Contextual Inquiry

A mirror, a table, and a box An unexpected system of everyday objects This document details the study of a system of three objects to support the process of applying and examining makeup.

Key points: furniture, furniture system, context aware computing, content aware, things tracking, prediction, internet of things

This document was created by Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li.

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

1

Context and participants Setting and demographics

We moved back into the home space for this inquiry. We aimed to discover creative uses of objects within the subjects living space.

The subject is planning to live in Bloomington for two years. Prior to living in Bloomington she lived in Minnesota for half a year. The subject lives with two roommates in a three bedroom apartment in the Woodbridge neighborhood.

The space was sparsely furnished or decorated. This was in part due to the temporal nature of her stay in Bloomington and in part due to the relationship between roommates. Of note were rules posted in the kitchen indicating that the roomates valued organization.

Subject International student from Malaysia First year graduate in Education School Lives with two roommates in a three bedroom apartment off campus Contextual inquiry info First session-Thur, Feb 6 2014 From 20:12 to 20:59 This session consisted of an interview of the user on creative design usage and a tour of the lower level of the apartment (kitchen and living room).

Second session-Sun, Feb 9 2014 From 16:00 to 16:27 This session consisted of an observation of the subject. using ‘box chair’ to apply makeup.

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

2

Analysis Tools The tools identified in this inquiry were a mirror (1), desk chair box (2), and a coffee table (3). In this context, the three were used to support the process of putting on make up. We are interested in the use of the box as a seat.

Our subject explained that the use of this box derived from the purchase of the mirror she uses to put her makeup on. The mirror is a tall dressing mirror.

Furthermore, she purchased the table prior to using the box as a seat. This table was intended to be primarily used as a nightstand to hold books, an alarm clock and her cell phone. The decision to use the box as a seat was made after the purchase of both the mirror and table.

2.

3.

1.

The box contained the desk chair she uses at her desk. The subject noted that she has been using it for about a year.

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

[1]

3

Mental Model The subject owned a common dressing table when she lived in her own house in Malaysia. However, when she moved out for work and study, she began to consider the removal and reselling of her furniture.

This is due to the temporary nature of her stay in the last few places she has lived.

The subject first bought a dressing mirror and (due to the price and space of the dressing table mirror/dresser) she intended to use the dressing mirror as the makeup table mirror. This influenced her decision in selecting a short table to use as her makeup table. Because of the height of the table, the subject claims that it was really difficult to find a chair that suits the table except some smaller chairs meant for children. Then by accident she found that the box for her desk chair matched the table height well. The subject began to use the box as a seating tool.

Also, through long-term usage, the box

was reshaped by external force and generated a warped surface that fits the bottom of the subject. This curved surface has customized the box and makes it easier to move back and forth or lean.We moved back into the home space for this inquiry. We aimed to discover creative uses of objects within the subjects living space.

Methods The subject started by removing the box from beneath the table. She placed it in front of the mirror and sat down. The mirror was placed directly to the left of the table along the same wall. From this position she is about 12-18 inches from the mirror. The subject began applying makeup. At one point while curling her eyelashes, she leaned forward (such that the box pivoted on one of its bottom edges) to get closer to the mirror. The makeup was laced at the side of the table nearest to the mirror.

Once finished applying make up, the subject stated that she would then

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

4

change clothes and return to replace the box beneath the table. The makeup objects were left in the place the subject set them during the process.

When there was not enough light, the subject noted that she turned on the lamp nearest her mirror/table setup.

Terminology The language used to describe the tasks can be considered conversational.

There was no indication that the subject attempted to simplify the names of the tools or any part of the process. The activity we observed the subject doing was familiar and did not require special explanation.

Goals The subject’s goal is to use a table traditionally found elsewhere in the home as a surface to store and use her skin care products and makeup. Her initial use for the mirror was as intended (tall dressing mirror), however she extended that use

to applying and checking her make up.

The reason why the subject chose a dressing mirror is that she will only stay in this location for a couple years and she doesn’t want to spend money on buying a dresser and does not want to think about removing and reselling the furniture when she needs to move. In this case, she bought a short table and transformed a packaging box into a chair matching with the usage of the mirror.

Another subgoal for this activity is to change the distance between her face and the mirror to check the make up. The box is light and to some extent is smooth enough to be moved back and forth or pivoted on edge in order to adjust the distance between the subject and the mirror. In our observation, we noticed the subject do both. An advantage of the cardboard box is that its shape is easy to be changed by external force. This partly meets the demands of the subject and reduces the uncomfortable feeling through long-term usage.

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

5

Values According to what we have explored about the subject’s background (an international student coming for 2 years graduate study) we think that she cares more about the utility of the furniture and the short-term usage of the things she owns. There were multiple other indications that the subject did not care to invest in objects that would be more difficult to get rid of when she intended to move (e.g. fold up desk, cardboard boxes as storage, etc.).

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

6

Future implications For the Internet of Things

1. As we noticed that during the observation of the subject applying makeup, one important step is to check the effect of the make up. Under this situation, the subject would move back and forth to adjust the distance to focus on either details or more complete view of her face. Future designs can take note from this action. Specifically, future systems would need to be aware of the user’s body in relation to the object and what action the user is undertaking.

Suppose the design of the mirror surface acts like a kind of screen which can be zoomed in and out easily. The screen can automatically identify the users’ hands/ fingers. When the users touched one part on their face (e.g. brushing eyelash) the screen will zoom in and focus on the eye that the user is working on. When the user put down her hands, the screen will automatically identify that the hands have left from the face so that it zooms out for the user to check the whole effect.

Key points: customizability, context aware, embedded tech in everyday devices 2. Another point we noticed when observing this subject is that she will have to turn on the light when she’s applying makeup and it is dark in the room. Obviously, the different light levels will enormously affect the makeup as well as makeup choices and different style decisions. This case brings out the potential for future systems to predict lighting conditions and display to the user the result of their makeup in these different lighting conditions. As with the first implication, this would be embedded Key points: context of use, light levels, prediction 3. While observing the subject’s activity, we found that she put her skin care products on the table and makeup all in a cloth box. All of these objects are hidden away or are obscured by each other in this space. At a glance, it is difficult to

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

7

determine what products are running low.

Future systems should consider tracking user’s things and properly notifying them when they are low or even ordering replacements. Existing designs like office printers have these features (i.e. ordering toner when low).

Key points: content aware, things tracking

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

8

Citations [1] Photo: (Taken with permission) Tianjie Li taken 2/9/2014 Bloomington, IN

Jeffrey Gadzala and Tianjie Li | Creative Uses of Everyday Things | Methods 2014

9