BBC Imagineering

Background: Initiated in 2000 (anticipating GPS enabled camera phones) the H2G2 mobile project aimed to bring to life the guide to ‘Life the universe and Everything’ imagined in Douglas Adams ‘Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy’.

I was responsible for interface design, user insight and workshops.

Our aim: To user test the concept of an ever-expanding mobile guide, where the contents and interface structure were determined by users.

A collaborative information and opinion resource updated by users who could add text, audio, image and video contributions about anything whatsoever…

Community workshops: We worked in collaboration with Douglas Adams company H2G2, recruiting it’s community members as content creators.

The initial focus of the guide was Glasgow where I ran sessions with the H2G2 community to develop ideas for an alternative guide to the city.

Local H2G2 members created multi-media content for the guide covering everything from secret meetings of the vampire society, reports from the Clockwork Orange metro, to curry house etiquette.

The prototype guide: Ran on an Ipaq and connected to a server (populated with UGC) via a Wireless Lan. Our prototype allowed users to email each other to arrange meetings and give status updates.

We envisioned future locative versions would also allow community members to locate content and community members (who opted in) on maps.

User Research: An important aspect of this research project was discovering how and why different target audiences would use the guide;

• Information/city guide
• Entertainment
• Social networking
• Platform for creativity
• Peer recognition

Findings: Though the guide was originally seen as a mobile information and entertainments device, it became clear that for our user group social networking and peer recognition were more important.

These were already important aspects of their daily lives. The guide was valued more as a mobile platform for creativity – (publishing anywhere, everywhere) than as an informative guide.