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Computer’s Workspace – users’ views on working in graphical interfaces

Thorleif Alpberg Copyright © 2006

Cover illustration: Lynn Måbrink

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Introduction

Wearespendingmoreandmore timeworking ingraphicaluser interfaces.Manypeopleworkdaily inacomputerenvironment,andmanyspendmoretimeinthisdigitalactivityroomthanwiththeircolleges.Workingwithacomputercanbeexpressedsimplyashandlingspecificsoft-warewithitsicons,menusandtoolpallets.Amorecompoundand,tomywayofthinking,moreprecise picture, is that thework is takingplace in graphical planes or rooms imaginedby theindividualandfeaturedinthegraphicaluserinterface.Thesecomputerenvironmentsco-operateorworkwithothersoftwareandinterfaces,andwiththephysicalroom.Inthisarticlethetopicishowcomputersoftwareisexperiencedasaworkplace.ThecontentisbasedonamasterstudyinEducationalScienceatTheUniversityofStockholm,Sweden.Thisstudyisaboutwhattheuserregardsasspecificforworkingwithinagraphicalinterface.

• Howdoestheinterfaceappeartotheuser?• Inwhatwaydoesthecomputerenvironmentco-operatewiththephysicalsurroundings?

Thepurposeofthisarticleis,onthebasisofsomepersons'statementsandexperiences,toelucidatesomeaspectsofhowpeopleuseandshapetheircomputerworkenvironmentandhowthisenviron-mentco-operateswiththeirphysicaloffices.Howpeopleactsinthesedigitallandscapesandwhichconsequencesthecomputerworkcanhavefortheexperienceofworkqualityandcomfort.

The graphical user interface – the function of the form

Thisarticlefocusesonwhatsomecomputerusersmeetintheirdailywork:thepresentationofthecomputerprograms’functionsandpossibilitiesinagraphicalinterface.

A social constructionist view

Thestudyisbasedonaconstructivistviewontheuserinrelationtohertoolsandherculture.Theusercreatesherownknowledgeindialogueandinteractionwithaculturalandsocialcontext(Berger&Luckmann,�966;Waldenström,200�).

Theoretical background

Interactivity

Inestablishedjargonthewordinteractionisusedwhenacomputerprogrampermitstheusertochoosewithinasetofgivenpossibilities.Softwarecanoffertheusertoolstocreateforexamplepicturesorsoundsinaninfinitenumberofpossibilities.Thisallowsahighdegreeofintentionalityandusercontrol,ahighdynamiclevel,butwhoareinteracting?Whodoyoumeetinagraphicalinterface?Theperspectivemeansthatpeopleareseentobeindialoguewitharesponsivecomputerinordertocarryoutvarioustasks.Theusercancarryoutalotofcomplicatedthingsbeyondtheprogramdesigner’scontrol,butwithoutrealinteraction.Theuserdoesnotinteractwithaclosedcomputersysteminaunit,butwiththecomplexworldsthatarerepresentedinthecomputer.Theuserisactinginacreatedcontext.

Convergence

ManuelCastells(200�)representsthosewhodescribehowtheuseofhomecomputersnotonlyerasesthebordersbetweentimeandroom,butalsodissolvesthebordersbetweenworkandsparetime.Convergencecanoccurinmanydifferentsituationsandmeanings.Inaconstructionistper-

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spectivetheusercreatesherownconvergenceintheactivegatheringofthepossibilitiesshewantstouseinthecomputer’sdigitalenvironment.Sheselectsanddeselectstools.Sheconstructscombi-nationsoftoolsandcommunicationpossibilitiesafterherownintentions.

Interface design and digital user environment as a culture or a genre

Spinuzzi , Bakhtin and genre theory

ClaySpinuzzi (2003)usesgenretracing,wheretheusersworkstructure intheirworkenviron-mentisinfocus.Genrescanherebeseenastraditionsinordertoproduce,touseandtointerpretartefacts.Inagenre,peoplecreateeffective,everydayproceduresforhowconcretematerialsandabstractattitudesareusedandproduced.AsaconsequenceofthisSpinuzzisupportsacontextualdesignwhereitisimportantforthedesignertorealisethatherresearchhasimplicationsforhowtheuserworks.Thedesigner’salterationscanresultinasystemthatsupports,changesorentirelydestroystheusersworkroutines.Here,theofficialpractice,thedesignerandtheproduct,meettheunofficial,whicharetheuser’sownsolutionsinthemanagementofasystem.

MikhailBakhtin, forefrontfigurewithingenre theory, argues that twocompeting impulsesshapeourcommunication:thecentripetalandthecentrifugal(�983,orig.ed.�934).Thecentrip-etal impulse is towards formalisation,normalisation, regularity and convention.Work systemsbecomecentralisedandofficial.Thecentrifugalimpulseistowardsresistance,idiosyncrasy,adhocinnovationandchaos.Decentralisedsystemswithunofficialworkstandardsaredeveloped.

Genres and clichés

Asemioticgenre isacodeforwhichsignsthatcanbecombined,thatbelongtogether,andthegenrehasresemblanceswiththeparadigm.Clichésandgenreswithininterfacestructurecanforexamplebepurelygraphical,assymbolsforsaveandcutthataresimilarinmostcomputerpro-grams,orthewaytolinktohelpfilesetc.

