Major Studio | INTERFACE : Final Project Design Brief II

Problem Statement
Daily life is filled with judgmental commentary. We encounter this judgment and meanness both in the media and in conversation with others. Oftentimes it is veiled in the humor of a sharply honed wit, yet even with this measure of amusement it can impact an individual’s emotional outlook dramatically. I would venture to say that each of us has both been guilty of making such comments and been victim to them. Even so, would we choose to change? If given the opportunity to build up or tear someone down would we really pick the path of positivism over the allure of mean humor?

Context Analysis
Compliment Machine by Tom Greaves
http://www.wpadc.org/events/siteprojectsdc.html
http://www.gadling.com/2007/08/04/washington-dc-compliment-box-you-smell-good/
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=3405997
The Compliment Machine was a project by artist Tom Greaves for the Washington Project for the Arts by the Corcoran Gallery. This project focuses on providing a kind word for passersby.

HumorDoctorMD Blog
Speaks to personal experiences with negative humor. Thought provoking to read this very open account of his thoughts on the subject. He outlines a number of specific items that the general public find humorous (or at least are presented as humorous by film and tv). Although this makes sense on paper… can we as a culture really cease to find humor in these topics? And is this really necessary?
http://www.humordoctormd.homestead.com/negativesideofhumor.html

Sissy Fight
http://www.sissyfight.com/
“SiSSYFiGHT 2000 is, like, an intense war between a bunch of girls who are all out to ruin each other’s popularity and self-esteem. The object is to physically attack and majorly dis your enemies until they are totally mortified beyond belief. You’ll never come out on top without making the right friends, so be careful who you’re nice to. Because in the end, only the shrewdest will survive with their social status intact!” -exerpt from the website

User Profile
University students ages 18-27. This user will be relatively well-educated and a part of the web media culture. The user will be used to websites being referenced in and will not hesitate to follow up by visiting the site and participating when prompted.

Solution
Create a physical experience where the user will be faced with either a positive or negative comment. Film the user being told their comment to provide evidence of reactions. The video of this interaction would be fed through a streaming web cam to a website where participants are invited to vote on whether the commentary should be negative or positive. In addition, the user of the website would be invited to contribute comments of their own whether they be positive or negative.

Desired “Walkaway” Requirements
User to have heightened awareness of judgment and “meanness”. Self-reflection to motivate user to be aware of the effects of these comments. Opportunity to interact by contribution and choose the climate of commentary.

Technical Requirements
Perfect system: Web cam with streaming video, voting system on website,
Mock system: Have a few of elements live and working and others simulated to carry point across

Schedule
Week 1, Nov 5 & 7: Developing Idea, Planning

Week 2, Nov 12&14: Concept, Research, Refine

Week 3, Nov 19&21: Develop, Wireframe, Rapid Prototype (with User Testing)

Week 4, Nov 26&28: Build

Week 5, Dec 3&5: Build and User Test

Week 6, Dec 10&12: User Test, Develop Presentation

Week 7, Dec 17&19: FINAL PRESENTATIONS

Keywords:
Negative Humor, Meanness, Judgement, Commentary, Teasing