THE Museum: The
OPOLI N METR A New Social TA Experience MUSEUM OF
A RT
Incorporating Design and Technology into the Museum Experience: The New Audio Guides Theodore Allegrini, Justin Besson, Nayana Malhotra, Miri Meischberger, and Chia Schmitz Design At The Edge Spring 2010
The Question: How can we improve the museum experience by enhancing the information technology currently used at museums?
To fully understand how information technology was used at museums... we immersed ourselves within the museum experience, and gained first-hand knowledge of the systems that were currently in place. We sent two teams out, one to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and another to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met). In the following pages are the insights we uncovered and our solutions to the problems we encountered along the way...
The Research:
Tag-Alongs/ Participant Obser vation, Videos, Photos, Interactions , Extreme User s & Interviews
Our research ranged from approaching the consumer directly, to quietly observing from a distance... We began by asking them pointed questions about their use of the audio guides, we asked them how they felt they might be better improved, in their opinion. And most of them were only too happy to tell us their positive or negative experiences. We garnered much insight from observing “extreme� users, such as users who were hearing impaired, and foriegners who did not speak english. We took photos and watched as tourists, locals, and students interacted with the museum, some for the first time, and some for whom their weekly museum visit was a part of their lives. Sometimes people would look confused and frustrated, and we stood in the background, trying to understand their confusion or frustration, no matter how fleeting that emotion may have been. These fleeting moments were clues to a bigger picture of the museum and how people interacted with it on a daily basis. We used this research that we gathered to focus on areas within the museum that would benefit the most from information technology. What kind of technology would benefit museum goers the most? What could make their musuem experience more of a learning experience and continue to be an absorbing experience?
Information points were not synchronised to allow for a seamless experience.
Through our research we discovered...
that the information points, such as the plaques, were prone to overcrowding especially around special exhibitions or famous works of art. This made it difficult for people with the audio guides to read the number on the plaque, nor were they able to read the tiny print on it. Patrons of the museum tended to lean into the plaque to get a closer look, and on average, only three people are able to read the plaque comfortably at any one time. Once the interested parties reached the plaque however, some seemed discouraged that that piece did not have an audio file associated with it, or, in most cases, no description besides the title, artist and date. Other information pertaining to the special exhibitons were either confined to posters or brochures at the entrance to the museum or exhibition, and information could be difficult to locate while navigating the museum.
Current audio guides are complicated to use and require excessive instructions for simple tasks. 1
Required instructional manuals.
2 Did not use intuitive symbols or visual cues. 3 Not being utiliz ed for special exhibitions and had limited usability for foreign speakers ( prime users ).
The current audio guides had problems of their own...
when it came to ease of use. As a self-sufficient guide that is supposed to allow its user access the information, it was unable to perform. The audio guide comes with a printed sheet of instructions, which are comprised of text-only, step-by-step instructions which are not intuitive or helpful past getting the guide started. Of course, once you misplace this information pamphlet, it becomes completely useless altogether. The audio guide itself uses a simple numerical keypad with separate buttons to play, stop, fast forward, rewind, and buttons to increase and decrease the volume. As designed objects go, the number of buttons on the audio guide not only made the use of the device more complicated, it also did not provide any sort of connection to the piece other than playing a pre-recorded text. We often found users squinting and grimacing at the device in frustation. When it came to the “universal� characteristic, even this fell short when a consumer was faced with programming the device to a different language. The user was faced with a complicated array of directions to guide them to the language of their choice. Once the user was on this particular setting there were limited amounts of information in that language. The foreign audio guides were also not provided for some special exhibitions, where it would have been extremely beneficial to visitors who might be unfamiliar with the artist’s work.
We observed a disconnect between user’s audio and visual experience. 1 People were not reaping the full potential of the audio guides due to confusion or boredom. 2 Many abandoned audio guides because it was burdensome to use.
