Papers by Damian Schofield
Journal of Software Engineering and Simulation, 2024
Web-based public reporting by means of dashboards became an essential tool for governments worldw... more Web-based public reporting by means of dashboards became an essential tool for governments worldwide to monitor COVID-19 information and communicate it to the public during the pandemic. The purpose of such dashboards was to deliver specific information that individuals needed. There was a significant usability requirement, were the correct information needed to be placed onto the display at the right time and in a manner that could be easily understood. This paper assesses a number of popular dashboards and provides guidelines on improvements for future use.
Art and Design Review, 2024
Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) focuses on user-centered design, which
leads towards innovative ... more Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) focuses on user-centered design, which
leads towards innovative yet user-friendly technologies. This field overlaps
with User Experience (UX) Designer and Research. The main difference is the theoretical foundation of HCI, which heavily weighs on psychology, principles, and theories. Color is an essential aspect of art and design; often designers overlook the connotations associated with color. This paper intends to connect the fields of color psychology and HCI, thus explaining how professionals in the field can utilize the advantages of this framework. To study the effects of color within the realm of digital interface design, an experiment was under-taken with the goal of increasing user session time. A hypothesis was derived by assessing demographics, preferences, and trends despite color being traditionally perceived as innately subjective. The data collected from the experiment demonstrated that yellow shades of blue, in combination with a noninvasive color scheme (such as dark mode), can increase the time users spend browsing a webpage.
Twenty-six students from a sixth grade math class in Upstate New York received guardian approval ... more Twenty-six students from a sixth grade math class in Upstate New York received guardian approval to participate in a study that gathered data pertaining to student navigation ability, information retrieval ability, and satisfaction in regards to the Learning Management System (LMS) their school utilized. Data collection began with the researchers attending math classes for observation and to conduct cognitive walkthroughs with the students to gather information about their experiences and navigation through the LMS. An eye tracker and the associated eye tracking software were utilized to monitor and detect patterns of eye movements when the students were looking at a device screen. For this study, students were monitored by the eye tracker while they attempted to complete several tasks from the experiment. By measuring the length of time taken by students as they completed tasks on the LMS, quantitative data can be collected and used later in the experiment. After analyzing the time metrics and the eye tracking data produced and feedback given on the questionnaire distributed at the beginning of the experiment, a targeted LMS page was slightly modified in hopes to increase the effectiveness of the page, based on user interface design standards. Well defined organization, accessibility, and usability in an LMS is essential to allow learners to focus to be on their curriculums, and not how to access their assignments. An in-depth analysis of navigation through an LMS will allow for a better understanding of how users interact with the structure of their curriculum in an electronic format. The study described in this paper intended to address the question of whether an LMS used in an elementary school setting can provide users with an interface that optimizes the accessibility and usability of their class materials.
International Journal of Multimedia and Its Applications, 2024
This paper focuses on the significance of culturally tailored digital products for Arabic-speakin... more This paper focuses on the significance of culturally tailored digital products for Arabic-speaking users, examining how cultural relevance influences user satisfaction and engagement. This research study aimed to provide guidelines for incorporating cross-cultural designs in interfaces for Arabic-speaking users. Utilizing Hofstede's cultural dimensions as a framework, the study employs A/B testing, surveys, and interviews to reveal the importance of cultural inclusivity in interface design. The finding of this research demonstrated that the ease of understanding and interaction with digital products varies for native Arabic speakers and that feature and functionality requirements differ based on users' nationality. This, in turn, highlighted the pivotal role of culturally adapted UI/UX in improving user experience, advocating for digital products that are both empathetic and inclusive. By emphasizing cultural considerations, this research contributes to the broader discourse on creating user-centric digital environments that resonate with a diverse global audience, aiming to enhance connectivity between brands and their diverse user bases.
