Introducing distributed networks to designers

Abstract

Available connectivity in everyday objects has inspired design experts to develop methodologies for designing interactive environments - large-scale environments existing out of multiple embedded devices that interact with a user as if to be a single entity. The computer science community uses ad hoc distributed networks to accommodate scaling complexities. Distributed networks use global-to-local programming to describe complex global behavior of an interactive environment using simple local rules for each embedded device. The resulting emergent quality to these behaviors is similar to the behavior seen in birds in a flock. This thesis uses a multi-disciplinary approach to design and develop an educational software. This software tool introduces the interactive qualities in programming distributed networks to designers, assuming this enables their ability to design interactions for the increasingly large interactive networks. A methodology to measure the effect of methods and tools in the education of designers is designed to evaluate the tool’s educational effect. Quantitative results suggest that the tool both enhances the designer’s understanding of the interactive qualities in programming a distributed network as well as their ability to apply these qualities in their interaction designs. Qualitative results show that while designers remain to have trouble motivating the design for this alternative network topology, they are inspired and excited for further introductions.