As we went through the museums during our research...
patterns began to emerge as we watched users interact with their audio guides. As the users ventured further into the museum, the users began abandoning their audio guides. We found that most users would abandon their audio guides for their own personal music devices or to pick up a call on their cell phone. We asked a couple who did not seem to be using their audio guides, “why had they abandoned their guides?” the gentleman then stated that they enjoyed absorbing the art as it was, without the “sensory overload”of the audio guide. Others complained that it was a bother to use, and found the information to be long-winded and confusing. There was no way for the user to customize the information to their own interests. Some complained that the audio was too fast, or too slow, and some said they found it difficult to hear even with the volume at its maximum setting. In walking around the museum ourselves, we found that keeping the headphones on kept the listener isolated, unable to interact or react to an interesting comment by a friend. Often we found listeners with one side of their headphones pushed off their ear to better communicate with their partner.
The current audio guide is not adaptable to individual needs.
An audio guide, a cell phone, a camera, a pad of paper, a portable music player....
Some patrons had all of these, some had a combination of these objects, and others used them in tandem. While taking a picture on their camera, they jotted notes on their notepad, and listened to the audio guide, and then took out their cell phone and sent a text. There were the students who needed to take notes, there were the children who seemed bored after 10 seconds, and there were the tourists who wanted to document all the famous artwork that they saw up close. All of these users used the audio guides for different purposes, whether it was to learn something new, conduct research on a certain artwork, or drown out the surrounding noise of a busy museum. The majority of the audio guide users had their own tools to document their museum experience, which gives us an insight into what the future audio guide might strive to be.
The Problems:
Isolative Unintuitive Bulky Not Integrative Not Flexible Archaic Unengaging
After conducting research the core problems that seemed central to creating a solution were: 1. The audio guides at the Metropolitan and the MoMA were isolative and did not allow for formal interactions amongst patrons. Instead, when using the audio guides provided by either museum, patrons felt removed from the experience, the art and others. 2. Using the guides was also challenging for many and often lacked a decent level of user-friendliness. The guides where unintuitive and required the user to use a manual of instructions and to learn a new interface in a short manner of time. 3. Weight and style and of the audio guides were cumbersome and bulky. Designed to be held or hung around the neck patrons seemed agitated by its size and poor ergonomics. 4. While the museums often had excellent websites and other rich resources the audio guides did not integrate with other platforms to maximize it usability. In an attempt to be universal they were not flexible to reach the needs of certain user groups such as children, the elderly or foreigners. 5. Out of date and using old technology the audio guides where archaic and most similar to a cell phone in its early conception. It was not an effective technology. 6. Lastly, due to the assimilation of these problems and others, the audio guide did not provide an engaging interface that invited the user and often were abandoned.
The Inspiration:
To achieve the best interface that would be easy to use and learn while at the museum we looked to other successful interfaces and platforms to find inspiration: 1. Flickr has a fantastic cataloging system for images that has excellent visual cues and is easy to search through. It also incorporates a “tagging” system that is easy to understand and allow users to tag certain aspects of a picture and leave a detailed comment. 2. Wikipedia is an essential phenomenon that has made information sharing and editing simple and constructive. Looking at their iPhone application, we focused on how they summarized their content and broken down their information into expandable subsections that were easy to navigate. 3. Facebook’s powerful community and networking abilities were essential in providing a platform that would deliver the same level of inter-connectiveness.You could have friends; include yourself in groups; and “like” other activities on their platform. 4. Del.i.cious provides a flexible platform that allows users to save personal bookmarks, website pages, articles and other media to a unique database based on tagging. It keeps all this information on behalf of its user almost like a personal catalog of favorites and allows them to share it on their blogs and with others. 5. Twitter’s instant status updates seemed perfect to create hype and immediately share experiences. It allowed others to see and share experiences, progress and opinions.