Educological ethnography

Inthecollectingofdataandtheirimplementation,andtheanalysesofthese,Istrovetoworkac-cordingtotheeducological ethnographydevelopedbyBirgittaQvarsell(�996).Theethnographicendeavourstocapturethecomplexityofasituation,andtheeducologicalinterestisfocusedonlearninganddevelopment,onindividuallyconsideredpossibilitiesinasurroundingworld.Theoryandexperienceareusedinordertomakediscoveriesthroughoutthestudy,andtheresearchertriestofindthemostreasonableinterpretationsbymeansofthelogicofabduction.

Affordanceisaconceptwithgreatimpactoninterfacedesigntheory.Referringtotheaction-ablepropertiesbetweentheworldandanactor(apersonoranimal)thetermwasoriginatedbyperceptionpsychologistJamesJ.Gibson(�979).Anaffordancestandsforwhattheenvironmentoffers,providesandinvitesto,inabothpositiveandnegativesense.Affordancescanonlybeseenecologically,i.e.insymbiosisbetweenorganismandenvironment.

AccordingtoGibson(�979)ourtoolsandourartefactsincreasetheaffordancepossibilities.Thedifferencebetweenaffordancesand tools is thata toolhasageneric functionanddesign,affordances exist, asmentionedabove, always relative to individual actionpossibilities.Anaf-fordance can alsobe a compoundof several actions, nested,which in themselves canhold af-fordances.Inorderto,forexample,pictureeditinginacomputertoexistasapossibility,wemustimbueand carryout anumberof action steps.Worth stressing is that according tohismodelGibsondoesnottreatdegreedifferencesinanaffordance,ifforexampleanaffordanceexistsbutisverydifficulttouse.

DonaldNorman(�988)usesthetermaffordancewithinthedesignfieldwhen,forinstance,the

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shapeofahandlesignalsthefunction,theproperwayofusingit.Theactionablepropertyistheabilitytopressthehandledownforopeningadoor.Affordanceisinthissensereducedtogenericmeans,indesignforageneraliseduser.Theconceptofaffordancehassometimesalsobeenfurtherreducedtonameaninvitingdesignofgraphicalbuttonsininterfacedesign.Abuttondemandstobepressed,invitestoaction.Normanmeansthatthetermperceived affordancewouldbemorecorrectinthesecases.Anaffordancedanceexistsindependentlyofwhatisvisibleonadisplay,buttheinterfacecandemonstratetheactionpossibility.

Preeceetal(2002)makeaninterestingreflectionwithreferencetothelatterwaytheconceptisused.Theydiscussperceivedaffordancesrepresentedonascreenascluestofunctions.Atoonaturalisticdepictionof,forinstance,asoundmixercanmaketheinterfaceoverloadedwithallshadowsandlightdirectionsthatwillsimulateathree-dimensionaleffect.

Offered meanings – affordances according to Qvarsell

Theparticipantobservationsthisarticlebuildsonareanalysedbymeansoftheoreticalconceptsthatfocusonwhattheindividualherselfseesasmeaningfulpossibilitiesandchallenges.BirgittaQvarsell(�989)hasusedtheconceptoffered meanings (writer’stranslation),referringtoimpor-tanteducologicalconditionsintheindividual’sownperspective.Theyareenvironmentalculturalaspectswhichaffordmeaningand invite (to)actions.Offeredmeaningsareconstructedby theindividualandcanbeusedastoolsinordertosolveidentifiedtasks.TheconceptcanbeseenasadevelopmentofGibson’s(�979)environment-relatedaffordanceadaptedtoasocio-culturalcon-text.Inthisstudy’sparticipantobservationstheconceptisusedasatheoreticalbasetool.Itwillclarifyandfocusonpossibilitiesintheindividual’sownperspectives.Theinterfacecanbeseenascontainingindexesoffunctionsthatcontainpossibilitiesorinvitationstoact.

Developmental tasks

Theculturalandeducologicalconceptdevelopmental taskreferstochallengesthattheindividualmeetsduringdifferentlifephasesandindifferentculturalcontexts.Theyarenotpsychologicalphenomena,theyareperceivedinthespacebetweentheindividualandthesurroundingworld,asconcretechallenges.Thetasksaredefinedbytheindividualalone,whichidentifiesandendeavourstosolvethem(Qvarsell,2003).

In the computer’s workplace - manoeuvring the interface

Theinterfacesareimportantforseveralinformantsinthestudy,inthesamesensethatourphysi-calenvironmentis.Theprimarytaskistofindadequatetoolsinthedigitalworkplaces,butitcanalsobeofimportancehowtheroomsarecolouredandarranged,boththephysicalandthedigitalrooms.Noteverybodyinthisstudyhasreflectedonthesoftwareenvironments’aesthetics.Apairoftheusersdonotconsiderthistobeanimportantquestion,orhaven’treflectedonittoanygreatextent.Butatthesametimetheyhavecreatedtheirownpictureofhowthewholecomputerenvi-ronmentisputtogether,withdifferentprogramroomsandpathsandshortcutsbetweenthese.Theuservisualisesthedigitalworkenvironmentinownmodels.Herearesomeexamples:

In layered side-scenes

Jenny, 25 years, web designer:

“It feels like a world, with a table and I am partly in it…It is not just a table because I am in it as well. I think you sometimes perceive it more three-dimensional than it is, that you create such an image especially when you are working a lot with layers. In those moments I think I could see the layers if I stood beside the computer.”

