I rant, I rave, I conquer.

Probe Package:  Results Analysis [Before]

15  sample size
Students/Working adults

Before

How the strap is used.

The one-day only handphone strap which tracks people’s daily usage of handphone’s fuctions.
We have used the idea as in, if one were to receive a message, and he/she messaged back (the urge to reply), he/she would need to paste a sticker on to the strap.

*People tend to start off their first function with checking Time or Messaging.

In descending order, the highest number of time a function has been used (per person),

1. Message
2. Phone
3. Time
4. Camera
5. Games/Music

Messaging system is being used as a tool of communication more instead of phone calls.

Reasons:

-          It’s easier to organize thoughts and then message out when needing to convey a message, one could actually think before conveying.

-           Lesser cost for usage.

-          It’s like leaving a note so that people could reply, moreover, people often check their phones so that the message would have a higher probability to be received.

Time

Reasons:

-          Phone, being a all-in-one device, could check time. Saves the hassle of wearing a watch when a phone could do the job.

Name five items you bring along with you in your daily life. The three most important things that people carry in their bags is:

Most people named the three most important things as

1. Handphone
2. Wallet
3. Keys

We noticed that some people also brought out MP3s and Water Bottle as necessary items to bring out of home.

It shows that people actually felt handphone, in priority, that stands together with wallet or keys. Wallet and keys are important because wallet contains all the personal particulars and cash, and keys is needed to enter the house.

However, with people relating handphone to importance, perhaps it’s the information obtained via phone, that actually made them felt important.

EDIT: Will update “AFTER” results when collated.

Why are people so attached to technological devices? Why are they so afraid of losing them?

• A study conducted by Pointsec Mobile Technologies, a mobile-data protection software company in Chicago, tracked items left behind in taxis in eight other countries. One cab company in Chicago had the highest numbers: In the final six months of 2004, it found, in its 113 taxis, 387 mobile phones, 97 PDAs and Pocket PCs and 20 laptops.
  
• Extrapolating from those numbers, Pointsec calculated that 85,600 mobile phones, 21,500 PDAs/Pocket PCs, and 4,425 laptops disappeared into Chicago’s 25,000 cabs in those six months.
• 99% of cell phone owners do not back up the data on their phones. When your cell phone is lost or stolen, that precious information is gone. – The Wall Street Journal, May 2003.
• FOX News WFLD in Chicago did a news piece where they purposely lost 2 cell phones and got them back within 3 hours. http://www.trackitback.com/media/fox-chicago.wmv, November 2005
• Three-quarters of the more than 8,000 respondents polled online in 11 countries said they take their phone with them everywhere, with Russians and Singaporeans the most attached.More than a third also said they couldn’t live without their phone, topped by Taiwanese and again Singaporeans, while one in four would find it harder to replace the mobile than their purse.
  http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/4975208.cms

   

There are actually several factors pertaining as to the reason why people are afraid of losing their technological devices, such as handphone or music players.

Information -
Calling mobile phones the “remote control” for life

All the information in their technological devices are gone. With the simple act of losing something, everything is gone.

Such as their mobile contacts, important documents stored in PDAs, personal information, and people would often find themselves helpless to get back all their personal data and they would often live with the fact that they lost their data.

Security -
“Mobiles give us safety, security and instant access to information. They are the number one tool of communication for us, sometimes even surpassing face-to-face communication. They are our connections to our lives.” – Jenny Chang, Synovate’s managing director

People go to bed with their phones nearby and can’t switch them off, even though they want to, because they’re afraid they’ll miss something from their friends, or emergency calls from families.

Therefore, having their cell phones switched on in bed gives them the feeling of security, as in at least they will be notified if something happens.

Thus, people are actually afraid of losing their cell phones because it gives them a sense of security.

Similarly, people often have the feeling that if they were not able to check their emails on time, they would actually have this sense of insecurity of lacking notification from others.

Connection -
Technological devices are like connections to the outside world.

People felt that technological devices have become their connections to the outside world, because it enables them to know what’s happening around them. Such connections are like radio broadcasting stations, or even to the point of twitter, facebook and emails.

Reliance -
Technological devices is equivalent to a NEED instead of a WANT.

More and more people felt that they would NEED to have technological devices due to reliance on technology. From smallest thing such as a music player, PSP, NDS to kill time while on train, to actual useful products such as handphone for communication.

People are actually starting to view such devices as a NEED instead of a WANT.

http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2009/09/05/2009-09-05_boy_we_like_to_blabber_people_would_rather_lose_wallet_than_cellphone.html

http://www.prleap.com/pr/52253/

http://www.youngmoney.com/tech_trends/030417_02_1181/

Sorry for the late update for this research! Took me quite a while to collate my stuffs.

1) What is Interaction Design?

Interaction design is the art of facilitating interactions between humans through products and services. It is also the interaction between services or products that held some intelligence, such as being able to respond on interaction. Interaction design also encompasses usability into how we interact with products and is often free and easy to use for consumers.

2) What are some examples of Interaction Design?

There are two type of interaction available, one is virtual interaction, and another one is real-life interaction.

3) What is technology?

Technology is the concept of using knowledge, applying them and then produce a product which enables progression.  Technology can refer to material objects, such as machines.
E.g. Coffee Maker, Keyboard, Laptop.

However, there are also non-material products such as systems, method of organizations and techniques.
E.g. Internet

What do I desire?

More time!!!
Less work……

I WISH THAT WE COULD HAVE 48HOURS A DAY!

THAT IS MY GREATEST DESIREEEEE!

Work still can cope.