communicating with each other. In short, technologies do not necessarily ‘solve problems’ for users in the way they used to, say, 20-30 years ago, but increasingly are able to fulfil many other kinds of interests, desires or ambitions. In recognition of the way computer use is changing, a number of researchers and practitioners have begun studying the nature of the ‘user experience’ and how it unfolds over time. This has largely involved defining its subjective qualities, such as what interacting with a device, like an MP3 player or a pet robot, feels like to use. Concepts such as pleasure, aesthetics, fun and flow, on the one hand, and boredom, annoyance and intrusiveness, on the other, have been used to describe the multifaceted nature of such ‘felt’ experiences. In addition, HCI specialists have modelled how we respond to technology from a visceral or emotional level through to a conscious, reflective one. They have also described the whole life-cycle of our response to technology, from when it first grabs our attention and entices us, through to our ongoing relationship with that technology. These alternative ways of conceptualising users’ experience have opened many doors and new possibilities for design and research, especially for the way we understand individuals and individual experience. In contrast, human values extend these notions about the individual to conceptions about what is desirable within a culture or a society. Values such as privacy, health, ownership, fair play and security are increasingly incorporated in the design of ubiquitous technologies. Members of society have their own views on which values they desire and treasure. Most often these values are not made explicit, but nonetheless they drive our behaviour both as individuals and as a society. But making judgements about new computer technologies and how they will affect us is not straightforward. Computers may help us recollect the past; equally, it might be important for us to forget. They can help us be connected to others, but by the same token, it may be important that they allow us sometimes to be isolated. Likewise, computers can support our industriousness, but at other times, we may want to ‘switch off’ and be restful. Technologies can be designed specifically to support certain values, such as enabling people to express themselves, to demonstrate their affection to others, to nurture and to reassure family members. They can also be designed inadvertently to violate human values such as trust, privacy and a sense of fairness. Taking into account the scope of human values, therefore, is quite a different undertaking than seeking to attain the design goals of efficiency, effectiveness and utility. Design trade-offs need to be considered not just in terms of time and errors, but in terms of the weighing up of the various moral, personal and social impacts on the various parties who will be affected by the proposed technology