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Jenny’sreflectionsonworkinginadigitalenvironmentareclear-sightedandexpressfeelingsofparticipationandbelongingsincesheclaimstobepartlyintheuserinterface.Shecreatesathree-dimensionalimageofthecomputerroom,butlikeflatlayersstackeduponeachother,morelikeside-scenesthanrooms.Shethinksthatsheshapesthismodelherself,itdoesn’tlookthewaysheisvisualisingit.Shecreatesanownimageoftheroomsintheinterfacethatfunctionswithherac-tionsandnavigation.Itcouldbeseenasahighlyfunctionalandintentionalappropriationofthedigitalworkplace.

Little boxes

Filippa, 30 years, art educator at a museum:

“I see it like little boxes, just when it was so hard to reach your documents, I thought: ‘OK, through that wall and the next and there are my little boxes.’ And it was very difficult to remember, ‘what do I do? Am I supposed to go through that wall?’ I look on it as going inwards.”

Filippaseesthecomputer’sroominessaslittleboxes,toreachdifferentfilesshehastogetthroughtheboxes’walls.Themovementisinwardsthecomputer.Shemakesathree-dimensionalimage,spatialshapesofthecomputerinterface.Shefindsithardtorememberthewaybackwhenshenavi-gatesfarin.Makingdesktopshortcutscouldbeherredthreadinthelabyrinth,findingthepathtotherightroom.No,teleportationisamorecorrectmetaphorhere.Youdon’tknowtheactualpath,youarejustbeingmovedtothecorrectplace.

The virtual room?

Thedigitalworkplacesappeardifferentfrominformanttoinformant.Theroommetaphorworks,butinvariousways.Someseeroomsascartons,forotherstheroomsconsistoflayersonlayersinasidesceneworldorascontourmodelsinapasteboard.Themovementisexperiencedasinwardsfromthemonitor’ssurfaceandfurtherinwardsthecomputeranditsapplications.Themovementinwardsisseenasincreasingindeepanddetail,themovementoutwardincreasestheoverviewandgivesastructuralperspective.Theimageswecreateofthedigitalcontextbothworkasamindmapforournavigationintheinterfaceandasourowndesignedandfurnishedworkplace.

Metaphors for action, objects motions and orientation

Ourconceptsstructurewhatweperceiveintheworld,andaccordingtoLakoff&Johnson(�980)ourconceptualsystemislargelymetaphorical.Metaphorsinthatsensebecomecrucialtohowwedefineoureverydayreality.Metaphorical conceptsstructureourthoughtsystem,areusedtode-scribethemovementswemakeintheGUI.Theinterfacesareoftendesignedwithdifferentmeta-phors(implicitcomparisons)ofthephysicalworld,suchasdesktop, toolbox and scene,andtheusermovesinparallelstophysicalroomsandmotions:“howdoIgetoutofhere?”“whereisthespellcheckplaced?”,“nowI’mmovingbackwards!”.Withincomputerusethereexistsomemeta-phorssowellestablishedthattheybecomesocalleddead metaphors(Lakoff&Johnson,�980).Theyhavebeeninusesolongthatwedonotregardthemasmetaphors.Forexamplemouse, surf,theoverallhomemetaphorforthecomputerorawebsite’sstartingpoint,andthetoolmetaphorsincomputerprogramsinthisstudy.Thecontextherewillgovernthedirectionoftheconnotations,ifamouseisarodentoraninputdevice.WithreferencetoCharlesS.Peirce(Bertilsson&Voet-mann,�990)itcanbeexpressedlikethis:theinterpretantisculturallydetermined.

FromthedatacoveredinthisstudyIcouldfindsomegeneralorientationalordirectionalmeta-phors:

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• In–deeperanddeeperintodetail,inputfromthephysicalworld.• Out–overallviewofentries;printouttothephysicalworld• Down–filesareontheground,theletterzisdown• Up–foldersandcataloguesaredirectorialsigns,theletteraisupUpanddowninmenuswhereup supposedlyshouldbethemostusedtools.• Centre – periphery usuallypeoplehavetheirworkspaceinthemiddleandthetoolsorganisedaround• Front – back asforinstanceJenny’sside-scenes

Plane or depth

Theprograminterfacesaretwo-dimensionalplanesthattheusernavigatesin.Incertainsoftware,theusercancreateprojectedthree-dimensionalroomswhereshecandetermineviewpointsandmovementsinroomcoordinates.AccordingtoGibson(�979)three-dimensionalseeingisadirectperceptionoftheitem’smovementsvis-à-visthemovablebeholder.Itdoesnotconsistofcontoursthatgetvolumethroughlightandshadow.Atruestereoscopydoesnotoccuraningraphicalinter-face.Theusershapesherownimageofaroomrepresentation,withmaterialsfromdifferentpro-gramsinterfacesandbyconstructingherownimagesofhowtheundefinedinterspaceslooklike.

Virtual remains – virtual archaeology

Oneissueofgreat importanceforsomeoftheusers inthestudyishowtoorganisethedigitalarchives,likeservers,inanunderstandableandreadableway.Insomecasewedon’thavetheop-portunitytobuildourdigitalmodelsfromtheground,weinheritacomputerworkspace.

Anna, 34 years, web editor:

“I actually think that it’s a thing to work on, to do a real analysis of the database the way it looks today and of what it’s supposed to be able to do in the future, because there is still only paper here. That the papers are registered somewhere.”

