BRIEF 3: ARCADE GAME

The computer game I have chosen to observe, record and analyse for this assignment is the interactive version of Deal Or No Deal, a spin-off from a current television programme by TM Endemol. The game may be considered metaphorical, as it is taken from another medium and has been redesigned and translated into an arcade game format. For this exercise, a User was observed playing the game. The User had never watched the television programme of the same name.
The game features exclusively touch-screen technology as the interface. It requires the User/Player to select strategies or answer multiple-choice questions to advance in the game. There is no joystick, mouse or other hand-held device, as no navigation is required. Obviously, it is very different to an action game or a war game. Progress is made solely by selecting icons and boxes that are displayed on screen. The opening screen features icons for Menu, Info (that is, the rules) or Start. As is standard for this type of game, it is housed in a lectern-like box at which the User stands.
It is immediately evident that the game designer seemed to assume prior knowledge (that is, that the User has watched the game on television). The rules are not simple; they are a fairly complex interaction between choosing a box (with a corresponding value), eliminating other boxes (again with their corresponding values), answering questions and – at a certain point in the game – considering a banker’s offer. At the start of the game the User can elect to read the rules (by selecting the relevant icon on screen), which flash up on screen, but the list does not stay up long enough for a beginner to read through and understand. The User I observed had to call it up several times.

In terms of visuals, the game draws substantially on the television programme, with a similar setting and featuring the same presenter, Noel Edmunds. He is seen in video image or as a still image at different points of the game. As the game is part quiz show (namely, progress has to be made by correctly answering multiple choice questions), it is also connected to a voice recording (Edmunds’ voice), which responds appropriately “correct” or “wrong” to the answers selected. The screen also features a timer – shaped like a clock, with one hand - that runs for one minute, and can knock out a player that takes too long to answer a question or select a box.

The forms of interaction implemented are therefore instructing (that is, the rules), conversing (video and voice) and icon selection (touch screen technology).

In terms of the target audience, this seems aimed at the television viewers and the lack of action and movement suggest it will be preferred by an older audience. The amount of text that has to be absorbed to play, confirms this.

The translation from TV to arcade game does not seem to have been entirely resolved. In the television version, it is the suspense (as viewers know, often wrung out by the presenter) and the audience participation that ratchets up the emotion. This constitutes a driving force in the television version. That suspense and drive is not evident in the arcade game. Of course, the size of the prize is another downer – hundreds of thousands in the television game, but only a few pounds (or game credits) for the arcade game. The player’s score is displayed, as well as those of the top players (that is, previous players), and presumably that is meant to egg on the User. But all in all, one is left with the feeling that Deal Or No Deal succeeds on television by being a game played in front of a studio audience and backed by big advertising money. The translation into arcade game does not seem to be an entire success, nor does it expand games technology.

