physical web
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffwilcox/7151463717
imagining the
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64503243@N06/19020417214/
There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable.
There is another theory which states that this has already happened.
- Douglas Adams
“
https://www.flickr.com/photos/64503243@N06/19020417214/http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the web is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable.
There is another theory which states that this has already happened.
- Douglas Adams
“
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
I believe one of the reasons we keep debating whether the web is maybe or maybe not dying, is that we aren’t yet certain how to use it to its full potential.
Humans are actually pretty rubbish at predicting the potential of a technology. or how it may fit into their lives.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
Another example…
If this were the 1910s, we’d all be talking about what an amazing life we’d have if each of us could own one of these…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
…which kind of reminds me of the way we still often think of the web—as a thing you bolt on (to products, businesses or processes) rather than a thing that has the potential to drive, enhance or disrupt them.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
This presentation will explore the possibilities and opportunities of the physical web…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
…an initiative* to create an open standard that extends the web we know today into the physical world.
*started by Google, but open to everyone
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
I’m also hoping we can briefly consider what the web, the browser and the ecosystems we’ve built around them are really for.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
And not just what they’re for today—because what if—the web is still at that “a motor for every home” stage?
What if the uses and behaviours that will truly define it are just around the corner?
Image source: Wired
The number of smart devices is going to explode, and the assumption that each new device will require its own application just isn't realistic.
We need a system that lets anyone interact with any device at any time…[this] isn’t about replacing native apps, it’s about enabling interaction when native apps just aren't practical.
— Scott Jenson, Physical Web Lead, Google
“
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
How does the physical web work?
A thing that wirelessly broadcasts a URL: https://something.com
Software on a device that detects and displays the URL when a user requests it
http://www.flickr.com/photos/susanito/5447525972
the technology is pretty simple, and has just two main parts…
2
1
most often involves a small, low-power
Broadcasts data in the clear (i.e. anyone can see it) using BLE: the low-power version of Bluetooth
these days, broadcasting the URL
device called a beacon
Image source: Estimote
Coin battery operated and lasts up to several years
Many sizes and form factors
to broadcast URLs could soon be attached or embedded into all sorts of
smart and dumb things around us
Change my colour!
Understand how I work and where to recycle me
Check what materials i’m made of when Craigslisting me.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/naan/2398024748
…but if all goes well, the ability
Permanently broadcasts “I love you”
Turn me off from a distance
The software that detects and displays URLs currently pushes discovery to the lock screen (or Today Widget on iOS).
This is fine right now, as there’s only a few beacons around, but the intent is to build a URL “discovery” interface right into the browser*.
*…or in the case of Firefox OS, possibly the OS itself.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
So…how might browser-based discovery work?
Disclaimer: These concepts *feel* plausible from a product perspective, but were conceived without the help of Search engineers—some bits may therefore be implausible* :-) *…if you’re an engineer, we’d love to know which ones!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tamaleaver/6801803312
Haro Sushi and Izakayaharo-sushi.com - Yummy Japanese food
McDonaldsmcdonalds.ca - Robson - Open 24 hours
West End Neighbourhood Mapyvr-westend.ca - Map - What’s here, What’s On
Search or type URL
BEACONSRECENT
More nearby beacons
BEACONS BOOKMARKTOP SITES
Search or enter address
Haro Sushi and Izakayaharo-sushi.com
Hons on Robsonhons-noodles.com
Beacons are small devices that broadcast links to web sites. Tap here to learn more
Politely sneak physical web results into the browser by automatically displaying nearby beacons on the search home screen.
(This would work particularly well in UIs such as Firefox on Android as users don’t have to enter a keyword for content to populate each tab.)
low hanging fruit :-)
Beacons? Nearby?Something else?
17:24
Guu with Garlic - Guu Izakayaharo-sushi.com - Yummy Japanese food
Haro Sushi and Izakayaharo-sushi.com - Enjoy fresh suchi and grilled me...
Hons on Robsonhons-noodles.com - Extensive menu featuring Can...
BEACONSWEB IMAGES MAPS VIDEOS
Izakaya
Alternatively, users could type a keyword and view results by context.
(A potential challenge here is that the Beacon tab might often be empty—something that was common in the early days of the web, but is now almost unheard of.
A robust search engine could however use this opportunity to suggest alternate results e.g. no Izakaya, but maybe sushi or Thai street food.)
keyword-based search
Guu with Garlic - Guu Izakaya
guu-izakaya.com > robson
Mobile-friendly - Also called “Guu Robson”, this is
the second Guu to open. Discover delicious...