ThefilingsystemneedstobeorganisedinabetterwayatAnna’sworkplace.Itisagreatpartoftheworktasks,tofileandorganise,butthetechnicalsolutionsarenotequaltoAnna’sintentions.Besides,theearlierfilingorganisationisprobablyacollageofdifferentpeople’sideas.Thesoftwareiscircumstantialanddemandsagreatamountofownwork,whichoughttobehandledbyfunc-tionsintheapplication.Doubleworkandthehandlingofwrittennotesaredemandedtobeabletogetsomekindofcontroloverwhatthedigitalcataloguelookslike.

Annatookoveracomputerdesktopenvironmentfromaformeremployee.Anna’s inheriteddesktop(”second-hand”)environmentinthecomputer,andthewebsitewithoutamapofthefilestructuremakeithardtofindfilesandknowtheirmeaning.Dothefilescontainimportantinfor-mation?Aretheyessentialforcodingandgraphicaldesign?Findingstructureandcontentinthesevirtualremainsarehardchallenges.Itisfarfromobviouswhatistobetrashedandwhoisgoingtoexecutewhat.

Therearetwokindsofproblemshere:thefirstoneconcernsacollectiveresult,aserversystemarbitrarilybuiltupbyjustaddingfilesandfolders,withnogeneralorganisation.Thesecondcon-cernsafilestructurethatonlytheformeruserknowshowitisbuiltup.Onlytheformeruserhasaninnermodelofthefileorganisation.Itisdifficulttoseeanorganisedstructureandfindfilesandtheirrelevance,becauseyouhavetofindouttheformeruser’sideaofcataloguing,andyouhavenoownstructuretosupportyourwayinthe”virtualarchaeology”.

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Who is cleaning the server?

Onserverstherecouldexistalotofoldmaterialthatisdifficulttoweedout.Theservercontainsfoldersandloosefilesthatnoonetakesresponsibilityfor.Asaconsequenceofthis,Filippathearteducator,hassometimeslackedbackupsinceshedoesnotwanttostoresomethingintheserverdisorder.ForFilippa,workingatamuseum,afunctionalarchivesystemisveryimportant.Shewantsradicalimprovements.

Organisation, structure and archive

Inarrangingandstructuringthereexistcentraloffersandchallenges inthecomputerworkforseveralinformants.Thecomputerisconsideredgoodforstructuringandasamemoryaid.Thedigitalarchiveoffersmanypossibilitiestoorganiseaccesstomaterialsandbackupofdocuments.LocationofmaterialsanddocumentsareparticularlyimportantforAnnaandFilippawhichbothhavealargearchiveactivity.Atthesametimetherearedifficultieswithdigitalarchives,difficulttoseewhatthingsare,wheretheyareandwhohascreatedfilesormodifiedthem.Thedigitalarchivesarenotpresentallthetime,theusermustconnecttoaserverinordertoseefilesandtocheck.

Annahasalotofdigitalmaterialandwantsstillmorepicturesanddocumentprocedurestobedigitised.Itwouldmakepicturesandinformationmoreeasilyaccessibleforher,andshewillgetridofthedoubleworkthemixtureofphysicalanddigitalpictureresultin.

The computer archive and the physical objects

Filippaalsoworksalotwithphysicalobjectsinherworkplace.Thedigitalarchivecanoffersearchfunctions,indexingforeachofthephysicalobjectsandtheirproperties.Thisisadifficulttask,tobuildupadatabasewithafunctionalindex.Inherownworkroom,thephysicalfilesofthedigitalarecomplementary,doublearchivingoffersnoadvantagestoFilippa.

A sterile environment

Joakim, 40 years, graphical designer:

“There’s something so incredibly clinical about this environment, you can get an incred-ible craving to just get down and get dirty when you’re sitting here, you’re like a surgeon in some way. I want this computer environment to be here, but at the same time, I can get disgusted by it.”

Joakimmissestactileresponseindigitalwork.Heconsiderssomeprogramsandtoolstobegood,andfindsitpossibletomakefineproducts,buthealsofindsthatthedigitalworkingenvironmenthasinherentshortcomingsforhim.Hefindsittoosterile,toosyntheticanddivorcedfromphysicalreality.Healsoexpressesscepticismofnaturalisticgraphicalinterfaces,sincetheyneverbecomerealforhim.Theydonotofferhimanenvironmentthatincreasescomfortandrecognition.

“Photoshop is more like Pollock… Illustrator is more like Hergé”

JoakimmakesparallelstotheartworldwhendescribingwhatthistwoAdobeprogramsmeanstohim.Photoshoprepresentsaspontaneousexpressionpossibilitytoplayanddiscover.Illustratoroffersamorecarefullyplanned,meticulouslinedrawing.Joakimcanhardlystandthesterileandclinicalworldthathethinkstheinterfacesconstitutes.Heisveryawareofdesignandthinksthatalthoughthedigitalenvironmentcanbe“aestheticallycor-rect”it’sneverthelesscleanandlifeless.

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The diminishing movement of the body

Stuck by the screen

Joakimalsohasthingstosayaboutthephysicalconsequencesofcomputerwork:

“You can certainly raise or lower the work table or perhaps hang from the ceiling to work, but you are still stuck at the computer ten hours a day. You just feel like an American sit-ting in a car all day with no chance of movement, in a totally fixed position, I think it’s terrible. The brain needs movement, it just does. For most of us anyway, when it comes to creativity.”

