Understanding Spaces as Places Extending Interaction Design Paradigms.pdfVIP

“Understanding Spaces as Places: Extending Interaction Design Paradigms” LUIGINA CIOLFI Interaction Design Centre, Dept. of Computer Science and Inform ation Systems University of Limerick, Ireland luigina.ciolfi@ul.ie Tel +353 61 213530 Fax +353 61 202734 Abstract This short paper focuses on some issues involved in the design of Ubiquitous Technologies and their integration within physical spaces. Current design methodologies and techniques do not explicitly consider the importance of gaining a full understanding of human experience of space when designing technologies that will pervade and become part of our physical environment. Our proposal is specifically focused on the importance of considering spaces as places, and analysing those features of a place that are going to shape users interaction with technologically enhanced environments. We also attempt to clarify some future implications that these concerns may have on theoretical and methodological aspects of Interaction Design. Keywords: ubiquitous technologies, space and place, interaction design, localised experience. 1 Surveying the Problem Space Technologies are changing not only in terms of their computational capabilities and appearance, but also in the way they are physically arranged, perceived and used. This change also affects the way we experience the spaces we inhabit and our sense of physical presence in a locale. Such technologies have the potential to pervade many dimensions of our lives: they can modify the spaces we inhabit, create new places and new forms of presence and make physical presence itself a way of interacting with the system. Ubiquitous and pervasive technologies, ambient media and tangible computing technologies are being distributed within an environment, embedded into furniture, everyday objects and clothes. These 1