Courtroom environments, which have been one of the last bastions of the oral tradition, are slowl... more Courtroom environments, which have been one of the last bastions of the oral tradition, are slowly morphing into cinematic display environments. The persuasive oral rhetoric of lawyers is increasingly being replaced by compelling visual media displays presenting a range of digital evidence in a convincing and credible manner. The types of visual media being introduced into courtrooms around the world pose challenges to those using and viewing such evidence. Fundamental implications inherent in the shift from oral to visual mediation and the multiple facets of contemporary evidence presentation technology need to be investigated and analysed. Interactive virtual environments need to be accurate and presented in a form that jury members and other triers of fact can trust. Projects such as the Sydney Bomber study are moving towards providing useful guidelines for developers of such reconstructions and ensuring that in the future, this technology is used appropriately.
Computer and Information Science, 2021
Video games, and especially roleplaying games offer a way for players to escape stress and cope w... more Video games, and especially roleplaying games offer a way for players to escape stress and cope with stressors. Video games are a new, and potentially unique, mechanism for telling stories. They allow a player to not only interact with a world, but to fully immerse themselves in a digital world. Being able to quite literally escape to a fantasy world where your actions matter, and you"re given control can be a great form of self-therapy for players. This study aims to examine the results of a global pandemic and quarantine on player motivations and the reasons they play video games. The study collected detailed information on the video games genres and play time of each user and how it has been affected during self-isolation. Participants were also asked a series of questions that required them to evaluate their gaming habits both prior to and during the pandemic. This information was analysed to attempt to further understand players choices, in particular during a pandemic whe...
Forensic facial reconstruction is a means for producing a facial surface from the skull. There ar... more Forensic facial reconstruction is a means for producing a facial surface from the skull. There are several technical approaches that can be applied, which include computerised and plastic sculptural methods. Whether the reconstruction is attempted in virtual or actual reality, the facial surface is projected by one of two principal means: by reconstruction of the craniofacial anatomy or by mathematical extrapolation of the face surface from that of the skull. More recently, it has been possible via a combination of the two. In this chapter, the history of facial reconstruction from the skull will be briefly introduced and the principal methods described. Both plastic and computational approaches will be summarised. The utility of forensic facial reconstruction will be discussed with reference to the investigation of cases of missing persons, and to current controversies in research and practice, relating to the precision and efficacy of the technique.
Sbc Journal on Interactive Systems, May 29, 2012
Advanced 3D virtual environment technology, similar to that used by the film and computer games i... more Advanced 3D virtual environment technology, similar to that used by the film and computer games industry can allow educational developers to rapidly create realistic 3D, virtual environments. This technology has been used to generate a range of interactive learning environments across a broad spectrum of industries and educational application areas. Virtual Reality (VR) simulators represent a powerful tool for learning and teaching. The idea is not new. Flight simulators have been used for decades to train pilots for both commercial and military aviation. These systems have advanced to a point that they are integral to both the design and the operation of modern aircraft [1, 2]. There are a number of lessons that can be learned from other industries that have successfully utilised virtual training and learning systems for a number of years. Generic rules of thumb regarding the specification, development, application and operation of these learning environments can be garnered from other industrial training systems and examined in an educational context [3, 4, 5]. This paper will introduce a virtual learning environment which has been developed by the authors. During the implementation of this, and other, visual learning environments a number of complex operational problems have been encountered, these have required a number of innovative solutions and management procedures to be developed. The paper will also discuss the implementation of these systems and extrapolate the lessons learnt into general guidelines to be considered for the development of VR based educational learning resources. These guidelines will then be discussed in the context of the development of ViRILE (Virtual Reality Interactive Learning Environment). This software is designed for use by undergraduate chemical engineers and simulates the configuration and operation of a polymerisation plant.