Raised tempo and access to work at home

Gunilla,informationassistant,�3years,hasbeenaroundtowatchandtakepartinadigitalrevo-lutioninofficework:

“First you typed on stencils, then you put on a white coat and went to the printing room to manually print them out. That was around 1971. Then the electric typewriter became com-mon, after that you got an electric typewriter with a correction button. That was no good at all. With that, you to fit the paper with the text to be corrected exactly in the machine and then press backwards and try to remove the mistypes. You could sit there almost hack-ing holes in the paper before you got rid of the incorrect text. You could not change large quantities as you do now, only a few words. Of course it influenced your way of writing.”

Afterseveralyearsofdailycomputerwork,nowextendedwithInternetconnection:

“I did nothing but sit by the computer, for hours on end. Sometimes I thought of course that it was such fun, though I knew how hysterically stressful the image processing could be. Then it began. I felt such a pressure on myself to arrange things. I got the background facts and the day after I had to have a presentation all finished, it was so stressful. Some-time they wanted it finished in a few hours, a huge presentation running to twenty pages, sometime also translated into English, although they were only diagram headings. It was horrible.”

Afterwards Gunilla went home and continued working in the evenings. She had access to thesoftwareathomeandshecouldreachallworkfilesfromthere.Itwasfartoomuchwork.Partlybecauseofherinterest,becauseshefounditsuchfun.Gunillastartedtodevelopdifferentstress-relateddiseases.Itbeganwithfrozenshoulder,adhesivecapsulitis,whichiseasytodevelopwhenyouaresittinginthesamepositioneveryday,shesays.Gunillathendevelopedfibromyalgia,whichisachronicdiseasehavingpainandfatigueasitsmainsymptoms.Sheherselfcallsitawork-relatedinjury,becauseitoccurredafterfiveyearsofstressatthecomputer.

Gunilla’s enthusiasm and desire for computer work and the accelerated pace of work havemeant her developing a variety of stress-related diseases during the years. Another reason canbethattheexistenceofrestpossibilitiesinwork,naturalpausesinthecreativetorrent,hasde-creasedsince thecomputercameonthescene.Therealsoexistedmorepracticallyaimedtasksthatincludedphysicalactionsandmovement.Shecouldforinstancegotoanotherroominordertostencilmanually,orspendhalfaworkdaybythefaxmachine.Somemoremonotonoustasks,retypingdocumentsfromtemplatesetc.,alsoofferedpausesfrombeingmaximallycreative.Now,workrhythmsandpracticesaremoreinfiniteanddiffuse.Itismoredifficulthavingabreakwhenthereisnonaturalreason.OnewayforGunillaistoprintoutwhatshewantstoread,andthenchangeworkstations.

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Who’s in charge?

Giovanni,�4,videofilmteacherforyoungpeople:

“Sometime it feels like I’m governed by the computer instead of vice versa. It does not need to be a situation when something goes wrong, but you are not aware of time, it flies quickly concurrently as you isolate yourself from the environment, and become less receptive the more tired you get. You are not aware of that, your spine hurts more and more and then you look at the clock and a long time has passed.”

TimedisappearsforGiovanniduringcomputerwork.Hesaysthatheislocatedinanotherdimen-sion, isolated inboth timeand space fromphysical reality.He speakswithplayful seriousnessaboutsoftwarethatwillforcehimtodopauses;hedoesnotknowhowtocopewiththathimself.Thosepausesheneverthelesstakes,arestrategicallyplannedtomomentswhenthecomputermustprocessfiles,orrender.

From physical environment to computer environment

Thecreativeprocessdoesnotalwaystakeplacedirectlybythecomputer.Infrontofthescreen,itcanbedifficulttobecreativeandinnovative.Anotherplacecanbenecessaryforcreativework.Personalproceduresandplacestouseforinnovationcancontributetoamoreharmoniousatmos-phere,offerconcentrationaswellascontactwithphysical toolsaspencils,colourcrayonsandpaper.Theyareplacesthattheuserchoosesasabasisforcreativeprocesses,theyareinitiatingplaces.Thereisalsoaneedtomovearoundwhilethinking,orduringtheactualwork.Thecom-putercanbeusedforinputofalreadycompletedmaterials,ortocompleteamoreorlessdevelopedidea.

Theoretical implications

Ways of constructing digital workplaces

Theinformantschoosethetoolsandcommunicationpossibilitiesthatwillconvergeinthecom-puterintheofficeworkplaceandthehomeworkplace.Intheinterfacerooms,differentmediaanddifferent technical functionsconverge (deviceconvergence). Inparticular,workproductionandcommunication.Thesoftwareyouuseisonlyapartofhowyouorganiseyourcomputerworld.Thewayyouusetheapplications,wheretheyareplaced,howyoumodifyandbuildpathsbetweenthetools,arealsoconstituentsincreatingadigitalworkplaceofyourown.

“Photoshopismore likePollock…Illustrator ismore likeHergé”.Theusercreatesherownmetaphors andparadigms from theprograms and their products. She creates apersonalworklandscape that makes it easier to structure the interfaces and functions and to relate these tootherphysicalanddigitalworlds.Theinterpretantthatconstitutestherelationbetweenthesign(interfaceicons,text)andthereferent(toolsandproducts)getthemeaningtheuserappliestoit,withreferencetoPeirce(Bertilsson&Voetmann,�990).Thismeaningisshapedbytheuserinaworkplacecontext,howandwhatshedoeswiththeapplicationandhowshelooksuponthattool.Functionsintheprogramsimplydifferentoffersfordifferentindividuals,indifferentstagesofthework.

