Abstract
The operational differences which result from using different electronic communication media and its impact on generic design skills have been the basis for the research reported in this paper. The outcome of this research is the development and mapping of generic skills profiles for virtual design teams and the designers who work in them. The research findings also identify changes in generic skills profiles between the traditional mode of team design as well as the different operational states of current and future ICT environments. This paper examines design team activities, processes and skills occurring in co-located environments and links these with those of virtual teams. This is achieved by documenting the results of analyses of video data of designers involved in collaborative design using various ICT technologies, ranging from traditional co-located systems to high bandwidth 3D virtual worlds. The analyses identify that ‘appropriate generic skills’ are necessary when interacting and collaborating using different electronic media and this study presents a case for ongoing research into the area of generic skills within virtual design teams.
Keywords
case study, collaborative design research, technical communication, participatory design (cooperative space), communication, coordination and collaboration in groups
Citation
Williams, A., Sher, W., Bellamy, T., and Gameson, R. (2006) What it Takes to Design in the Virtual World, in Friedman, K., Love, T., Côrte-Real, E. and Rust, C. (eds.), Wonderground - DRS International Conference 2006, 1-4 November, Lisbon, Portugal. https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/drs-conference-papers/drs2006/researchpapers/84
What it Takes to Design in the Virtual World
The operational differences which result from using different electronic communication media and its impact on generic design skills have been the basis for the research reported in this paper. The outcome of this research is the development and mapping of generic skills profiles for virtual design teams and the designers who work in them. The research findings also identify changes in generic skills profiles between the traditional mode of team design as well as the different operational states of current and future ICT environments. This paper examines design team activities, processes and skills occurring in co-located environments and links these with those of virtual teams. This is achieved by documenting the results of analyses of video data of designers involved in collaborative design using various ICT technologies, ranging from traditional co-located systems to high bandwidth 3D virtual worlds. The analyses identify that ‘appropriate generic skills’ are necessary when interacting and collaborating using different electronic media and this study presents a case for ongoing research into the area of generic skills within virtual design teams.