Interaction Design I:

“Information Interaction Design: A Unified Field Theory of Design,” by Nathan Shedroff

Information interaction design is the intersection of three disciplines: information design, interaction design, and sensorial design. Information design deals with transforming data into valuable and meaningful information, while interaction design is involved the creation of user experiences and is likened to storytelling. Sensorial design is the use of all techniques used to communicate to others through the senses, such as writing, graphic design, typography, and cinematography. It is essential that designers understand the important issues surrounding each discipline so that they can be employed correctly when communicating messages.

Information Design: The Understanding Spectrum describes how data must be manipulated and presented for learners to extract meaning from it. The stages of the spectrum are as follows:

Data - Information - Knowledge - Wisdom

Data must be organized, transformed and presented to have meaning and be of value. Such data that has undergone this transformation is known as information. Information is transformed into knowledge through interaction design, as it is largely participatory and acquired through integration of both the presentation and the mind of the audience. Wisdom is more abstract and personal than other levels of the spectrum. Little research exists on the ability of designers to facilitate wisdom acquisition.

Organization techniques to transform data into information include the following. It is advantageous for designers to employ multiple organization techniques to allow learners to locate the information according to how they learn best.

• Alphabets
• Locations
• Time or sequence
• Continuums
• Numbers
• Categories
• Randomness

Interaction Design: The Interaction Spectra lists properties which are characteristic of an interactive environment. These properties include the following:

• Feedback
• Control
• Creativity/Co-Creativity (i.e. creation tools)
• Productivity
• Communications
• Adaptivity- where the participant shapes the outcome

The article was helpful in understanding that a successful learning environment's design involves a critical blend of information and interaction design. For learners to locate and take advantage of information, it must be organized in an easily navigable environment. It is critical that new learners and repeat visitors are both equally able to achieve their learning goals by accessing the content they need efficiently. Having multiple data organization can help facilitate this goal. At the same time, because knowledge acquisition is participatory, learning environments must support interactivity. The Interaction Spectra includes a nice checklist that designers can follow to ensure that their learning environments support interactivity and learner participation. While not all learning environments will include all of these factors, each learning experience should involve at least one of the factors included in the Spectra to be deemed interactive.