I’ve always been obsessed with new-old things. Add other obsessions like LA and spending too much time on a video game and you got LA Noire, the new release by Rockstar Games. It blends storytelling, new acting technology, painstaking production, geographic history, new music, old music, and political commentary to create a pop multi-media extravaganza that reconnects us to a time and place sorta similar and sorta different from the now.

You’ll have to play the game to experience a reality in which LA had light rail, local stores, no freeways, vacant land, Victorian suburbs, people wearing hats unironically and no mini-malls. But if you want to really be inside architecture showcasing craft and symbolism, see Spanish history, watch old movies and vaudeville, lament developer/transportation corruption, and hang out with junkie musicians, you can still find it in this handy chart of real sites seen in the game…
:::LA NOIRE: IRL:::

Fitting everything into 10 or 15 minutes is challenging, but makes for a dense overview of new ideas. If anyone stopped by and has any thoughts to share please email or comment. It was difficult to find room for conversation during the session with so much going on.

…update…
Here are the slides from the talk.

An Experiment In Cord Cutting

1. Communal Computing
2. Modes of Interaction
3. Leniency of Input
4. Modes of Free Gesture

Note that the focus of the design discussion is on average users and if/how new platforms will become a part of everyday lives and culture. When talking about specialized professional uses like industrial design, architecture, film editing, health/science, etc., the UI may indeed mimic sci-fi imagery more directly.

1. Communal Computing
This is the aspect I feel will establish large screens as their own unique platform and makes them truly different from being just a bigger version of something people already have. The elements that provide the basis for communal computing are shown in the diagram below.

- Large scale screens are often used in sci-fi for their cinematic and immersive qualities. However, IRL, scale is primarily used to reach multiple people. A large screen for a single user is often hard to use, not private, and unnecessarily expensive.

- Interactivity just refers to the fact that the screen accepts user input and has processing capabilities as opposed to only being a display (like a movie theatre screen or billboard).

- Natural input like touch, gesture, or voice is often used in films because it’s novel, demonstrative or literal, and it appears effortless. IRL, natural input is easily accessible in casual situations.

These qualities overlap to create the new idea of communal computing. This multi-user context is a key idea in strategizing for these new platforms. The resulting use case combinations are not often considered by interactive designers but can make for exciting new experiences.

Considerations for Communal Computing
With multiple users, who controls the screen and how? Video games are often a great starting point in addressing these questions. A familiar way to deal with this situation is to let one user control what’s going on. In early multi-player games, the system told users whose turn it was (the old 1-up, 2-up).
Another variant is to have users themselves figure it out as they do with the TV remote. Though these are not new techniques they are still very effective when 1 person is controlling the screen at a time since they bring clarity. Advances in input such as multiple controllers or natural user interface (NUI) actually complicate single user control since users either are confused as to who is controlling the input or in conflict.

To accommodate multiple users at once, split-screens are a simple solution. It allows for collaborative learning in that new users can both watch and participate. They can establish an understanding of the computer and a rapport other users gradually.

Though more complex, allowing multiple users shared access to the same screen space where they can engage and connect with each other is ideal. A combination of shared screen approaches can be used at different points in interaction and for different features.

Personalization
With multiple users on a screen, user recognition is not a given as it is with personal computing platforms. Most personal computers and mobile devices are built for one user or allow for login on the very top level of entry (requiring users to back out of the system). And the degree of personalization they enable with stored account logins, cookies and innovative algorithms is extremely high. This presents a challenge in delivering the type of easy access and features users have to expect with the casual entry and exit nature of group computing. Login often cannot be automatic and even once login is achieved, the user may be hard to track. Communal platforms are inherently not private – entering, displaying or storing personal information can create serious problems.

Schematic addressed this problem in the touch wall designed for the Cannes Lions festival in 2009 by using RFID tags in attendees badges. This was an effortless way to tie users to personalized data onscreen and felt like magic to unsuspecting users.

When such a solution isn’t possible, another approach is to find value in group identity or shared experiences. Find other factors to inform algorithms (ie. time of day, usage patterns, hand size, voice quality) to provide benefits associated with personalization without knowing distinct identities. Overall, strike a balance, make it unobtrusive, and think of cost to payoff.

The Computer’s Role
A final note about communal computing is to consider the computer’s “personality”. In a group situation, the features chosen for a system and the style of implementation will result in giving the computer a role in the social dynamic. It can be a patient teacher that is straightforward and gives its audience instruction, prompting, and encouragement. It can be more elusive and experimental like an art installation. Alternatively it can be a dumb robot putting too much responsibility on user initiation. Or it can be annoying, like “Clippy” constantly trying to help or a used car salesman shouting at people to buy their product.

