Given at MCEConference | Warsaw, Poland Our world is made of information that competes for our attention. What is needed? What is not? We cannot interact with our everyday life in the same way we interact with a desktop computer. The terms calm computing and calm technology were coined in 1995 by PARC Researchers Mark Weiser and John Seely Brown in reaction to the increasing complexities that information technologies were creating. Calm technology describes a state of technological maturity where a user's primary task is not computing, but being human. The idea behind Calm Technology is to have smarter people, not things. Technology shouldn't require all of our attention, just some of it, and only when necessary. How can our devices take advantage of location, proximity and haptics to help improve our lives instead of get in the way? How can designers can make apps “ambient” while respecting privacy and security? This talk will cover how to use principles of Calm Technology to design the next generation of connected devices. We'll look at notification styles, compressing information into other senses, and designing for the least amount of cognitive overhead.

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Calm Technology and the
Future of the Interface
Amber Case | @caseorganic
Director, Esri R&D Center Portland
!
MCE Conf
7 Feb 2015
Warsaw, Poland

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50 billion devices
will be online by
2020. -Cisco

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Sound good?

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Consider…

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The "Smart" Watch

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The "Smart" Fridge

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The Dystopian Kitchen of the Future

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An era of interruptive
technology

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We need a
Calm Technology

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XEROX PARC: mid-90s
Mark Weiser John Seeley Brown

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Technology shouldn’t require all
of our attention, just some of it,
and only when necessary.

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Calm technology makes use of our
peripheral attention, allowing us
to be aware of more things with
less cognitive overhead.
Empowering the Periphery

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A calm technology will move easily from the
periphery of our attention, to the center, and back:
!
Things in the periphery are attuned to by the large
portion of our brains devoted to peripheral (sensory)
processing. By placing things in the periphery we are
able to attune to many more things than we could if
everything had to be at the center. Thus the periphery
is informing without overburdening.
!
- Weiser, Brown, The Coming Age of Calm Technology

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I. Examples of
Calm Technology

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A Tea Kettle

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A little tech goes
a long way…

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Toilet Occupied Sign

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Light-Based
Status System
!
Aaron Parecki
@aaronpk 2014
!
connected to Beeminder

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Weather Status
Lighting
!
Aaron Parecki
@aaronpk 2014
!
Hue Lightbulb connected
to a weather report

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II. Designing Calm
Technology

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1. A technology should inform and encalm
2. Make use of the periphery
Two Principles of Calm Technology

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1. Machines shouldn't act like humans
2. Humans shouldn't act like machines
3. Amplify the best part of each
Design for people first

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Technology can
communicate,
but doesn’t need
to speak

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The Roomba Robotic
Vacuum Cleaner
:)

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LUMOBack Smart Posture Sensor
Buzzes you when
you exhibit poor
posture.

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Sleep Cycle
Sleep Tracker
and Alarm
Clock
sleepcycle.com

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Sleep Cycle
Sleep Tracker
and Alarm
Clock
sleepcycle.com

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1. Haptics vs. auditory alerts (haptic compass)
2. Light status vs. full display (on/off)
3. Positive or negative tones (home electronics)
4. Transparency (inner-office windows)
Create ambient awareness through
different senses

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Jawbone Up

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III. Calm Technology
and Privacy

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What is Privacy?

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Privacy is the ability to have control
over where your content goes
and who it is accessed by.

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Privacy can also be a feeling or
perception of security.
!
This perception of security can be
designed.

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Privacy is the ability
not to be surprised.

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How can we design for privacy?!
1. Temporary Solution (Privacy by Design)
2. Longer term Solution (Data Ownership)
Privacy by Design: Ann Cavoukian, Ph.D. Information & Privacy Commissioner, Ontario, Canada. http://www.privacybydesign.ca/

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Contextual Privacy
Instagram, Facebook, Foursquare
do this well.
!
Expose privacy controls with every
piece of content that can be created
or shared

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Half of privacy is perceived
The idea of privacy is socially created and
attached to behavioral norms.
Behavior can change when norms change.

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Privacy and Norms

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Feature Phones

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Feature Phones
•Limited Features
•Text and Voice Calls
•Few apps
•Became widespread over
time

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The arrival of smartphone cameras

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Google
Glass

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What was
different?
• Design and product launch
• Developer on-boarding failure
• Secrecy/Mystery/Exclusivity
Closed system
Too many features
Price

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Results
•Reduced play
•Confusion
•Speculation
•Fear

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Questions people asked me when I
wore Google Glass
caseorganic.com

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Compare to iPhone
Developer Launch
• Development tools available
before new hardware/OS released
• $99 fee
• Launch: many apps
• People had phones already

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Great design allows people to
accomplish their goals in the
least amount of moves

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Calm Technology allows people to
accomplish the same goals with the
least amount of mental cost

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A person's primary task
should not be computing, but
being human.

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More at calmtechnology.com!

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Thank you very much!
calmtechnology.com
caseorganic.com
Amber Case | @caseorganic
Director, Esri R&D Center Portland
!
MCE Conf
7 Feb 2015
Warsaw, Poland