Rating: 9.2/10 = 96 votes - Price range: $$
McDonalds
mcdonalds.ca > robson
Popular times: Mondays
600 900 1200 1500 1800 2100 2400
West End Neighbourhood Map
yvrwest-end.com
17:24
BEACONSWEB IMAGES MAPS VIDEOS
Search engines already hold an index of content and associated metadata for URLs. If a beacon’s domain/URL is known, why not augment results with that indexed data?
•Known/indexed + knowledge graph: Site IA shortcuts, reviews, opening hours, related images (basically anything you currently see on a results “card”)
•Social graph: Further contextualised based on social relationships.
•Temporal/Proximal: Data that is particularly useful when nearby at given day/time.
augmentation
Guu with Garlic - Guu Izakayaharo-sushi.com - Yummy Japanese food
Haro Sushi and Izakayaharo-sushi.com - Enjoy fresh suchi and grilled me...
Hons on Robsonhons-noodles.com - Extensive menu featuring Can...
17:24
Always on top
Mute
Block
Report
BEACONSWEB IMAGES MAPS VIDEOS
Izakaya
Results are initially ordered by (approx.) distance/popularity/relevance. Users can then further personalise the output to improve productivity.
•Favourite: Always on top of the list even if farther away. e.g. favourite brands, frequently accessed objects at home/work.
•Mute: Not necessarily negative e.g. staff in a shop might mute objects they rarely use to further promote more common ones.
•Filter/Sort: Farthest, Newest/Oldest, Secure.Filter/Sort or more generic “search tools”
productivity/personalisation
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
If this degree of personalisation feels too high-maintenance, it’s maybe because search has (so far) mostly been a way to discover other people’s stuff.
Drat! Filius seems to have gone wandering again. Must send the
drone to check the river.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mckaysavage/7584239230
BEACONS BOOKMARKTOP SITES
Search or enter address
HarryMale - 2km walked
HermioneFemale - 1.3km walked
VoldemortMale - 2.2km walked
DumbledoreMale - 0.5km walked
DracoMale - 2.1km walked
BartemiusMale - 0.7km walked
6
(PS - the Netherlands have “Beaconized alpacas”!)
…instead of a dashboard for things you care about…a tool whose job is to assist you in
assembling highly-personalised yet meaningful results.
(so meaningful in fact that they may preclude leaving the query environment at all)
…but what if we’re still thinking too conservatively about what a browser or discovery service could be?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/boedker/2857091534
“…the watches glow and vibrate when you walk somewhere in the real world
that corresponds with somewhere inPokémon Go's virtual world”
Source: The Verge - Pokemon Go Plus hands on photos
https://www.flickr.com/photos/25958224@N02/8122856863
…an antenna implanted in his skull allows him to ‘hear’ the racks upon racks of brightly coloured packaging in the aisles as a sensor converts colour frequencies into sound.
- Vice: The Creator’s Project
“artist Neil Harbisson
Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" painted by Neil Harbisson.
which means Neil can listen to paintings…
TED: I listen to color
and also paint everything he hears.
Each colour is assigned an audible frequency,
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
So you’ve successfully located some beacons.
What happens once you click a URL?(…and why would you even bother to do so?)
Three potential scenarios…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
Scenario 1: Pure discovery (“A much smarter QR code”)
Scenario 2: Interact with moderately “smart” things
Scenario 3: Directly control an object
tadaslab on Instagram “Call a taxi” button attached to a tree #iot
“…the significance of technologies such as RFID and 2D barcoding is that they offer a low impact way to import physical objects into the datasphere—to endow them with an informational shadow.
- Adam Greenfield
Seriously? Is that it? That’s only marginally
more useful than typing a URL yourself, or just
googling it…
https://www.flickr.com/photos/neilghamilton/10389735244
url/greatKurdishFoodNearby
…unless you’re waaaaay at the backtop range for beacons is currently ~100m (300ft) and while a wider
smart poster
range will drain more power, this poster is powered, so that’s ok
https://www.flickr.com/photos/alsaarom/8258444009
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sfj/288526372
knowing a user is nearby is alsoan opportunity to augment content
Yikes, as you can see, we’re *really* busy!
There’s about a 20 minute wait, but our sister location Oishii still has three tables.
JOIN WAITLIST
SHOW ME OISHII
BOOK ANOTHER DAY
to suit their location
A few thoughts… • Remember the old debate about all the things “mobile users
won’t want to do”? (Hint: that list is super tiny)
• Once a user discovers a URL in the real world* there’s no reason they can’t bookmark it for later use.
• So…what (if anything) will users “NOT want to do” with that URL when they are no longer nearby?