BRIEF 2 : REDESIGNING A PRODUCT

NAME: VIVIAN VAN DER SANDT
ST NO 06003781
viviensandt@yahoo.co.uk

16 October 2006

Re-mapping Music:
Redesign suggestions for Techniquest's World Music exhibit

In Assignment 1, I discussed Techniquest's World Music exhibit: how it presented itself, how it worked, how it looked, how it was used, the HCI, and so on. In considering the requirements of Brief 1, it also became clear that the exhibit could be improved if a few changes were made. These are my suggestions for a redesign that would make the exhibit more user-friendly for the target audience.
To recap, the World Music exhibit is a large, flat board (240cm across and 120cm high) featuring a map of the world (oval shaped). The map is flanked by two monitors with buttons, left and right of where the User stands. Two headphones hang from hooks. Text on the monitor indicates what the User should do to activate the display: headphones need to be donned, the puck (akin to a stethoscope, attached to the headphones) needs to be placed anywhere on the map. Then the traditional music of the country touched on may be heard through the headphones. (The music of 63 countries - out of the 190-odd countries of the world - is featured). When the User has activated a recording, explanatory text about the music/country appears on one of the monitors. The monitors have four selection buttons, taking the User into: (Top Left) The introduction/Instructions to the exhibit; (Top Right) language preference - English/Welsh; (Bottom Left) a category labelled Why Science (which explains the science behind the exhibit); and lastly, the Bottom Right button, which takes the User into a category headed Why Music (more information on world music).
Design guru Donald A. Norman exalts the importance of design in our everyday lives, and the consequences of errors caused by bad design. He uses the term "user-centered design" to describe design based on the needs of the user, leaving aside what he considers to be secondary issues like aesthetics. User-centered design involves simplifying the structure of tasks, making things visible, getting the mapping right, exploiting the powers of constraint, and designing for error. (Information from Wikipedia).
The World Music exhibit, I thought, had several problems which suggested it had not entirely thought these principles through.
Some of these have already been referred to in Assignment 1: Because of its dimensions (240cm across, substantially more than a child's arm reach) a child would not be able to read the monitor from all points of the map. This could be corrected by providing swivelling monitors (that is, they could swivel inwards, towards the viewer). Another option would be to place the monitors right ahead of the User, not left and right (that is, on top of the display, rather than to the side). A related problem is that the shape of the button obscured the bottom left of the text. If the shape were changed from an oval to a round, that problem would be solved.
Another problem I raised was that children did not seem particularly drawn to the exhibit (in clear contrast to, for instance, a nearby exhibit featuring a dance routine). A map of the world is not the most exciting thing visually,. The display may attract more children if, for instance, it featured a few ethnic faces/ figures in national dress, to provide a visual hook for passers by. Or possibly a bright, representational (maybe ethnic-art inspired) map would be more attractive. Also, the display does not immediately, in appearance, promise a musical experience. It would probably attract more users if there was some indication that it is a musical exhibit; visual cues such as pictures of musical instruments or musical notes (quavers, etc) - even a well-placed CD or DVD - would indicate this.
The young of today are very au fait with computer games, and these tend to have strong incentives (mainly a ruthless scoring system - even if that in real life, sadly, translates into the number of 'kills' in a game). The Techniquest exhibit gives no indication of progress or score, therefore there is no real incentive for the user to try and find as many of the 63 music snippets as possible. A scoring system, even a bar chart or pie chart showing progress, may be the answer to improving usage and engaging the young.
A technical problem affecting the use of the exhibit was the size of the puck, which measures 5cm across. When placed over the Balkans, for instance, the User could not target one individual country, the puck covered at least six - an area from Italy to Macedonia, in fact. The music of Albania came up while the puck straddled these six countries, which would be confusing for a child. A smaller puck or a puck with a finer point would solve this problem.
For large countries like Russia and Canada, the problem was the opposite - the musical snippet was not always triggered if the puck was placed within the country's boundaries, the User had to find a particular spot in the country to trigger the music. Many a User may have moved on without hearing the musical snippet. To solve this problem, the alternating current needs to be extended to run right across the bigger countries. This is a technical problem, not a design problem, which affects usability.
The volume control between different snippets was uneven, some being loud, others soft and one or two barely audible. In one case, there was no sound at all (the corresponding text came up on the monitor, which was the only indication that it was one of the 63 featured countries). This is surely a recording problem, and could be corrected. As for all displays, the exhibit needs to be constantly tested, maintained and repaired.
It would be possible to make this an exhibit attracting both children and adults, if the dimensions and instructions enabled duel-level use. In the areas visible to children, the information presented could be simpler.
Donald Norman would probably approve of all the above suggestions, except possibly the suggestion to improve the aesthetics (that is, visual appearance); he considered aethetics a secondary issue in user-centred design. However, for children I think appearance can be an attraction or a repellent, and aid or hinder usability. Norman's principles seem devised for mainly adult, functional (work) objects - not play objects aimed at children. Most of my suggestions are aimed at making the design more user-centred. In terms of memory and learning, this is not a complex device. The information displayed on the monitors is the most complex, and that is where the main user problems occur.

BRIEF 1: TECHNIQUEST (edited -approx 900 wds)

ASSIGNMENT 1: TECHNIQUEST
ASSESSMENT: BRIEF 1
TECHNIQUEST

NAME: VIVIEN VAN DER SANDT
ST NO 06003781
viviensandt@yahoo.co.uk

9 October 2006

Mapping Music:
Exploring a ‘touch screen’ that utilises alternating current

Science-discovery centre Techniquest provided a range of Human Computer Interaction devices to choose from. Since the Personal Project I hope to do later this year entails using a world map for an interactive, educational game, I looked at several examples of how Techniquest had used the world map in HCI. Techniquest exhibits of interest in this regard included the Pangaea Puzzle (which demonstrates continental drift and features tectonic plates floating on compressed air); the Geocron (an electric clock that moves a world map slowly across the screen, showing time zones - the countries in the lit-up area are at that moment experiencing daylight); and the World Music exhibit. I explored in depth the World Music exhibit, as it seems closest to what I may want to do with my Project.

