Technology: A speak&spell toy (I will post the picture, please apply to the PowerPoint I provide)
Introduction. Provide a description of the technology. What does it look like? What is it made of? How heavy is it? And so forth. An annotated picture, visually indicating key functionality, is required here. For example, you could indicate where important buttons are located (among other things). If you did not take a picture of your own, you may download one.
What problem or problems does the technology promise to remedy? When addressing this question, you must be specific. Don’t just say “it’s supposed to make things better”; instead, explain the need it is supposed to meet. Your answer must consider both the user’s perspective, and the designer’s. (They may not always be the same.)
Why do these problem(s) exist? This is a question of root causes. For example, if in your prior answer you suggested that the technology makes a difficult task easier, here you need to provide evidence that existing alternatives are hard to use.
How does the technology address these problem(s)? Having explained the problem and its source, you must now explain how this product improves the situation. Continuing the example above, how is the new technology going to make the task easier?
Assessment. Does the interactive technology you evaluated demonstrate an effective understanding of the problem space? Justify this assessment by juxtaposing your answers the previous three questions to the qualities of a well-defined problem space (as described in class and the textbook). Close with a summary of your overall assessment of the product’s responsiveness to the problem space.
Sample Solution