This study investigates the classroom integration of an innovative technology, augmented reality.... more This study investigates the classroom integration of an innovative technology, augmented reality. Although the process of adding new technologies into a classroom setting can be daunting, the concept of augmented reality has demonstrated the ability to educate students and to assist with their comprehension of a procedural task. One half of the students of a sixth grade class were exposed to augmented reality technology when they were assigned the procedural task of building Lego™ robots. As a control group, the other half of the class learned how to construct their robots using only the static paper manual that was provided by the manufacturer of the robot kit. The students who experienced the augmented reality technology did so by interacting with an animated version of the same static manual where they observed video tutorials that were overlaid onto the static manual to provide an augmented representation of each step. This technology solution was developed using the Aurasma™ augmented reality application which ran on Apple iPads™. Results have indicated that the students who used the animated manual to learn the procedural task showcased significantly higher comprehension scores when compared to those who only used the static manual. Our findings support the claims that the integration of augmented reality into a classroom setting may be beneficial to student learning.
Analyzing Art, Culture, and Design in the Digital Age, 2015
As computer-driven display technology becomes more powerful and accessible, the online, virtual a... more As computer-driven display technology becomes more powerful and accessible, the online, virtual art gallery may provide a new platform for artists to exhibit their work. Virtual exhibits may afford opportunities for both the artist and the patron to display, view and perhaps purchase various digital art forms. The aim of this paper is to examine user interaction with digital artworks inside a virtual gallery space. We use a range of criteria to describe conditions for both the designer and the user of such a virtual display system. The paper describes a number of experiments where users interacted with a virtual art gallery and were then extensively interviewed and surveyed. Measures of what Manovich (2002) describes as ‘immersion' and what Slater et al (1994) would term ‘presence' are observed in relation to the user experience. The gallery is a three-dimensional graphic digital construction built in Second Life. The experiment aimed to describe and delineate the user's...
One recent application of virtual reality technology is the creation of virtual art galleries. Th... more One recent application of virtual reality technology is the creation of virtual art galleries. These allow artists and enthusiasts to showcase works in an accessible, online environment and are usually free to access. The aim of this research project is to analyze virtual art representations in an online, three-dimensional graphic environment. Specifically the research aims to discern how viewing art through these environments relates to the user experience. The representation of art in virtual environments is also examined to increase our understanding of the spectrum of reality/virtuality in media presentations. This chapter describes a series of experiments involving 24 participants who experienced virtual artworks in multiple gallery environments and utilizing different viewing perspectives. Key terms are initially defined and introduced during a discussion of virtual worlds. The chapter then provides and analysis of the data recorded and gathered during user-testing and experim...
In the world portrayed by television programmes such as Silent Witness and CSI: Crime Scene Inves... more In the world portrayed by television programmes such as Silent Witness and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, the role of the forensic experts is depicted as exciting, adventurous, maybe even a bit dangerous. In real life, of course, this is several degrees away from the truth. However, as anyone who has attend a school careers evening recently can confirm, this glamorous media image is proving to be one of the primary inspirations for young people to seek out more information on forensic science from biomedical scientists attending such events.
Virtual Reality (VR) simulators represent a powerful tool for training humans to perform tasks wh... more Virtual Reality (VR) simulators represent a powerful tool for training humans to perform tasks which are otherwise expensive or dangerous to duplicate in the real world. The idea is not new; flight simulators have been used for decades to train pilots for both commercial and military aviation. These systems have advanced to a point that they are integral to both the design and the operation of modern aircraft
Advanced 3D virtual environment technology, similar to that used by the film and computer games i... more Advanced 3D virtual environment technology, similar to that used by the film and computer games industry can allow educational developers to rapidly create realistic 3D, virtual environments. This technology has been used to generate a range of interactive learning environments across a broad spectrum of industries and educational application areas. Virtual Reality (VR) simulators represent a powerful tool for learning and teaching. The idea is not new. Flight simulators have been used for decades to train pilots for both commercial and military aviation. These systems have advanced to a point that they are integral to both the design and the operation of modern aircraft [1, 2]. There are a number of lessons that can be learned from other industries that have successfully utilised virtual training and learning systems for a number of years. Generic rules of thumb regarding the specification, development, application and operation of these learning environments can be garnered from other industrial training systems and examined in an educational context [3, 4, 5, 6, 7]. This paper will introduce a virtual learning environment which has been developed by the authors. During the implementation of this, and other, visual learning environments a number of complex operational problems have been encountered, these have required a number of innovative solutions and management procedures to be developed. The paper will also discuss the implementation of these systems and extrapolate the lessons learnt into general guidelines to be considered for the development of VR based educational learning resources. These guidelines will then be discussed in the context of the development of ViRILE (Virtual Reality Interactive Learning Environment). This software is designed for use by undergraduate chemical engineers and simulates the configuration and operation of a polymerisation plant [4].