At first appearance, the World Music exhibit is a large, flat board (240cm across and 120cm high) featuring a map of the world (oval shaped). The map is flanked by two monitors with buttons, left and right of where the User stands. Two headphones hang from hooks. Text on the monitor indicates what the User should do to activate the display: headphones need to be donned, the puck (akin to a stethoscope, attached to the headphones) needs to be placed anywhere on the map. Then the traditional music of the country touched on may be heard through the headphones. (The music of only 63 countries - out of the 190-odd countries of the world – is featured). When the User has activated a recording, a written, explanatory piece about the music/country appears on one of the monitors.

The monitors have four selection buttons, taking the User into: (Top Left) The introduction/Instructions to the exhibit; (Top Right) language preference – English/Welsh; (Bottom Left) a category labelled Why Science (which explains the science behind the exhibit); and lastly, the Bottom Right button, which takes the User into a category headed Why Music (more information on world music)

The aim of the device is twofold: to provide a cultural and geographic experience/ education regarding traditional music styles from all over the world, and secondly (in line with Techniquest’s raison d’etre) to illustrate a scientific/technological principle. In terms of Techniquest’s aims, it hopes to present these in a fun but at the same time educational way.

In this exhibit, the scientific principle being illustrated is that of transformers and alternating current. (As mentioned earlier, the User can learn about the science by selecting the Why Science button). It is explained that the headphones are connected to a half transformer (or puck). The puck is made up of a coil of wire around a core of silicon steel which can be magnetised and demagnetised. Behind the world map are 63 similar half transformers (as explained, there are 63 music snippets), each with alternating current flowing in the coils. Each alternating current comes from a recording of music. The User gets the alternating current in the coil and hears the music.

I observed several problems which suggested that the target audience and the aims of the exhibit had not been entirely thought through. The first problem is, who was it aimed at? Techniquest (as staff member Sue Cavell explained to the group) is aimed at young children. In addition to being accessible in terms of content, the exhibits’ designers have to consider the proportions of the human body – as exhibits, of course, also have to be physically accessed (reachable buttons, visible screens, and so on). In terms of dimensions, Techniquest hardware is designed with a 12-year-old in mind, taking that as a median size between child and adult. But here the World Music exhibit is problematical, as in terms of placement (37cm above the floor, making the map about torso level for an adult) the display seems aimed at children. However, the dimensions across (240 cm) are unrealistic, as a child would not be able to see the monitors unless s/he is standing at the far right or far left of the map. (Even I, as a shortish adult, could not read the text on the monitors at all times – therefore missing out on reading about the music of countries placed centrally on the map. Bear in mind, one has to keep the puck in place to keep the text displayed on the monitor, so one cannot move left or right to read a monitor).

Is the exhibit trying to be a bit of everything for everyone, for instance a child may be satisfied with hearing a musical snippet, while an adult would like to hear the music AND read the text? My finding is, having watched public interaction, that not many people were drawn to it. (In fact not even my classmates, until I called one over and tested him on it – at which he was so taken by it, that he decided to make it the subject of his assignment!). The only time I saw the exhibit being used (in about five hours of observation, as I was there for two afternoons) was when a mother demonstrated it to her two children. World Music does seem to be rather a ‘Starbucks crowd’ interest (that is metropolitan adults). Is this display aimed at the adults who accompany the children? In that case the dimensions (specifically the height) need to be changed. The exhibit utilises an interesting, fun idea but my feeling was that it could have been so much better presented if a few changes were made. The problems I observed, and my suggestions for redesign, will be discussed in Assignment 2.

ASSIGNMENT 1: TECHNIQUEST

ASSESSMENT: BRIEF 1
TECHNIQUEST

NAME: VIVIEN VAN DER SANDT
ST NO 06003781
viviensandt@yahoo.co.uk

9 October 2006

Mapping Music:
Exploring a ‘touch screen’ that utilises alternating current

Science-discovery centre Techniquest provided a range of HCI devices to choose from. Since the Personal Project I hope to do later this year entails using a world map for an interactive, educational game, I looked at several examples of how Techniquest has used the world map in Human Computer Interaction (HCI). Techniquest exhibits include the Pangaea Puzzle (which demonstrates continental drift and features tectonic plates floating on compressed air); the Geocron (an electric clock that moves a world map slowly across the screen, showing time zones - the countries in the lit-up area are at that moment experiencing daylight); and the World Music exhibit. I explored in depth the World Music exhibit, as it seems closest to what I may want to do with my Project.

