This document outlines guidelines for designing location-based audio experiences for mobile learning. It discusses three categories of spoken audio guides: audio vignettes which are short pieces of audio triggered by movement with no history or adaptivity; movement-based guides which adapt information based on user movement, orientation, and position; and mobile narratives which are audio stories dependent on the sequence of user movements. It provides examples of each type and guidelines for effective audio experiences. A case study examines a movement-based guide and mobile narrative that determines the level of chaos in an audio story based on the user's movement patterns. Findings show users enjoyed the movement interaction but too much ambiguity could leave them unsure how to proceed and adaptivity was important for enjoyment.

1. Guidelines for the design of location-based audio for mobile learning Elizabeth FitzGerald, Mike Sharples, Robert Jones and Gary PriestnallUniversity of Nottingham

2. Audio experiences Used extensively in mobile gaming, tourism, educational visits and theatrical events Usage: Direction Orientation Informing/instructing Telling a story Creating ambient sound

3. Spoken audio experiences We have proposed three categories: Audio vignettes Movement-based guides Mobile narratives

4. Audio vignettes Short pieces of audio triggered by movement from the user No history of where the user has been No adaptivity based on previous movement Users engage with chunks of audio that are independent of each other and of their relative locations

5. E.g. Riot! 1831Interactive play in Queen’s Square, Bristol (Image © 2010 University of the West of England, Bristol) (image from JF Nicholls and John Taylor (1883) Bristol Past and Present)

6. Movement-based guides The aim is to adapt information to objects or surroundings Interaction and adaptivity is based on User movement Orientation of the user Physical position of the user

7. E.g. CAGE (Context Aware Gallery Exploration) part of the MOBIlearn project

9. Mobile narratives An audio narrative based on the sequence of movements carried out by the user Audio heard by a user will depend upon where the user goes to (and has come from) Differs from a movement-based guide: Stronger story-telling component Level of dependency upon the previous audio segment Can present different perspectives/characters

10. E.g. History Unwired http://mit.edu/frontiers/

11. (All images courtesy of History Unwired)

12. Guidelines for effective audio experiences Interactivity Narration Trails/navigation Technical issues Sensitivity to local environment

13. Case study: A Chaotic Encounter Movement-based guide + mobile narrative An entertaining audio story which reflects the listener’s movement patterns User’s movement (speed, direction) determines the level of chaos (either low, medium or high) presented in the audio story

14. Narrative structure Chaos Time

15. Findings from case study All enjoyed the movement element of the audio experiences When interaction demanded interruption, immersiveness was lost When interactivity is not explicit, too much ambiguity may leave users unsure how to proceed Adaptivity was considered very important to the enjoyment of the experience

16. Summary We have proposed three categories of spoken audio guides: Audio vignettes Movement-based guides Mobile narratives Guidelines for effective audio experiences Case study: A Chaotic Encounter Ongoing work into “a sense of place”

17. Thanks for listening… elizabeth.fitzgerald@nottingham.ac.uk http://lsri.nottingham.ac.uk/ejb Many thanks toall participants in the user trials and also to students from the School of Geography