Calm technology

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Calm technology or calm design is a type of information technology where the interaction between the technology and its user is designed to occur in the user's periphery rather than constantly at the center of attention. Information from the technology smoothly shifts to the user's attention when needed but otherwise stays calmly in the user's periphery. Mark Weiser and John Seely Brown describe calm technology as "that which informs but doesn't demand our focus or attention." [1]

Contents

The use of calm technology is paired with ubiquitous computing as a way to minimize the perceptible invasiveness of computers in everyday life. [2]

Principles

For a technology to be considered calm technology, there are three core principles it should adhere to:

  1. The user's attention to the technology must reside mainly in the periphery. This means that either the technology can easily shift between the center of attention and the periphery or that much of the information conveyed by the technology is present in the periphery rather than the center.
  2. The technology increases a user's use of his or her periphery. This creates a pleasant user experience by not overburdening the user with information.
  3. The technology relays a sense of familiarity to the user and allows awareness of the user's surroundings in the past, present, and future. [1]

History

The phrase "calm technology" was first published in the article "Designing Calm Technology", written by Mark Weiser and John Seely Brown in 1995. [1] The concept had developed amongst researchers at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center in addition to the concept of ubiquitous computing. [3]

Weiser introduced the concept of calm technology by using the example of LiveWire or "Dangling String". It is an eight-foot (2.4 m) string connected to the mounted small electric motor in the ceiling. The motor is connected to a nearby Ethernet cable. When a bit of information flows through that Ethernet cable, it causes a twitch of the motor. The more the information flows, the motor runs faster, thus creating the string to dangle or whirl depending on how much network traffic is. It has aesthetic appeal; it provides a visualization of network traffic but without being obtrusive. [4]

Implementation and examples

Video conferences are an example of calm technology. Information conveyed such as through gestures and facial expressions can be gathered, as opposed to telephone conferences which do not provide this peripheral information. [5]

Smart homes are an extension of calm technology due to their emphasis on awareness and adaptability to the user's needs. [6]

From 2001 to 2003, the EU funded 17 projects under an initiative called "The Disappearing Computer". The goal of this initiative was to explore new concepts and techniques that would lead to the development of calm technologies for people-friendly environments. [7]

Future research

Due to mobile technology trends towards pervasive computing, ambient intelligence, and miniaturization, calm technology is becoming a more integral part of these devices. [8]

Another development of calm technology is its transformation into unattended technology, where the technology always exists in the periphery and never requires central attention from the user. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

Ubiquitous computing is a concept in software engineering, hardware engineering and computer science where computing is made to appear anytime and everywhere. In contrast to desktop computing, ubiquitous computing can occur using any device, in any location, and in any format. A user interacts with the computer, which can exist in many different forms, including laptop computers, tablets, smart phones and terminals in everyday objects such as a refrigerator or a pair of glasses. The underlying technologies to support ubiquitous computing include Internet, advanced middleware, operating system, mobile code, sensors, microprocessors, new I/O and user interfaces, computer networks, mobile protocols, location and positioning, and new materials.

PARC (company) Research and development company

PARC is a research and development company in Palo Alto, California. Founded in 1969 by Jacob E. "Jack" Goldman, chief scientist of Xerox Corporation, the company was originally a division of Xerox, tasked with creating computer technology-related products and hardware systems.

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Mobile device Small, hand-held computing device

A mobile device is a computer small enough to hold and operate in the hand. Typically, any handheld computer device will have an LCD or OLED flat screen interface, providing a touchscreen interface with digital buttons and keyboard or physical buttons along with a physical keyboard. Many such devices can connect to the Internet and interconnect with other devices such as car entertainment systems or headsets via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular networks or near field communication (NFC). Integrated cameras, the ability to place and receive voice and video telephone calls, video games, and Global Positioning System (GPS) capabilities are common. Power is typically provided by a lithium-ion battery. Mobile devices may run mobile operating systems that allow third-party applications to be installed and run.

Mark Weiser American computer scientist

Mark D. Weiser was a computer scientist and chief technology officer (CTO) at Xerox PARC. Weiser is widely considered to be the father of ubiquitous computing, a term he coined in 1988. Within Silicon Valley, Weiser was broadly viewed as a visionary and computer pioneer, and his ideas have influenced many of the world's leading computer scientists.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Weiser, Mark (December 21, 1995). "Designing Calm Technology" . Retrieved May 23, 2019.
  2. ↑ Tugui, Alexandru (2004). "Calm Technologies In A Multimedia World". ACM Digital Library.
  3. ↑ Weiser, Mark; Gold, Rich and Brown, John Seely (1999). "The origins of ubiquitous computing research at PARC in the late 1980s". IBM Systems Journal.
  4. ↑ Hohl, Michael (2009). "Calm Technologies 2.0: Visualising Social Data as an Experience in Physical Space". Parsons Journal For Information Mapping.
  5. ↑ Tugui, Alexandru (2011). "Calm Technologies: A New Trend for Educational Technologies". World Future Review. [ dead link ]
  6. ↑ Rogers, Yvonne (2006). "Moving on from Weiser's Vision of Calm Computing: Engaging UbiComp Experiences". Microsoft Research.
  7. ↑ European Commission - US National Science Foundation (2004). "The Disappearing Computer". The European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics.
  8. ↑ Fiaidhi, Jinan; Chou, Wes; Williams, Joseph (2010). "Mobile Computing in the Context of Calm Technology". IT Professional Magazine.
  9. ↑ Levin, Vladimir (2008). "Evaluating Unattended Technology, a Subset of Calm Technology". University of Waterloo.
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