In this paper we propose a conceptual view on the modularization of multi-device interactive systems. Our view is supported by the re-visitation and adaptation of some software engineering concepts. We provide the definition of interaction module and its interface and discuss how these concepts contribute to the design of such systems.

This paper explores some techniques for visually synchronizing the music notation in ancient choir-books in which, differently from modern music scores, the different voices are independently placed in the four quadrants of an open volume large page. We propose three visual techniques to show the synchronization between the different voices in comparison with a modern music notation.

A simple and natural interaction is considered the most important feature of an interface for multiple impromptu users in public spaces. Intuitiveness and forthright feedback are key factors to enable a steep learning curve for untrained users that need to grasp the interaction model in a short time span. The lack of proper constraints, designed to restrict and guide the user actions, might hinder such intuitiveness, mainly when the number of users grows or their behavior is exceedingly unrestrained.

We evaluate the accuracy of perception of a viewer-dependent system that has been implemented through a simple augmentation of basic shutter glasses for stereoscopic setups. The evaluation is based on length measures performed by a group of users on two different scenes, rendered through different perspectives computed from the dynamic user position and from a fixed point of view.

The design of interactive applications for the culture domain has specific issues due to the width and diversity of the domain, and to the spread of users education and skill. Exposing knowledge in cultural domains unfamiliar to users requires a careful design of information content and flexible exploration styles to match the needs of users with different backgrounds and goals. In this paper we'll discuss some issues and lessons learned in an interdisciplinary project for improved art fruition with interactive mobile guides.

In this paper we discuss metaphor modeling and interpretation in human computer interaction. We aim at evaluating metaphors in Tangible User Interfaces by matching entities and operations between the two domains of the metaphor: the physical interaction domain and the digital domain. A case study in tangible interaction is analyzed and a structured definition of interaction metaphor is derived and evaluated.

We present the results of an experience in design and evaluation of multimedia guides for art exhibitions based on Apple iPod-class devices, gesture based interaction and rich multimedia content. Design is based on decoupling between content, interface and interaction design, adaptation to different user skills, and reusability; the evaluation is based on logging users' actions, time spent in the visit and content access. We report about the lesson learned in building and testing on the field two different guides during a period of six months.

We discuss the design and implementation environment of a family of multimedia guides for art exhibitions on Apple iPod touch devices. The project aims at developing a unique framework adaptable to different content types and presentation styles, while retaining a common interface model with consistent gestures and a fast development process based on standard environments and toolkits. Evaluation is based on automatic collection of information about the user behavior by logging user actions.

In this paper we discuss the problem of deploying appliances for interactive services in complex physical environments using a knowledge based approach to define the relations between the environment and the services, and a visual interface to check the associated constraints, in order to design a solution satisfactory for the user.

We discuss the design of interaction ambients, which are ambients populated with fixed and mobile services, accessible through distributed interfaces. To make the interaction effective, activities and services should be designed as a function of the ambient, giving the user a coherent and clear context. A design approach is discussed, based on ontologies describing ambients, activities and services.

In this article we describe a prototyping environment, which allows an author to set up and test a complex hypermedia presentation. It contains a visual editor, based on a graph notation, in which the nodes are media objects and the edges are the synchronization relations between them; an execution simulator, which helps the author to test the presentation dynamics by manually triggering media related events; and a player, which allows the author to preview the presentation and to visually relate the execution evolution with the interpretation of the synchronization schema.

introduction Share on Introduction to special issue on the use of context in multimedia information systems Authors: K. Selçuk Candan Arizona State University Arizona State UniversityView Profile , Augusto Celentano Ca' Foscari University of Venice Ca' Foscari University of VeniceView Profile , Wolfgang Klas University of Vienna University of ViennaView Profile Authors Info & Claims ACM Transactions on Multimedia Computing, Communications, and ApplicationsVolume 2Issue 3August 06 pp 173–176https://doi.org/10.1145/1152149.1152150Published:01 August 2006Publication History 0citation826DownloadsMetricsTotal Citations0Total Downloads826Last 12 Months2Last 6 weeks1 Get Citation AlertsNew Citation Alert added!This alert has been successfully added and will be sent to:You will be notified whenever a record that you have chosen has been cited.To manage your alert preferences, click on the button below.Manage my Alerts New Citation Alert!Please log in to your account Save to BinderSave to BinderCreate a New BinderNameCancelCreateExport CitationPublisher SiteGet Access

In a navigation-oriented interaction paradigm, such as desktop, mixed and augmented virtual reality, recognizing the user needs is a valuable improvement, provided that the system is able to correctly anticipate the user actions. Methodologies for adapting both navigation and content allow the user to interact with a customized version of the 3D world, lessening the cognitive load needed for accomplishing tasks such as finding places and objects, and acting on virtual devices.This work discusses adaptivity of interaction in 3D environments, obtained through the coordinated use of three approaches: structured design of the interaction space, distinction between a base world layer and an interactive experience layer, and user monitoring in order to infer interaction patterns. Identification of such recurring patterns is used for anticipating users actions in approaching places and objects of each experience class. An agent based architecture is proposed, and a simple application related to consumer e-business is analyzed.

