Meet - Interface workshop

Intro

Interfaces are an integral part of our reality. Every day we interact with a variety of interfaces, often without being aware of it every time. Emotions arise, but do these emotions arise from the moment, or were they pre-programmed from the beginning? How much emotion can be consciously implemented in the design process and where are the limits of this practice? Over a long period of time we develop a relationship with these user interfaces, but what is the nature of this relationship and how can it be planned for in the design process? Can an interface have human features and are the relationships we build similar to interpersonal relationships?

With this workshop we want to bring these questions to the surface by using improvisational theatre techniques to develop human characters with emotions and traits out of interfaces and then meet in play to learn about each other.

We are going to embody interfaces. By humanizing the interface we confront the emotional side of our interaction with it and the intent that is behind it. We don't expect you to cancel yourself in this exercise, it will be interesting to see how the interface can show through our own characters.

This should empower us to think about interfaces in a different way in the future, beyond the industry standards of user interface design, when we interact with them. It will hopefully also empower us to question decisions in the design process of others but also of ourselves. The most important thing in this approach is to have fun, to have a detailed exchange of experiences, of what we take with us and what we might perceive or implement differently in the future.

Timetable

DEFINITE TIMETABLE:

• Improv warm up 1 (5-10 min) - Walk & Stop (read the room)

• Introduction (20 min total)

Brainstorm on the whiteboard: What is an interface? What defines an interface? Collective recap of UX / UI design process (What are elements of an interface? What is the process of designing an interface?) The process of product design involves a lot of user research. We take into account human behaviour and we “use” it. Each product, when designed well, has a certain feeling, vibe. It was designed for you to feel that way. Graphical elements are designed with certain colors, shapes and sizes to activate us and to set the tone of the interface. All of these create the feeling that an interface has a personality, and that is what we want to address today. Define framework for the experiment

• Improve warm up 2 (5-10 min) Count to 21 (relax. feel the room)

• Exercise introduction (10 min total)

explanation about the exercise- each gets an interface and needs to build a character + presentation of the zine and explanation- why are we doing this, how to fill it out (highlight most important ones?) (5 min) interface lottery- participants (5 min)

• Improv warm up 3 (5-10 min) Machine (interact / improvise together as a group)

• The zine (25min)

fill in the zine (15min)

First feedback- How was it to fill the form? what were you evaluating and how did you translate it to traits (10 min)? Importance of being comfortable, openly speaking about if you are not, being able to opt out if necessary

<<<15 min break>>>max and avital organize chairs for speed dating

• Improv warm up 4 (5-10 min) Swish, Bang, Pow! (Build up energy and dare to interact)

• The exercise (50 min total)

Speed Dating (30 min)

2 rows of chair facing each other so you are facing a character. The couple have a chat for 5 mins and need to get to know each other. while they talk they can write notes about each other. After 5 mins we switch the couples.

Guiding questions:
What are you passionate about?
Is there anything you will change about yourself?
What do you like doing on the weekends?
What are you most proud about?
What do you think is the most important value in a relationship?
What makes you laugh? What makes you cry?
If you have friends coming over what would you cook?
What are your main strengths? and weaknesses?
What does it mean to live a good life for you?
where do you see yourself in 5 years?

<<<15 min break>>>

• Feedback + interfaces review (20 min) -

we go one by one. The group can comment about their interaction with the character that we are now talking about and try to guess what kind of interface they are and even which one. After we finish the round we talk about the exercise: how was it to embody these characters? What were the most prevalent traits you noticed? what did you think about the exercise? what will you take from it? how was it to think about interfaces in human terms and how can you apply this in the future?

<<<10 min break>>>

• Research questions (15 min)

We explain how the workshop links to our personal research and MA_concept (very quick outline for our project) Talk about exclusion, the feeling of exclusion, experiences of exclusion online OR hand out survey to fill in (15 mins max)

Conclusions

• The personal approach for the website really affect the way you personify it
• There is the way that the interface design and there is what the interface does. Sometimes the interface is more boring then what it does
• Many people thought about the people who made the website while creating the character
• Struggled with separating her own personal opinion, it was interesting to think of what was behind the interface
• First didn’t like the website and during the filling of the website her mind change a bit, mostly in the drawing stage
• All characters were given a male name, even by women