AsImentionedbefore,theuserdoesnotactagainstaclosedcomputersysteminasingleunit,butwiththecomplexworldsthatarerepresentedinthecomputer.Theuserinteractswithacon-textsheherselfhastakenpart increating.Toinheritadigitalworkenvironmentcanthereforemeanseveralchallenges.Filesandfunctionswillbefoundinasystemcreatedafteranotheruser’sintentionsandsituation.Inordertoentirelybecomethenewusersworkenvironment,theformerfoldering,symbolsandshortcutsmustfirstbeunderstoodandthenreconstructed.

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Theinformantsshapetheirphysicalworkenvironmentasmuchaspossibleafterherownideasaboutdesignand function.Physical inputdevicesas footswitchesanddigitalpens, canofferatactileexperienceandcontrolthatfeelsmoreapparentthanordinarykeyboardsandmice.Acon-vergencebetweenthecomputersandthephysicalroomsiscreated.Physicalinstrumentsandtoolssuchaselectricguitarsanddigicamscanbeconnecteddirectlytothecomputer,therebycreatingextensionsofthetoolstothecomputerroom.

Theuser’smodifyingoftheprogrampossibilitiescanalsotakeplacethroughinstallinghelpap-plicationsandcomplementaryplug-ins.Inthisstudyitisquitecommonfortheusertocomplementthesoftwareinawaythatbetterfitsherownworkapproach.Anotherwayistousesoftwareforsomethingotherthanthemanufacturer’sintention.Thisisdoneinordertoreachfunctionsortoachieveexpressionsthatareimpossibleinthenormalwayofusingthesoftware.

Theconvergencebetweenhomeandworkplaceisalsoprominent.Toseparateworkandsparetimeisdifficultwhenthephysicalroomisn’timportantforaccessingtheprojectsyouworkwith.

Nested affordances

Anofferedmeaningfortheindividualcanbeconsideredasbeingmadeupofseveralaspects,andthenbecomesstretchedovertime.Alongactionchaincanberequiredtorealiseacomputeruser’sintentions,andthisissomethingthatisadifficulttoshowdirectlyinaGUI.Softwarecanhavepotentialoffersfortheuserwhoisnotawareofhowshecouldfindthem.Complementaryhelpprogramsormanualsarerequiredinordertolocatethepossibilities.Whennewfunctionsarede-velopedbasicquestionsarises:howwilltheuserbeawareofthisnewpossibility?Willtheuserusethenewfunction?Isitagoodtool?

Gibson (�979)used the term nested affordance.Briefly, eachpartialmoment is thenanaf-fordanceinitself,butitcanalsoleadtofurtheradditionalaffordances.Inthisstudy,itispossibletoquestiontheuserandtheproducer’sviewsontheactualwork:isonlythegoalprioritisedoristhewholeworkprocessincluded,tothefinalproduct?Making,forexample,avideofilmcanbeseenasalongrowofactionpossibilities.Itisobviousthatthevirtualcuttingboardwithit’stimelineoffersahigh-qualitypossibilityforcuttingafilm,butcanrenderingofworkfilesbeanofferorisitonlyaboringformathandling?

The intended user – the interface and the individual

ThenaturalisticinterfaceinCubaseforexampleaddressestheexperiencedmusician,butforthosewho don’t have previous experience of musical production, it becomes a new complex symbolworldtoappropriate.Thereisnonaturaltransferfromthephysicaltothedigitalworld.Anewcultureorgenremustbetakenpossessionof,bystageswhicharenotalwayslogicalbutdevelopedfromatraditionofhardwareformusicalproductionwithitsowncodes.Afeelingofbeingex-cludedcanexistforanewbeginnernothavingtheexperienceofacultureorgenrethatmanyoth-ersseemfamiliarwith.Shneiderman(�998)speaksaboutnovicesandfirst-timeusers.Thenovicehasnoknowledgeofinformationorsoftware,whilethefirst-timeuserhasknowledgefromthephysicaltaskbutmustlearnhowitwillbecarriedoutintheprograminterface.Thereisofcourseadifferencebetweensoftwarethatisatransferfromthephysicalworldtothedigital,suchasCu-base,andprogramsthatonlyexistinanowndigitalworld,asFlash,whereallusersarenovicesinthebeginning.

ThepictureeditingapplicationPhotoshophascertaintoolsthatanaloguephotographersrecog-nise,buttheinterfacehasneverimitatedaphotolaboratory,itisbasedonitsownsystemoficonsandmenus.Theprogramisintendedfor,andisusedby,abroadcategoryofpeoplewhoneedtoprocessdigitalpictures.Experiencedphotographershowever,havegooduseoftheirknowledgewhenexploringtheprogram.Workexperience,educationandphotographeridentitycanbecon-firmed.

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Ethos, theprogram’swayofpresenting itself, shouldbesuitable for thecontentandfor thetargetgroup.Someapplicationscouldbeseenconfirmingacertainstateofprofession.ToworkwithInDesignforexample,couldsignalhavingcontroloverthefinaldesignoftheproductandnotonlydeliveringrawtext.

