Examining issues with advanced authoring Chris Roast Andrew Dearden Babak Khazaei Sheffield Hallam University

Context Significant growth of interactive media: broadband internet, interactive TV, DVD Impact upon end users: passive -> active Impact upon authors and producers: defining narratives -> defining interactive experiences How can authors best exploit the technology potential? Linking existing practice & novel potential via authoring tools

Context (DVD) DVD Technology: –armchair interaction with high quality media –local, formally finite, standard client DVD-Extra provides tool support for authoring highly dynamic and complex interactive DVDs DVD-Extra authors... design generic storyboards capable of generating numerous inter-linked instances of storyboards Knowledge Exchange with ZOO Digital Group plc Patent pending

DVD-Extra For example, a randomised multi-choice game - over 90,000 assets, approx 8,000 menus. Something no traditional author would consider No conventional authoring tool makes practical

The problem focus... Authors are faced with exploiting the potential of a new tool What is the fit between tools for production and current practice? A poor fit could mean: –inability to access potential –erroneous utilisation (QA) How to assess the fit? –analysis of context of use and existing practice –analysis of impact upon user skills and capabilities –combined findings

Contextual analysis initial training observation of day-to-day work and interviews with –multi-media production SME –DVD production SME –in-house production team specific character of the context of work – "the work artefacts"... extensively digital, involving complex abstractions, languages and functionality not "ring-bound personal calendars"!

The demand on authors Conventionally: authors work at a level of concrete narrative representations (flowcharts, stn's, storyboards) –complete "trace analysis" –occasionally using some hidden interaction state information (DVD registers) DVD-Extra: introduces abstract narratives, from which arbitrary concrete instances are defined –rules defining instances and their configuration –and rules generating DVD control language

Programming-like behaviour –relative to existing practice / models / tasks –non-direct manipulation actions have effects that can not be directly observed enhanced notions of testing –abstractions and notations representation and manipulation of abstractions room for mis-matches

An analytic framework... The Cognitive Dimensions framework for understanding significant features of complex information artefacts –Visibility / Juxtaposability Ease or difficulty of finding various parts of the notation, ability to compare and combine parts, to view different parts of a project at the same time –Viscosity Ease or difficulty of making changes to previous work –Closeness of mapping Relationship between the notation and the results being described –Progressive evaluation Ease of checking work done so far –Provisionality Ability to ‘sketch’ things out –Premature commitment Degree to which the notation imposes a particular order of working

Application... A generic "off the shelf" Cognitive Dimensions questionnaire was completed by authors (following initial training in DVD-Extra) –identify notations –identify sub-devices –series of generic questions (repeated for all sub-devices) A tool specific approach to the questionnaire was developed and completed co-operatively with the product manager

Findings... Contextual Analysis –rich contextual backing, with some specific evidence for expert analysis –terminology and ontology - generally consistent –key issues for concepts not available in the tool, e.g. menus –contrasting mental perspectives (abstract and physical) Cognitive Dimensional framework –error proneness case-sensitivity and whitespace sensitivity scripts –visibility an issue when examining the components of a single view –better support for progressive evaluation Issues raised conformed well with early user feedback on tool design –However Cognitive Dimensional account of issues are focus upon the character of notations and tools, and not simply fixable features

Conclusions... Combined analysis with contextual data... –initial examination identified focus upon cognitive dimensions as a fruitful –mutually beneficial techniques focusing contextual data analysis evidencing expert analysis This approach to assessment enabled the easy re- assessment of a tool upgrade Cognitive Dimensions framework – sufficiently "light" and non-judgemental to motivate novel design alternatives

Scope... Highly interactive DVD production makes specific demands upon authors –Complexity of conventional approaches –Complexity of novel technology –Combined analysis provides a valuable approach to (re-)assessing tool support How DVD specific? –formally finite "client" and "publication" Other interactive media? –general authoring issues likely to be similar –similar assessment approaches may be of value in ensuring authors effective the interactive potential of other media

Questions

Introduction and overall aims DVD Extra as an environment –Analysis and recommendations DVD Extra as tool for developers –Observation and analysis Assessing DVD end-user interaction –Recommendations helping support end users Internal review and where next?