*URLs that control physical things could make this question even more interesting (or, in some contexts—disturbing).
The fact that you maybe could provide identical functionality from anywhere brings up another question:
Should the URLs that you broadcast be new, or significantly different from the ones that users might encounter “on the web”?
there’s certainly benefit to mirroringa virtual architecture to its physical equivalent
https://www.flickr.com/photos/morebyless/14246207164
url/grandGallery
url/artDesign
url/artDesign
url/artDesign
url/naturalWorldurl/naturalWorld
url/naturalWorld
(you’re maybe doing this already, this just providesa new way to expose those relationships)
…then again, you could create local groupingsto reduce noise and information density
https://www.flickr.com/photos/crondeau/14314596362/
url/specialExhibitDouglasCoupland
url/thisDonutThingHereThatDougWantsHelpIdentifying
(while potentially retaining that density online)
Douglas Coupland, “The Brick Wall”, 2005/2014 assemblage with pieces from the following toys and various untraceable construction sets.
you could also attach URLs to “things”that only exist at a certain time, or
https://www.flickr.com/photos/morebyless/14246207164
Hi, i’m Narelle! Ask me anything about vikings, or join my class on Thursdays and Sundays at 14:00.
REGISTER
in a certain place
…which kinda’ brings us back to discovery.
Once exploring the web gains a more tangible form, will we begin to seek out far more exploratory experiences?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/boedker/2857091534
Once upon a time…web discovery provided a form of curation that reflected its creator’s personality.
Maybe it’s time we bring an element of curation back…?
Search engines could contain a collection of “helpers”, each with different moods, tastes, and proclivities to help us discover things in entirely different ways.
Animism as a metaphor for interaction design, by Phillip van Allen
Seeks attention, provokes and interrupts.
Extremely structured and organized, geeky
and persistent
Proud of finding new information, fast, short
attention span
Dwells on existing information, methodical,
focused, sometimes dreamy.
Mediator/wrangler/translator for the other
AniThings
THE PASSIVE WALLShy, displays it’s
own findings, but is often taken over by other AniThings.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
Scenario 1: Pure discovery (“A much smarter QR code”)
Scenario 2: Interact with moderately “smart” things
Scenario 3: Directly control an object
A brief “smart” device primer… Many “smart” devices we use these days* can be controlled using an app, but very rarely does the app “speak” directly to the thing.
*This will eventually change but for now we’re at the mercy of issues such as high power-consuming wi-fi radios, a lack of widespread iPV6 support and poor interoperability of low-power communication protocols.
2
1 you use the (native) app on your phone to issue a command—”make it blue!”
3 …and transmits (P2P) to the bulb
4…who then uses a mesh network to tell other bulbs that may be too far from the bridge
Instead…your app often communicates with the cloud, or a local hub (or bridge), which then relays the command to the smart device.
(This is just one example…with *many* variations on this theme)
…which the bridge in your house receives via wifi…
…extending this pattern to the physical web will enable us to create all sorts of rich and yet
casual scenarios that completely bypass the friction
of downloading an apphttps://www.flickr.com/photos/charlottemorrall/3778508426
GUMBOT Bet you don’t have a quarter? Am I right or am I right?
GUMBOT No sweat. How about one of these? That’ll be $0.25 please.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/neo_ii/7483010074
Now playing
LOGIN with SPOTIFY
VOTE FOR THE NEXT SONG
I Didn’t see it comingBelle and Sebastian
Monthly special for Spotify members.Log in to redeem your complementary virtual jukebox credit and choose a song we will play in the next 18 minutes.
simple, anonymous, low commitment interaction
higher commitment, but also higher reward
“smart” a thing must be, you may alsoalso want to reconsider the term “device”
(is the device the music system…or the café itself?)
…once you reconsider how
Interesting factoid: It costs about 3 million dollars to outfit a 767 with a seat-back entertainment system.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/charlottemorrall/3778508426
https://www.flickr.com/photos/charlottemorrall/3778508426
PS - Android users can even download the native app directly from the plane :-)
Air Canada Rouge recently replaced their seat-back system with a web app whose content is streamed from within the plane to a passenger’s personal device (or a rented iPad). Anyone with a browser can access the service—but passengers are incentivised to download the app to access premium content.
A few thoughts… • Many of the “apps” these URLs point to have barely anything to
do with the stuff that’s currently on that brand’s web site.
• They are single-purpose, designed for just-in-time-interaction and can therefore often be smaller and more lightweight.
• And if we assume* they will only/mostly be accessed on mobile, some could even be mobile-only.
*Assumptions are dangerous…but in many markets, this one stands a pretty decent chance of being correct.