ThemultimediaapplicationDirectorplacesitselfwithinafilmparadigmandcontainsamongotherthingsscripts,scenesandcastmembersthatarerelatedtoascorewithatimeline.Thesearenotdirectanalogiesandtheycanbeconfusingforanovice.Forexample,acastmembercanbebothananimatedcharacterandastageset,andcanprincipallygovernthecourseofeventsinafilminspiteoftheoverallfilmscript.Problemsarisewhenthemetaphorsdonotcorrespondtothephysicalworld,promptingonetoaskwhatpurposethegenreortheparadigminthosecasesserves.AcalculationprogramlikeExceldressesitselfinastrictsuit,makingsomewhatdry,butbusinesslikeandreliableexpressionwithoutanyvisualmetaphorsintheactualcalculationtables.Thesecouldbasicallybedescribedasstorageshelves,apantryorsuchlike,butthiswouldentailariskofbeingconsideredchildishandunprofessionalaccordingtoprevailinggenrethinking.Anaestheticwellthought-outanddevelopedinterface(ethos)candecreasethetrusttotheapplica-tion’sfunction(logos).

Socialstatusandcompetencecanalsobeshownforexampleintheuseofmanykeyboardshort-cuts.Apartfromthegoodofusingthese,especiallyergonomically,it’ssometimesalsoaworkplaceculturewheretheusershowshercompetenceanddexteritywithkeyboardshortcuts.

Agenreentirelywithoutgraphicalinterfaces,asforexampledirectUNIXcommandstypedintextcode,offersdirectcontrolforanadvancedcomputeruser,andcanalsostrengthenthefeel-ingoftheuser’sowncompetence. Unfortunatelythefeelingofexclusivitycanincreasewhentheordinaryuserdoesn’tcomprehendwhattheexpertisuptoanditcouldresultinatechnical“nerdmentality”.Thisalsohascertaincouplingstothetechnicalservicepersonnelthatdonotseetotheuser’sneedsinthisstudy.Thereissometimesalackofrealinterestinmakingthingsunderstand-ableforanormaluser.

Affordances in the user interface, or trompe l’œil?

Thenaturalisticinterfacestrivestowardsatotalmapping,andtriestoimitatephysicaltoolsandtheiruserculture.Thereisariskattachedtopromisingfunctionsthatdonotfunctionasinphysi-calreality.Theinterfaceisherebyreducedtoatrompel‘œilwithoutfunction,orafalseindex(Bertilsson&Voetmann,�990).Also,aspointedoutearlier(Preeceetal,2002),itcanbefoundmessyanddisturbing,withalltheshadowsandlightdirectionsintendedtosimulateathree-di-mensionaleffect.Thenaturalisticinterfacemustcorrespondwithphysicalrealityinordernottomaketheofferedmeanings,ortheperceivedaffordances,false.

Thelackoftactilecontrolcanbeaproblem,thefactthattheinterfacemostoftenonlyconsistsofpicturesandsounds.Avirtualpotentiometerisnottwistableasatrueone.Thepicturedthum-bwheel isgovernedby themouseandgivesonlyavisual feedback.Thevisible systemstate,asNielsen(200�)stresses,functions,butthereexistnotactileresponse.

Official and unofficial solutions

Theofficialandunofficial solutionscanbe seenas expressionsofBakhtin’s (�983,orig.�934)competingimpulses:thecentripetalandthecentrifugal.Thecentripetalstrivestowardsformalisa-tionandnormalisation.Userpracticesbecomecentralisedandofficial.Manufacturersofsoftwarewanttoimplementand“refine”theusers’modificationsandadd-onsofthesoftwareinordertoincludetheseintheirownproduct(Spinuzzi,2003).Solutionswillbepackedanddistributedinthesoftwareandtherebyendupoutsidethecontextthatthesolutionsweredevelopedin.Thecen-

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trifugalimpulseistowardresistanceandadhoc-solutions(notgeneralsolutions).Decentralisedsystemswithunofficialworkpracticesarecreated.Theusercreatesherownsolutionsandworkproceduresthatfunctioninthesituation.Theoriginalcreativitycanbeexpressedasacentrifugalimpulseorforce.Solutionsincentripetaldirectiongraduallyloosetheuniquequalitiesoftheuser’sownmodification(Spinuzzi,2003).

Analogiesbetweeninterfacesandthephysicalworldarenotalwaysinteresting,andnotalwayspossible.Interfacesareconsideredworldsoftheirownandseparateconsistentgenres,withmoreor less connection to thephysical reality. If theGUI’susemetaphors theymust, asmentionedabove,comparetotheirphysicalequivalencesinordernottoseemconfusing.

Theproductiongenre isprimarilyaimedateffectiveness.Theyare taskandgoalorientatedaspectsindesigningapplications(Preeceetal,2002).Clarityinacognitiveperspective,readabilityexpressedingeneralmodelsforhumaninformationcapacity.Itishoweveronlytheuserthatmeetsthewholecontextwheretheprogramproductswillfunction.Thecognitivemodelisageneralideawithoutaspecificcontext.Acontextualdesignmodelcouldbeasolutioninordertocomeclosertotheworkgenreindesigningthesoftware.Atthesametime,everythingcouldnotbeimplementedinagraphicalinterface,asSpinuzzi(2003)pointsout.Thephysicalworkexperienceanditscon-vergencewiththedigitalworkplacearefarmorecomplexthanaseparatecomputerprogram,andadhocinnovationcansometimesbethemostappropriate.

Lust or production?

Theuser’sexperienceofworkjoyissometimeconsideredbythemanufacturertobeinconflictwiththegoalsthataresupposedtobeachieved(Preeceetal,2002).Aconflictrelationiscreatedbetweenthelogos,ethosandpathos,inrhetoricalterms.Agreatpartoftheconflictperspectiveinthisdiscussioncanhaveitsorigininourgeneralviewonworkanditsgoals.Abeliefthatatoostrongdesireexperience(pathos)decreases focusontheoutcome, that themembergetscaughtintheworkprocess.Inthegoal-relatedviewtheresometimesexistsafearthattoocomfortableaprogramenvironmentdistractstheuser.Inthisstudythereisnoindicationthatahighcomfortintheprogramenvironmentwillnegativelyaffecttheproducts’quality.