At first appearance, the World Music exhibit is a large, flat board (240cm across and 120cm high) featuring a map of the world (oval shaped). The map is flanked by two monitors with buttons, left and right of where the User stands. Two headphones hang from hooks. Text on the monitor indicates what the User should do to activate the display: headphones need to be donned, the puck (akin to a stethoscope, attached to the headphones) needs to be placed anywhere on the map. Then the traditional music of the country touched on may be heard through the headphones. (The music of only 63 countries - out of the 190-odd countries of the world – is featured). When the User has activated a recording, a written, explanatory piece about the music/country appears on one of the monitors.

The monitors have four selection buttons, taking the User into: (Top Left) The introduction/Instructions to the exhibit; (Top Right) language preference – English/Welsh; (Bottom Left) a category labelled Why Science (which explains the science behind the exhibit); and lastly, the Bottom Right button, which takes the User into a category headed Why Music (more information on world music)

When a connected spot on the map is selected and music is heard, text and pictures imparting more information about that country and its music automatically appear on one of the monitors if it is set to the Top Left button.

If the User selects Why Music (by impressing the bottom right button), s/he could find out all about world music generally (the earliest recordings of folk music were done on paper in 1903 by Briton Cecil Sharpe and later by Perry Granger on the Edison phonograph recorder; the portable recorder was only available in 1948). This in itself illustrates how technical advances have enabled us to have accessible records of a cultural heritage, and how easy modern technology makes it to disseminate that knowledge. In short, the perfect marriage of science and culture.

The aim of the device is twofold: to provide a cultural and geographic experience/ education regarding musical styles from all over the world, and secondly (in line with Techniquest’s raison d’etre) to illustrate a scientific/technological principle.

In this exhibit, the scientific principle being illustrated is that of transformers and alternating current. (As mentioned earlier, the User can learn about the science by selecting the Why Science button). It is explained that the headphones are connected to a half transformer (or puck). The puck is made up of a coil of wire around a core of silicon steel which can be magnetised and demagnetised. Behind the world map are 63 similar half transformers (as explained, there are only 63 music snippets), each with alternating current flowing in the coils. Each alternating current comes from a recording of music. The User gets the alternating current in the coil and hears the music.

So far, so good but the exhibit, I thought, had several problems which suggested that it had not been entirely thought through. The first problem is who was it aimed at? Techniquest (as staff member Sue Cavell explained to the group) is aimed at young children. In addition to being accessible in terms of content, the exhibits’ designers have to consider the proportions of the human body – as exhibits, of course, also have to be physically accessed (reachable buttons, visible screens, and so on). In terms of dimensions, Techniquest hardware is designed with a 12-year-old in mind, taking that as a median size between child and adult.

But here the World Music exhibit throws up a real problem, as in terms of placement (37cm above the floor, making the map about torso level for an adult) the display seems aimed at children. However, the dimensions across (240 cm) are unrealistic, as a child will not be able to see the monitors unless s/he is standing at the far right or left of the map. (Even I, as a shortish adult, could not see the monitors at all times – therefore missing out on the corresponding information for countries placed centrally on the map).

Another small problem is that the puck measures 5cm across; when placed over the Balkans, for instance, the User could not target one individual country, the puck covered at least six – an area from Italy to Macedonia, in fact. The music of Albania came up while the puck straddled these six countries, which would be confusing for a child. With large countries like Russia and Canada, the problem was the opposite - the musical snippet was not always triggered if the puck was placed within the country’s boundaries, the User had to find a particular spot in the country to trigger the music. Many a User may have moved on without hearing the musical snippet. One therefore feels that the dimensions of the exhibit, and specifically whom it is aimed at, have not been thoroughly thought through.

Is it trying to be a bit of everything for everyone, for instance a child may be satisfied with hearing a musical snippet, while an adult would like to hear the music and read the text? My finding is, having watched public interaction, that not many people were drawn to it. (In fact not even my classmates, until I called one over and tested him on it – at which he was so taken by it, that he decided to make it the subject of his assignment!). A map of the world is not the most exciting thing visually, and the display may attract more children if, for instance, it featured a few ethnic faces/ figures in national dress, to provide a visual hook for passers by. Or possibly a bright, representational (maybe ethnic-art inspired) map would be more attractive. The only time I saw the exhibit being used (in about five hours of observation, as I was there for two visits) was when a mother demonstrated it to her two children. World Music does seem to be rather a ‘Starbucks crowd’ interest (that is metropolitan adults). Is this display aimed at the adults who accompany the children? In that case the dimensions (specifically the height) need to be changed. And it would be improved if the monitors were placed right ahead of the User, not left and right, as they cannot be read from all points of the map.