Thermostate Discussion
Contexts of User
Sally (intermittent user): Sally has been away for three weeks and has just arrived at her home airport. She thinks about how hot it is and then remembers that she turned off her air conditioning at home before she left. She thinks about how hot her apartment will be when she arrives. In thinking of what she can do, she remembers that her phone has an app for remotely accessing her AC. She opens the app and turns it on, thinking that all other settings are already in place for her.
George (frequent user): George is driving home after a weekend getaway that he takes almost every weekend. It's a four hour drive. As his regular routine, he knows that he wants to turn up the heat to 68 degree in three hours (180 minutes), which he takes care of before he starts driving.
Protoype Discussion
Questions
- What is the time cost in constructing a code-based prototype?
- What information does this prototype convey that other prototypes don't?
- How does working with a code-based prototype support or detract from producing an effective design?
Design Analysis Questions
- Which theories are helpful for analyzing Sally's interaction? George's interaction?
- What do the goal stacks look like for Sally and George? How do they control their behavior?
- Are interruptions likely to occur? How about for more complex monitoring?