Does my interaction with this flower pot require much more than a disembodied record-set?
[yes] [no] [maybe]
Source: Estimote Nearables
…instead of delivering a giant, multi-purpose container full of stuff you hope a user will want…
…you can focus on crafting small, carefully-curated bundles of experience that combine to tell a great story.
Source: The Verge
(or if you will…*much* better ads?)
Source: The Verge
https://www.flickr.com/photos/curious_e/10473440064
which is what’s starting to happen in Chinawith something called “light apps”
…small, fun, and beautifully designed single-purpose “sites” that are so intricately tied to just-in-time mobile discovery that brands rarely bother to even support larger screens*.
*which I don’t totally recommend, but there’s a big difference between “supporting” a context and fully optimising for it.
The main reason the desktop barely matters is that an increasing number of B2C (and C2C) interactions and transactions take place within a chat window that you deep-link into or out of from the web.
Source: Why Southeast Asia is Leading the world’s most disruptive business models
A few more thoughts… •How long before optimising* for the desktop becomes a liability?
•How long before just-in-time, context-based interactions are the only reliable way to attract and engage?
*as opposed to merely supporting
Source: Why Southeast Asia is Leading the world’s most disruptive business models
https://www.flickr.com/photos/crondeau/14314596362/
Douglas Coupland, “The Brick Wall”, 2005/2014 assemblage with pieces from the following toys and various untraceable construction sets.
What is this object? Where is it from? Share your ideas at #dougsDonutThing
Doug Coupland @douglascoupland
63%
37%
@douglascoupland
511 votes
A toilet float
A toy
url/thisDonutThingHereThatDougWantsHelpIdentifying
bundles of just-in-time, long-tailcontent and micro-interactions
as we exchange smaller and smaller
…it’s not clear we’ll alwaysneed to open an app* at all*native or otherwise—remember, notifications nowexist in the browser as well
url/starbucksBranch_0123
https://www.flickr.com/photos/130000572@N03/16285653016/
Receipt AvailableTipping available until 12:09
$0.50 $1.50 $2.00
11:20 AM
computer or your phone”
of a time before there were better ways“…websites are unnecessary vestiges
to find things to look at on your
- The Awl, The next internet is TV
https://www.flickr.com/photos/garryknight/6436100219
PS - Messaging may be eating websites…but i’m not certain it has to eat the web
https://www.flickr.com/photos/garryknight/6436100219
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
Scenario 1: “A much smarter QR code”
Scenario 2: Interact with moderately “smart” things
Scenario 3: Directly control an object
While still early days…a standardized open web JavaScript Bluetooth API is currently in the works.
This API will allow webpages to create direct connections to nearby Bluetooth devices.
The toy broadcasts a URL to a web page that, through JavaScript, directly connects to the toy via Bluetooth.
The interface enables you to personalise and configure the toy.
2
1
This will enable devices to offer advanced
interactions without the need for an internet
connection.
JS bluetooth enabled toyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwK3ccOJ6EY
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ducdigital/2892313560
A few final thoughts…
Each of these examples, taken by itself, is modestly useful. Taken as a whole, however, they imply a vast "long tail" where anything can offer information and utility.
— Scott Jenson, Google“
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jsome1/1243493095
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nnova/16527031431
Affordances: the actionable properties between the world and an actor…[they] are a part of nature: they do not have to be visible, known, or desirable. Some affordances are yet to be discovered…”
— Don Norman
“
Photo of Sniff by Timo Arnall on Flickr, used with permission
Sniff - the RFID enabled toy dog
The future promises to be full of wonderful and mysterious things whose physical form may not always hint at the opportunity-space they present.
As designers, it will be our job to mediate and enable the discovery of these hidden capabilities. To render the virtual tangible, and expose the hidden meanings and opportunities within physical things.
Photo of Sniff by Timo Arnall on Flickr, used with permission
speaker
RFID reader
vibration motor
battery
vibration motor
This is what I believe the web was truly meant for…
(…even if it maybe took a while for it to reveal itself)
Immaterials: Light Painting Wi-fi explored the invisible terrain of WiFi networks in urban spaces by light painting signal strength in long-exposure photographs.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/michale/147584173/
The web isn’t a page, a platform, a destination, or an activity—its a universal tool for us to explore, hack and shape our world.
What if you could bump into data? Hold it in your hand as easily as
holding a cup? Brendan Dawes, Data as an object
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tinou/453593446
thank you
many thanks to the amazing photographers on
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5
@yiibu
[email protected] us at
Presentation deck available @ http://www.slideshare.net/yiibu