CONCLUSIONS
Based on our experiences with the notion of awareness, we have designed, implemented, and brought into a use a prototype system to support lightweight awareness- gathering in distributed work groups. We have extended several of the notions from earlier awareness interfaces (Polyscope and Imager) to support a distributed work group, to expand the underlying system architecture, and to begin studying the use of the system in daily work activities. In looking at the feedback from our users and their patterns of usage of this system, we’re pleased by the number of people who frequently use pvc and/or edison and by the ways in which they are using it.
Our user observations suggest that awareness may be a useful basis for community access (an information tool, especially for locating colleagues) and for community building (a shared space for “sightings” and personal snippets). In particular, this second usage helps maintain working relationships in a group which would otherwise have few direct interactions.
Our experiences with Portholes suggest that awareness across distance has meaning, that it can lead positively toward communications and interactions, and perhaps most importantly, that it can contribute to a shared sense of community. Furthermore, systems like Portholes show the potential for media spaces and electronic networks as environments for collaboration in low bandwidth situations.
3. A full display of all available images takes almost all of a 17- inch screen, although other windows can be placed on top of it.
We expect the continued use, development, and evaluation of the Portholes system to contribute to a greater understanding of the nature of awareness and the support of distributed work groups.