thesis midterm032610
TRANSCRIPT
donutholes
Katherine Lee Midterm Mania March 26, 2009
small things that fill little voids
More Customizability
• Shoes • Cars • Electronics
Thesis Concept
An effective customization tool must empower the user to make something they personally
connect with.
Customization that incorporates some element of the user’s feelings or persona fosters a
sense of ownership.
Proposition
A web-based customization tool that allows users to design plush creatures or soft objects using…
– A selection of base body shapes – Facial features like eyes, mouths – Appendages like legs, arms, tails, etc. – Skins from existing color/print selection & from custom uploads (custom digital printing)
Why I Am Doing This
• There is currently nothing like this – Closest things = Build-a-Bear Workshop (shudder) and super-expensive monster kit
• People feel an affinity for soft, plush things – they’re comforting and can assume many identities
– they can have a personal value separate from your public persona
Design Questions
• Why do people customize things? • Who customizes things? • What kinds of things do people customize? • What makes a customization tool fulfilling or satisfying to use?
• What makes people like what they’ve made? • What gives people a sense of ownership over something they’ve customized?
Make My Own Monster
Dunkin Donuts Make Your Own Donut
Marvel Create Your Own Super Hero
Spore Creature Creator
Why People Customize Stuff
• to make things they care about or are proud of
• to make something that reflects something about themselves
• to feel rich • to have something unique • because it’s fun
Goal: to design a joyful interactive experience in which everything the user chooses to do feels like the
right thing to do
Target Users
• Designer toy enthusiasts
• Kids • People who give really personalized gifts
Prototype Testing
Considerations
• Make it easy to “try things on” • Making the creation process less structured
• More options for everything to enable more personalities – More flair – Ears and noses – Themes?
• Color
For Symposium
• Demo of customization tool • 5 examples of objects created with tool • Project vision
Schedule
Week of: March 21 – create forms and MCs for all forms in Flash
March 28 – make more forms, concept testing + program selection tool
April 4 – program selection tool, visualization tool
April 11 – scale/rotation + QA testing April 18 – QA testing, fine-tune site, make more demo products
April 26 – QA for site + Symposium
Life After Symposium
• Online customization tool • Ability to order your creation and have it made and sent to you
• Interactive environment for the community of user creations
• Crowdsource to make the most popular creations available
Thanks!