The Solution:
Intuitive
Informative
Visual
Flexible
To have a successful solution we focused on four components we believed most essential. The new technology and audio guide had to be more intuitive, more informative, have visual cues and be visually engaging and flexible to the different needs of the user. Intuitive The guides were challenging to use because they lacked an intuitive interface that was easy to use. Many foreigners struggled to understand the interface and often had problems with selecting the appropriate language and following the guides in a museum that was dominantly equipped with English signs. The guides had to be so simple that they instant made sense to either a child or someone who did not speak English. Informative Information was limited on the audio guides and usually was a summation of the piece or artist. They often did not go hand in hand with the plaques or other literature. We wanted to include more information that could be accessible if the patron was interested. Our research showed that patrons often did their own museum investigation using Wikipedia and the web and were their own self-educators. If they wanted more information, they should have it. Visual They guide should be a guide- giving help and leading the patrons much like a real life guide would. We needed to include more visual cues directly on the audio guide so that patrons new where to look, when to look and how to look. The symbols needed to speak for themselves and the audio complemented by pictures and other media. Flexible Each patron wanted a different experience and brought different tools to the museum. We wanted to consolidate those tools into a cohesive platform. Users often wanted to due some fine-tuning to their instruments and need different features. It needed to be a great platform for a photographer, a blogger, a researcher or your grandmother.
Our Solution:
Intuitive:
The guide structure allows for easy navigation and clear understanding no matter what language you speak.
One of the most important changes we wanted to create was the intuitiveness of the interface: 1. We created icons and other design elements to help overcome the lack of user-friendliness that was present in the current audio guides 2. A common problem was the selection of the appropriate language, which we solved with the creation of an easy-to-use selection wheel that is comprehensive and clear no matter what language the user speaks 3. It was important to create an overall comprehensiveness for users of all ages. Therefore we focused on a simple and intuitive guide structure that aids easy navigation.
Informative:
The guide provides the user with a comprehensive variety of information.
Another very important feature was the extensive availability of information represented in an organized way: 1. Instead of having information being limited to a summary, we give the user the opportunity to interact with a broad variety of information that aids self-educators 2. Through a readable and an informational sound component the interface creates a connection between the audio and visual component 3. Well structured easy-to-use drop down menus invite the user to gain more knowledge about the art 4. A simple search option helps the patron to pinpoint desired information without a long search process 5. An augmented reality map connects the information provided with the physical appearance of the museum and helps the user to seamlessly navigate through the museum
Visual: The guide provides visual cues that the user can interact with directly.
Back
Information
Search
Favorites
Back
InformationS
earch
Favorites
An important change to the existing audio guides is the feature of visuals – creating an interface that touches upon different senses: 1. The addition of user-friendly visual cues enhance the museum experience and create another level of individuality to the navigation 2. The interface is constructed in a way that gives the user the opportunity to see all the artworks in the room of current location. Those are presented through pictures that magnify as patron gets closer 3. An easy search menu helps the patrons to exactly find what they are looking for 4. A representation of the artwork in the application presents details and points of additional information 5. A favorite button helps to create a list of artworks the user likes the most
Flexible:
The guide allows users to create their own experience.
With the new audio guide the museum patron is able to curate their own experience based on their needs and interests. 1. Through the “Themed Tours” menu a user can choose from an existing body of tours that the museum has curated, tours such as “The History of Armor” or “The Mode of Dress 1750-1830.” 2. Through the “My Tours” menu, patrons can customize their tours to feature famous works of art they are interested in or a certain genre of painting. This can be done prior to the museum visit and the patron can choose from the museum’s archive. This also extends itself to the classroom where educators will be able to program a tour customized to the artwork that is assigned. They will be able to add commentary and curate an audio tour that fits the needs of the class. 3. The “Favorites” menu allows the museum patron to catalogue their own favorite works by clicking on the “Add Favorites” button on the “Art Work Image” screen.
Future Developements: ments Syncing to other devices creating community. Connectivity to other platforms creating a network database.
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The possibilities for this type of application are endless. Some future developments include... 1. Synching multiple devices so that all members of a group can tune into one unified tour while not disturbing the rest of the patrons with a verbal one. 2. Connecting to other platforms such as blogs and social networking sites to create a community and a dialogue amongst other museum goers. 3. Sponsored tours allow companies to associate themselves with and support the arts thus providing revenue for both the museum and the sponsor that can go into further enhancing and promoting art as a significant cultural resource. This application will usher in a new generation of museum goers and radically change the way we will view art and share our experiences with it. It can extend itself to a particular device that museums can distribute to make it possible for every visitor to engage in the unique experience that the museum has to offer.