This paper will introduce and discuss a range of techniques that utilise the new developments in ... more This paper will introduce and discuss a range of techniques that utilise the new developments in computer graphics and virtual reality for the investigation of incidents and accidents in mining environments. It will explain how the future of mining safety may not be totally led by the demands of the mine operators, but sometimes by the academics, commercial software developers and legal pioneers who generate new ideas and products and set admissibility precedents which may change the way certain traditional investigative operations are performed.
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Papers by Damian Schofield
leads towards innovative yet user-friendly technologies. This field overlaps
with User Experience (UX) Designer and Research. The main difference is the theoretical foundation of HCI, which heavily weighs on psychology, principles, and theories. Color is an essential aspect of art and design; often designers overlook the connotations associated with color. This paper intends to connect the fields of color psychology and HCI, thus explaining how professionals in the field can utilize the advantages of this framework. To study the effects of color within the realm of digital interface design, an experiment was under-taken with the goal of increasing user session time. A hypothesis was derived by assessing demographics, preferences, and trends despite color being traditionally perceived as innately subjective. The data collected from the experiment demonstrated that yellow shades of blue, in combination with a noninvasive color scheme (such as dark mode), can increase the time users spend browsing a webpage.
leads towards innovative yet user-friendly technologies. This field overlaps
with User Experience (UX) Designer and Research. The main difference is the theoretical foundation of HCI, which heavily weighs on psychology, principles, and theories. Color is an essential aspect of art and design; often designers overlook the connotations associated with color. This paper intends to connect the fields of color psychology and HCI, thus explaining how professionals in the field can utilize the advantages of this framework. To study the effects of color within the realm of digital interface design, an experiment was under-taken with the goal of increasing user session time. A hypothesis was derived by assessing demographics, preferences, and trends despite color being traditionally perceived as innately subjective. The data collected from the experiment demonstrated that yellow shades of blue, in combination with a noninvasive color scheme (such as dark mode), can increase the time users spend browsing a webpage.
Our research investigates the use of various AR technologies within cultural heritage applications. Specifically, we conducted multiple experiments at a historic fort in upstate New York, evaluating the impact of digital display technology on site visitors. By analyzing user experiences, we aimed to understand how AR enhances cultural exploration and engagement.
Key areas of focus include:
• Usability Factors: We examined how visitors interacted with AR applications, considering ease of use, navigation, and overall satisfaction.
• Human-Computer Interaction: Understanding how users engage with AR interfaces and interpret historical content.
• Evaluation: Assessing the effectiveness of AR displays in conveying cultural heritage information.
Our findings contribute to the ongoing discourse on leveraging AR for cultural preservation and education. By bridging the gap between physical artifacts and virtual imagery, AR can enrich visitors’ understanding of historical contexts. As museums and heritage sites continue to embrace digital technologies, thoughtful design and evaluation are crucial for creating meaningful and immersive experiences.
In summary, this research sheds light on the potential of AR to augment cultural exploration, enhance visitor engagement, and breathe new life into historical narratives. By blending technology and heritage, we pave the way for a more dynamic and accessible appreciation of our shared past.
Key words: Cultural Heritage, Augmented Reality, User Experience, Human Computer Interaction, Evaluation, Fort Ontario.