences between developers and users.
• Developers’ active participation in use communities
decreased, and volunteer users’ participation in development
and moderation waned.
• The role of the fansites changed as certain discussions about
Habbo could be carried out in the developer-provided forums.
23. Developer–User Social Distance
• Degree of uncertainty and unfamiliarity of the other group’s
practices, resulting from a combination of changes in
• Diversity of use practices
• Differences among developers and users
• Direct developer participation in use practices and vice versa
• Indirect contact between developers and users through both
social and technical mediators
• Points: development/design as relational, include developer-
self and experience, informal engagement ok in certain
situations.
24. Shifts in Developer–User Social Distance
• Previously: developers’ own use of a product and resulting first-hand experience
poorly considered
• ‘Bad guys’: developers are not representative
• ‘Heroes’: some developers know what users want, without asking
• Missing ‘factor’ in method advice
• Here: nuanced middle ground
• Depends on how familiar developers are with the users and the use practices, what I call
developer–user social distance
• Self-centred design adequate, but within limits
• Small distance: informal engagement
• Broad distance: more bridging activities
• Developer–user social distance changes over time
• Start: small or broad
• User involvement activities (participation) modifies
• Previously: focus on use context or development context, here more relational
25. Implications
! “Start condition” for user-centred design?
! Method advice
! First question: not “where in the project are you”?, but find
out developer–user social distance, how familiar are the
developers with the users?
! Diversity of user practices
! Social, cultural, and professional differences
! Previous direct user involvement
! Other indirect sources of information about users?
26. What do we want UCD to be? (cf. Holzapfel’s mini cases 2008)
Adopting sth. like
“Developer–User
Social Distance,
might turn these
into Yes.
…which
overlapped
user needs
What about
later
design?
27. How Social Media Changes UCD
• Different methods repertoire => different strategic
choices
• Consider:
• Developer–user social distance
• Cumulation of user knowledge
• Key rhythms in development
• Broader applicability to other design contexts
29. Developers
Users
Room divided into sections with bar desks
New floorplan with pre-made sections
New floorplan with “island” section
Developers create
furniture and floorplans.
Users make rooms from
a floorplan and furniture.
Bar desk in room created by developers Bar desk components for users to furnish their rooms.
With a bar desk one
can divide a room in
parts,
which allows for mazes.
Let’s do more furniture
that can divide rooms.
Bar desks and doors
also afford spaces,
with access only for
the few and selected.
Forums
Users spread the word,
mazes become a big thing.
Popular rooms
Users visit these
to learn about!
the latest trends.
Catalogue
Users choose a!
floorplan and furniture!
from the catalogue.
Interaction arena
Let’s make floorplans
with pre-made sections.
v1
v2
v3