BIN.3DMI - Designing Mobile Information Technologies and Services: Beyond Human-Computer Interaction*

Faculty
Mads Bødker, Ravi Vatrapu

Course Coordinator
Mads Bødker

Websites have traditionally had a prominent place in the user experience and design literature, but since mobile media (mobile phones, PDA's, Portable PlayStations, Nintendo’s, GPS and other kinds of handsets) are increasingly becoming platforms for communication, service delivery and leisure activities, service providers, developers, information and interaction designers need to focus more extensively on these. Since they are carried around with the user, they can be used for localized contextual services, tailored for the individual user, or allowing groups of people to participate in co-located networks. This potentially changes the way we make sense of our environment, the ways we present ourselves and the ways that we interact with devices – and people. Hence, there is much to support the view that being mobile with information and communication devices fundamentally changes traditional perspectives on the way communication services and information delivery should be understood and designed. The aim of this course is to focus on the design of human-centered mobile interactions and services. The course introduces themes relating to interaction design and design methodologies, mobile usability, user experience, and experience design. During the course the students will be introduced to and explore mainstream and novel methods and techniques to specify needs, gathering user data, as well as methods for early prototyping of mobile user interfaces and services. One of the great new challenges in understanding and designing for interaction between users, customers and digital technology is trying to understand what lies beyond sheer functionality and efficiency. By drawing on the notion of “interaction design” as a way to elicit user needs and to enable design-based innovation, the course will be part theoretic and part practical as well as facilitate explorative methodological approaches.

Lectures will consist of presentation of reflection on the theme for the particular class as well as interactive sessions, and practical workshop-style excercises.

Students are required to actively participate in the course, and will be tasked with plenary presentations of data findings and application of methods.

After the course, the students should be able to:

The examination for the course will be a product examination based on a pre-given case. The students must deliver a product as well as a written report that accounts for motivation, execution, methods, theories, and empirical validation of the product. The product should be a conceptual prototype of a mobile information system, including scenarios and/or visual narratives of usage. The product and the evaluation will count equally in the overall assessment. The written report should be 15 pages for groups of up to 5 students. The examination will be individual examination based on the product and the report, both of which are to be brought to the examination. Other relevant audio-visual material can be brought to the exam.

The grading is given on the basis of an overall assessment of both the product and the report. It is assumed that the student is fully acquainted with the curriculum for the course. Therefore, questions that probe into the curriculum can be put to the student in order to judge the student’s level of knowledge of - and ability to reflect on - the course material.

Course book

Compendium: