Location Based Social Networking
Chris Schlechty, Alicia Kellogg, Sean Ren, Danny Swisher
Current social networks lack interactions between people and the world around them
Social networking sites today don’t take advantage of knowing their member’s location
A number of privacy concerns exist when incorporating location information
Problem
Location aware mobile web application
Allows user to view friends and strangers along with proximity information
Provides means of limiting access to personal information, primarily location
Demo
Our Solution:
Representative tasks System evolution and changes Current UI and Demo Remaining problems and solutions Summary Questions
Overview
1. Find a friend’s location facilitating a meeting
2. Find out information about the people around you
3. Change your visibility settings to limit who can know your current location
Tasks
Initial design Simple tabbed
interface
Incorporated existing social network features
Inherit learned behaviors by using standard formats
Viewing Location Info
Region Creation/Editting
Lo-fi Prototype
UI ChangesProblem: Participants did not
see that the upper left link was where they needed to click to edit visibility settings
Solution: Changed title to read
“visibility” regardless of selected visibilities
UI ChangesProblem Missing Done/Save
button caused confusion
Solution Added Done button
UI ChangesProblem Confusion at visibility process funnel Steep learning curve when adding region
Solution Added a tool tip
Prototype
Friends
Map feature
Visibilities
DemoTask Demonstration
Real GPS/position data Current user is hard coded Distances are hard coded No visibility logic is applied Labels on map markers
What’s Missing?
Strangers button in Locations page wasn’t visible enough
Fixed by making bold and adding color
Remaining Problems
Size of window was too large and placed important pieces off screen requiring scrolling
Found through lab experiment
Resize the height of prototype
Remaining Problems
No means of identifying person on map
Distances and map position out of sync
No “me” indicator on map
Some participants completed task to our standards, but reported not completing it
Remaining Problems
Unique and fun mobile web application Brings position data to traditional, “lifeless”
social networks Interesting implementation challenges still
exist Very extensible
Summary
Questions?