Advanced tool or something more?

Toconsiderthecomputerasadevicelikeanyotherisrelievinganddefusing.Whentheusersome-timestreatsitasalivingcreature,thestressincreaseswhenshedoesnotfindfunctionsorproblemsolutionsandwhentechnicaldisturbancesoccur.

AccordingtoBruner(�996)thecomplexinteractionbetweentheworldswecanappropriateisinitselfaculture.Theuser’sactingwiththeseworldsrepresentedinthecomputercanaccordingtothisbeseenasacomplexcultureofitsown,whereoldandnewattitudesmeetinproductionandcommunication.Heretherationalandtheirrationallivesidebyside.Thosewhohaveleastknowl-edgeabouthowthecomputerfunctionstechnicallyhavethegreatesttendencytomythologisethecomputerasadefiantcreature.

Amongthemoretechnicallyskilledtherecanexistanothertypeofsubmissiontothecomputer,anexperienceoflosingcontrolovertimeandworkandafeelingofneedinghelptobeabletoleavethecomputeranditsprogramproducts.

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Discussion

Knowledge archive, structure and migration

Digitalarchivesareincreasinglyreplacingphysicalroomsfortext,pictureandsoundstorage.It’sinterestingtoseehowarelativelypermissivesystemcangenerateanumberofdifferentwaysofstructuringandorganisingvariousinformation.Toarchiveonaserverwithoutasystemmeansthatordersuffersandthearchivebecomesanunsortedchaos.Archivinginshareddigitalroomsandbeingabletofeelcontrolandsafety,isveryimportantinordertofacilitatework.Apartfromallusersneedingtofindtheappropriatefilesintheserver’sfolders,workissometimescarriedoutdirectlyinasharedworkfile,andclaritybecomescrucial.Whodidwhatandwhen?

Thedigitalarchivesarealsocomplementstothephysicalobjectswithpictureandtextdescrip-tions.Objectsarecataloguedandindexedtobefound,tobereferredto,tobestudiedandtobeused.Ourculturalheritageandindexesonwhereartefactsareplacedaregraduallybeingdigitisedfromphysicalcardindexesandarchives.Werisklosingpartsofthisheritageunlessworkroutinesareimproved.Theproblemisnotnew,noristhemigration.Manyinformationvehicleshavecomeandgoneinthecourseofhumanhistory,fromrockpaintingstoDVDs.Archivingandstoragehasalwaysbeenaquestionofhow,whatandbywhichmeans.

Therearepositiveoffers tofind indigitalarchiving fordifferentusers.Forexample,globalaccesstothematerialcouldbearranged,aswellasdifferentauthorisationsonthesamephysicalstoringplace.Indexinganddigitalfilesastextandpicturesareeasilycopiedandbackedup.Itisaquestionoffindingtheappropriatedegreeofdecentralisedorganisation.Howdoesthesystemlookthatgovernsorganisingbutdoesnotforcethememberintostaticprocedures?Canwedirectlytransferfunctioningphysicalarchivemodelstoappropriatedigitalsystems?Canwedirectlytrans-ferourmentalarchivemodels,ourinternalimages,toappropriate,intuitivedigitalsystems?

New Taylorism?

Atthebeginningofthe20thcenturyFrederickTaylorlaunchedaproductiondesign,theassemblyline,withextremetaskspecialisationfortheindividualworker,rigidlyspecialisedandstaticallypositionedwithamonotonousduty(cf.CharlieChaplin’sfilmModern Times,�936).Hismodelwasthemachinewithitscheap,interchangeableparts,eachofwhichhasonespecificfunction.Thisconceptstillsurvivesintraditionalproduction,wheretheemployeesaretiedtomonotonousandstrenuousworkdutiesbymachinesorrulebooks.

Theinformantsinthisstudyoftenexperienceworkasbeingintellectuallysatisfyingandcon-tainingacertainamountofcreativity.Themental scope isgreat,but thebodilyworkscope isrestricted.Thefunctionsinbigdeviceshavebeentransferredtosoftwareproductsandthesehaveinturnconvergedinthepreviouslymentioneddeviceconvergence.Asaconsequenceofthis,forinstance,reprowork,layout,printingandtypingworkhaveturnedfrombiggerworktablesandnaturalbodymovementsintheroomtocomputerworkonametre-squaresurfacewithalotofrestrictedmovements.Thedeviceconvergencecanhavenegativeconsequencesforphysicalwellbe-ingandforcreativityandlearning.Isthereanongoingdegenerationoftheworkenvironment,akindofnewTaylorism?Itwill,ifthatisthecase,implyareturntotheassemblyline’smonotonousmovementsandlockedbodyposition,butwithmoreintellectuallysophisticatedduties.

Thedecreasedpossibilityof bodilymobilityduringwork is aproblem that is important tosolve.Howdothedevicesandinterfacesfunctionthatmakeusfeelgoodphysicallyandtherebymentallyinourcomputerwork?Howdoyoudesignaworkenvironmentthatisexperiencedasrationalandintentionalwithoutthebodybecomingstaticallypositioned?Howdoyouachievethatinawaythatisnotexperiencedasartificialandmanipulative?

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