Digital Media Interface

Digital Media Interface November 11, 2008

Posted by sm1001 in class.
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I try to divide the interactive digital media interface into two types:

Tangible
Intangible

Interaction – Interface

In between this the interaction, no matter human-human or human-computer interaction, we need a medium in between to connect both parties together and having the interactive relationship.

MEDIUM that we are talking is Interface.

Last week we have gone through a lot of the examples, both tangible and intangible.

But what is a good Interface? And how a good Interface design related the interaction?

Good interface design can enhance the interaction between the computer and human, think about the following issues:

Immediacy (feedback, response)
Learning Curve (ease to use)
Extension ability (collective?)

Immediacy
Some time the audience give up trying to interact with an interactive digital media. For example you might not want to stay in a web site that need to wait for the feedback even after only a single mouse click. (especially those stupid animation transition effects).

We are not saying the interface should provide a very straight forward feedback to the audience/user, but giving the immediate feedback to the audience’s action. At least, the audience/user know he/she still on the track, the system is responsing the action. That’s why we have loading bar. Because we know it may take sometimes to load everythings, we tell our audience “yes we are processing your request” IMMEDIATELY.

Pong Mechanik

The Art and Science of Baby Names
http://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager

Learning Curve
Sometimes an interesting interaction, especially those with intangible interface, may enhance the interaction process and giving the audience/user a memorable interaction process. But the interface (interaction method) may be new for the audience or the user, they may need sometimes to learn how to interact with.

Remember the Uniqulo Grid? That is playing the gesture. You need to learn how to control it.

That’s why we have menu to teach our audience/user to control the interface. But we all hate reading menu. Especailly in the exhibition, it is so stupid to let the audience standing for 5 mins to read the instruction and use another 10 mins to learn how to play. I probably will give up and skip this work.

Familiar interface control sometimes work. For example if you see a pen, you ASSOCIATE that you can pick up the pen and draw something.

Dune 4.0 , Daan Roosegaarde

Mario by Hand

Shadow Monster, Philip Worthington
http://www.worthersoriginal.com/viki/#page=shadowmonsters

levelHead, Julian Oliver

Royal Appointment, Moritz Waldemeyer

Extension Ability
Digital Media has a very amazing ability that is the life cycle. It may becomes totally different piece but with all the system behind is the same.

A good interface design can even seperately and becoming the interface of another application/game/work/etc.

Reactable