Marco Loregian

Directional interaction with large displays using mobile phones

In this paper we present a technological approach to support individual and cooperative interactions in collaborative learning environments. We designed and implemented prototype applications that allow to interact with a shared display by means of infrared-enabled mobile phones. The aim is to develop a technique to decouple personal and presentation devices. An experimental evaluation, based on a survey carried out with students from our university, is presented

Undo in workflow management systems

Workflow Management Systems are one of the main technology for supporting Business Processes and they need to be as flexible as possible. One relevant issue arising from integration between WfMSs and corporate Information Systems is that of undo strategies, policies and mechanisms. In this paper the state of the art for the undo problem and the solution adopted in the framework of the MILANO Workflow Management System are presented.

Artificial Societies in a Community-Based Approach to Ambient Intelligence

This paper presents an agent-based approach to the modeling, design and engineering of ambient intelligence systems. The introduced approach balances the management of the complexity related to the enactment of an ambient intelligence scenario between the agents and the structured environment they populate. The dynamics of local actions and interactions of agents situated in this environment originates the overall organized system behaviour. The environment is shaped according to the notion of active coordination artifact, whose seminal definition was given in Computer Supported Cooperative Work literature by Schmidt and Simone and then evolved in other research contexts. A technique to configure and interact with such environments, i.e. the composition of device functionalities according to their high-level features, and services provided, is presented. A scenario is used as an in-depth example, and the architecture of a sample system implementing the same scenario using our reference middleware is discussed.

An adaptive middleware to support context-aware knowledge sharing

Due to the diffusion of ubiquitous computing environments, the need for adaptive applications to effectively support knowledge sharing, and improve context awareness without interfering with habitual work practices has gained importance. This paper presents the design of an application architecture that exploits an ontology-based knowledge management framework and a reflective middleware to support multi-channel applications. The development of the middleware is carried on in parallel with the development of a real application, SWIRLS, that aims to support the work in a hospital setting. SWIRLS is a case study with real technology and organizational problems that involves innovative devices, seamless interaction via different channels and domain-dependent knowledge management issues.

An Experimental Analysis of Undo in Ubiquitous Computing Environments

All personal computer application are provided with an undo functionality, which can implement any of the models available in literature. Users are generally aware of what the undo function is expected to do, depending on the application in use. Ubiquitous computing systems are beginning to be understood and deployed in real life situations, but little attention has been paid to what users expect themselves to be able to do and undo in such systems. In this paper, we present the results of a survey we made to evaluate the perception of undo mechanisms with respect to a simple ubiquitous-computing environment. Our study shows that users already have a complex vision of undo encompassing advanced features such as context awareness and compensation.

Undo for mobile phones: does your mobile phone need an undo key? do you?

The undo function is not accessory, but still it has not been introduced to mobile devices in an appropriate way. Undo is still shaped to fit text editing, and it has changed a little only for graphical editing so far. In this paper, we report the results of a survey with which we investigated why and how to add this functionality to regular mobile phones -- not only to smartphones or high-end handheld devices. Our respondents suggested an undo model that is linear, sequential, with variable granularity (according to the context of use) and requiring confirmation before execution (both to improve awareness and avoid additional mistakes).

From CSCW to new workstations: The itsme project

In the last 30 years, the desktop metaphor has become the standard user interface for workstations, with its pros (e.g., ease of learning) and cons (e.g., interaction constraints for skilled users, lack of context awareness). In this tutorial, we present itsme, an initiative to create the next-generation workstation - especially designed for users who think that what they do holds value. Much of what we present derives from CSCW research, while Interaction Design research shapes the project, as well as the involvement of a wide and heterogeneous community of contributing people. The early design phases of the project led to the definition of a new metaphor for personal computing, called ‘stories and venues’. The metaphor is being adopted for the development of a radically new front-end for the Linux operating system.