This paper discusses a model-based approach to the design of complex interaction environments like virtual worlds, mixed and augmented reality. The environment a user interacts with is seen as a virtual environment populated by virtual entities, created and maintained active by a program interpreted by the computer, which can be described by specifying the behavior of the population. The specification of the behavior occurs along three dimensions; 1) programming languages to specify system computations; 2) user activity languages to specify user activities; 3) perceptual languages to deal with the physical characteristics of the messages from the machine to the user. These dimensions define an interaction modeling space which constitutes the frame in which the virtual environment is specified

Data-centered approaches to multimedia presentation design and implementation can be developed by extending methodologies and technologies common in text-based applications. A multimedia report is a multimedia presentation built on a set of data returned by one or more queries to multimedia repositories, integrated according to a template with appropriate spatial layout and temporal synchronization, and coherently delivered to a user for browsing. We discuss the problem of defining templates for such multimedia reports with a focus on media coordination and synchronization. Multimedia presentations can be automatically generated according to the template by instantiating it on actual data instances. An XML language describes the spatial layout and the temporal constraints of the media objects. An authoring system and a player have been implemented.

Multimedia documents are an effective way to present different kinds of information, since the integration of different media types gives more expressive power and opportunities to catch the user attention. A multimedia report is a multimedia presentation built on a set of data returned by one or more queries to multimedia repositories, integrated according to a schema with appropriate spatial layout and temporal synchronization, and coherently delivered to a user for browsing. We discuss the problem of defining schemas for such multimedia reports with a focus on the media coordination and synchronization constraints. Multimedia presentations can then be automatically generated according to the schema. We have defined an XML language to describe the spatial layout and the temporal constraints of the media objects, together with a visual authoring system helping the user to design the presentation template.

This paper discusses some issues related to authoring and navigating World Wide Web documents composed of continuous and non-continuous media, based on a video or audio narration to which static or dynamic documents are attached. The discussion stems from a model able to describe synchronization among media elements and media behavior depending on user interaction. A prototype implementation addressing SMIL as a target language is described.

In this paper we describe the model and the prototype of an auditory and haptic interface for blind users, based on human capabilities to memorize and retrieve positions in a 3D auditory space; the proposal takes advantage of recent development in hardware and software in a prototype system to test different paradigms for interaction suitable for wide application by a large number of users.

In the office environment, the retrieval of documents is performed using the concepts contained in the documents, information about the procedural context where the documents are used, and information about the regulations and laws that discipline the life of documents within a given application domain. To fulfill the requirements of such a sophisticated retrieval, we propose a document retrieval model and system based on the representation of knowledge describing the semantic contents of documents, the way in which the documents are managed by procedures and by people in the office, and the application domain where the office operates. The article describes the knowledge representation issues needed for the document retrieval system and presents a document retrieval model that captures these issues. The effectiveness of the approach is illustrated by describing a system, named Kabiria , built on top of such model. The article describes the querying and browsing environments, and the architecture of the system.

No abstract available.

This paper describes the architecture of a document retrieval system integrating classical IR features with knowledge about the procedural and application context where documents are used.The paper focuses on the query language that allows the user to pose queries involving the analysis of both the semantic network where procedures, office agents, and events of the office context are represented as elements accessing, modifying, filing, manipulating document, and the document contents, i.e. their text.The coupling of the query system with a browser tool is also discussed.The system relies on a knowledge representation model for document and document roles developed in previous phases of the research.

Document classification and retrieval systems for office applications require knowledge management to describe the semantics of documents related to procedural and domain dependent aspects of the office work to be described: operational dependencies, documents relationships and references to regulations and laws are concepts which are not explicitly stated in the text. This paper presents a semantic model for office documents classification and retrieval based on knowledge representation of the office procedural environment and of the application domain. Navigation along knowledge networks for document retrieval and browsing is described.

Abstract A system for assisting in the testing phase of compilers is described. The definition of the language to be compiled drives an automatic sentence generator. The language is described by an extended BNF grammar which can be augmented by actions to ensure contextual congruence, e.g. between definition and use of identifiers. For deep control of the structure of the produced sample the grammar can be described by step‐wise refinements: the generator is iteratively applied to each level of refinement, producing at last compilable, complete programs. The implementation is described and some experimental results are reported concerning PLZ, MINIPL and some other languages.

Separate compilation is a useful tool in the development, debugging, testing, and integration of modular systems.