One interesting idea is to imagine a touch surface in a semi-public setting (like a conference) acting as good host, introducing people based on data unknown to the people themselves. Conference goers are often try to network and make face-to-face connections. While there are a glut of social networking applications on personal platforms, the transition from a cyberspace connection to a real world connection is still a barrier. At a communal computer that has background information on its users, the display could alert the users as to some commonality in profession, geography, or common event they are attending. Context is important and there is even some degree of stage-fright for some users who go up to a large display without knowing what to do. But creating very basic connections with and between users makes for powerful “wow” moments.

Conclusion
For all the capabilities and conveniences our personal devices give us they sometimes lead us into our own little digital cocoons. Communal computing is inspiring in breaking our attachment with devices and interacting with the people around us whether it be strangers, colleagues, or our families. This leads us to the unexpected. Far from the cold or dystopian visions of sci-fi, these technologies can allow for the true social connections that we crave.

Browsing just a bit of the immense line-up, I found a few with overlapping themes (aside from Future15) that I hope to catch…
Mistakes I Made Building Netflix for the iPhone
Designing iPad Interfaces – New Navigation Schemas
Apps, APIs & Syndication: Creativity in the Post-Website Era
It’s Not Tv, It’s Social Tv
The Great Paywall Experiment: Evolving Digital Subscription Models

I figure this is good a time as any to start posting some in-depth explorations of ideas from last year’s presentation Beyond Scifi: Design For Surfaces and Big Screens. Part 1 of 4 will be up shortly.

As important as it is, actual policy making seems like long, complicated, boring business. It’s like watching someone wireframe an application. The details make the design, but scouring for relevant details just makes for a day at work, not anything most people want to do in their off-time. So we all rely on news media to sum it up for us.

But news media has increasingly become its own entertainment, presenting clips and quotes from sources both official and self-scripted to fit it’s own narrative. It’s reality TV, only with extremely high stakes. Policy-makers then have 2 choices – to take the “high road” and be voted off or stir up drama to get a part on the show.

So it’s exciting when someone changes the game completely. Most celebrities try to use their fame for good, but not their talent. After getting a part on the political stage via other means, they often end up being the uncharismatic, self-righteous heels they are in their off-hours. Colbert instead offers up his talent and many more people start hearing about the complexities of the immigrant labor issue.

Major media (mostly right wing, but not entirely), perhaps sensing a win, wasted time and money declaring what a waste of time and money this was. Colbert took approximately 6 minutes of a regularly scheduled meeting lasting over 2 hours. No press was wasted on the “legitimate” folks on the panel yet they rush over to Colbert at the end of the hearing suggesting he’s trivializing an important issue (see 2:07:26). Haterz gonna hate. Hence this clip shows the ENTIRE hearing. The rep who supposedly tried to throw him out seems pretty friendly with him and later rescinds the request. Republicans even try joking with him. Here is the full timecode list for everything Colbert related:

6:40: Chairwoman Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) : brief introduction of Colbert
22:08: Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) : quotes Colbert
24:55: Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) : recommends Colbert leave
34:10: Rep Dan Lungren (R-CA) : thanks Colbert for bringing attention to the issue
36:58: Lofgren : more intro of Colbert
56:29; Conyers : withdraws request that Colbert leave
: Colbert makes statement
: Conyers comments
1:09:40: Smith : repeats some of Colbert’s points and asks about Colbert’s field experiences
: Colbert responds and endorses 100% of GOP policies
1:15:50: Rep Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) : quotes Colbert
1:18:10: Lee: asks Colbert his thoughts about panelist Swain’s position
: Colbert responds
1:49:23: Rep. Steve King (R-IA) : asks Colbert about packing corn
: Colbert responds
1:56:40: Rep Judy Chu (D-CA) : mentions entertainers Republicans have invited to hearings and asks Colbert about working conditions when he worked in the fields
: Colbert responds
2:00:12 Chu asks Colbert why he’s interested in this issue
: Colbert responds
2:05:50: Lofgren : explains the panelists are volunteers and thanks them for coming

What strikes me most is the need to say important things in a way that’s heard. And, conversely, to pay attention to important things, even if they’re boring. Our fate depends on it. Politics will always be theater, but at least it can be good theater.

• Wendy Ficklin, Creative Director at Primitive Spark, will present general usability considerations for different types of touch screens;

• Gavin Bowman, Game Developer at Retro Dreamer, will show what it takes to successfully design or adapt games for the iPhone and iPad;

• Bernadette Irizarry, Principal at Velvet Hammer Design, will present special considerations for designing and testing multi-touch kiosks;

• Colombene Jenner, Sr. UX Designer at Schematic, will discuss large scale multi-user touch screen projects.

It did me proud to think of the care that those in our field put into their work and the potential to aid people in extreme circumstances. In light of so many recent man-made disasters, perhaps the future will hold a larger role for people with a knack for broad systems, crucial details, user psychology, contextual understanding and risk minimization.