Magic Lab's blog

Think about how often you read text (hint: you're doing it right now).  Consider often you write text, and yes, email counts.  Text is the de rigeur agent of interaction on the Internet.  Even with the rise of digital multimedia, text is still the regent of digital communication.

Now think about how often you view video (including television).  Again, it's probably quite frequently.  But consider how often you create video.  Even among those that work in the digital multimedia domain, the number of people that create video is minute.

Yet, both capturing and sharing video has never been easier.  Video capture cameras are becoming increasingly common in cell phones.  Nokia is the world's largest digital camera manufacturer, eclipsing even single-purpose digital cameras.  Additionally, Internet content-distribution systems like YouTube and GoogleVideo make sharing media with others simple and virtually cost-free.  Despite all of this, the gulf between content consumers and content authors is as expansive as ever.  Why are so few of us inclined to create media, especially video?

Being wired into the Internet and mobile technology here at UBC, I wonder how my life would be different if I grew up with mobile phones, digital cameras, and the Internet. Would I be able to multi-task better, would I be a more critical thinker, and would I view my mobile phone more as a fashion accessory rather than a practical device?

Last weekend I came across articles and studies that discuss how mobile phones companies are beginning to focus on the 'tweens market (those between 8 - 12 or 9-13 years) as the current market penetration for this segment of society is quite small. Mobile telecommunication companies may see this as an opportunity to instill brand loyalty at an early age.

I am a Computer Science Masters student at UBC working in the MAGIC lab and we are looking at whether or not mobile phones are useful in the home as well as when people are on the go.   Lots of people have thought that mobile phones would be a useful mechanism for controlling all of our 'smart' appliances in the home, but what about using your mobile phone as a secondary display for your TV as well as a controller?  

Let's say you and family just got back from a trip to the museum.  All of you have your photos and video from the day on your mobiles and as you enter the living room you are asked if you want to share your photos on the large TV.   You all decide to go through your photos on your phones and pick the best ones to keep in the family photo album.  You go through the photos on the phone and share the best ones with your family on the large display.   There are a couple of important ideas here.  One is you are bringing in content on your phone and you want to share it with others and second you are completing private tasks on your phone so you do not have to share everything all at once.

Recently I was "working" at one of the many coffee shops that have sprouted up at UBC (Phillip and Matt know which one).

I was trying out one the cool new N80 cell phones that Nokia lent the MAGIC lab and musing about how cool it is to capture high quality photos with this phone, and share them with friends and family on Flikr. I was also thinking of some of the research Matt and Nicole are doing in our lab related to the interactions with small (smart phone) and large displays in the home. Wouldn't it be cool to use public situated displays to share photos from your cell phone with your friends? Here's a simple scenario:

My name is Phillip Jeffrey.  I am one of a number of writers based in MAGIC that will be sharing with you something about our research or research-related interests. I am a Masters student in Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of British Columbia. My interests include pervasive games, location-based technologies, ethnography, and culture. 

Today while I was sitting in front of our residence fireplace while snow fell outside, I tried without success to use my mobile phone.  At the time the network was working intermittently perhaps due to the power outage.  It was also by chance I came across an article from the Chicago Tribute about how Africans are being empowered through mobile phones.  I realised how little I hear about Africa and mobile technology and I thought it would be useful to bring to light how their society is being affected by mobile phones today.