FLEXIBILITY

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Illustration

SAiMotion [1] is a flexible application. It is adaptable, adaptive and uses contextual information to present information that is tailored to the user.

Context

…you want to design a MOBILE APPLICATION for handheld devices.

The mobile device this application will run on will mostly be used by a single person and in a special context.

Problem statement

How can a mobile application be designed to fit the user's needs and her task requirements?

Problem description with forces

Mobile devices have special characteristics compared to desktop computers. They are used for different reasons, in special contexts and mostly by a single person.

These different reasons of use require applications to be specially suited to the task users want to perform with the device.

Contextual information can be utilized to further tailor the display and the information presented to users to this task and the needs of the user.

The user herself can also contribute to customize the application. This contribution can either be active by letting her configuring special settings or passive by automatically gaining a user profile through recording her behavior.

So all these characteristics should be used to flexibly adapt the information displayed and the interaction required to meet user requirements and her behavior.

Examples

SAiMotion (see opening picture) combines all elements of flexibility. It can be adapted and individualized by the user using the settings options.

Further on, SAiMotion is an adaptive application. It makes use of user profiles such as expert or novice users and automatically tailors the information displayed on the screen to these profiles. Additionally, the system is context-aware using contextual information such as the user's location, the time or environmental contexts to guide the user through unknown environments and present her suitable information.

Solution

Therefore:

Adapt your mobile application to flexibly meet the user's needs and behavior.

On the one hand, design your application adaptive by letting the system modify its own behavior, at least partly independently of specifications by the user.

However, also design the system adaptable by letting the user modify aspects of the system to suit her personal preferences.

If possible, also try to make your mobile application context-aware by providing additional means (such as sensors) that allow adapting the system to the context in which it is used.

Diagram

References

How to design your system adaptable and customizable is described in USER CUSTOMIZATION.

To make the system adapt to users and their behavior, use the pattern ADAPTATION.

One aspect of adaptation is to make the system adapt to the context in which it is used. Therefore make your application context-aware - CONTEXT-AWARENESS.

Literature and Links

1. SAiMotion – Situation Awareness in Motion (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung BMBF, Funding-Key 01AK900A); http://www.saimotion.de </OL>