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INTERACTION DESIGN PRINCIPLES FOR INTERACTIVE ...

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CHAPTER 2<br />

BROAD CATEGORIES OF ITV PROGRAMMING – BY PLAT<strong>FOR</strong>M<br />

2.1 INTRODUCTION<br />

There are many ways to approach the categorization of iTV programming. I have<br />

chosen to do so by two methods: by platform, and by television genres and programming.<br />

It seems worthwhile to sort iTV programming in the United States by platforms because<br />

so many exist. In fact, the lack of platform standardization is one of the main challenges<br />

facing iTV today. The industry has attempted to introduce interactivity into every kind of<br />

platform with both success and failure. But are all platforms conducive to interactivity?<br />

How do different platforms afford different types of interactivity? It seems useful, in<br />

beginning with a platform-based approach, to identify the affordances and constraints of<br />

each platform.<br />

The affordances of a system can be both real and perceived. Real affordances<br />

entail all actions that are possible to perform on a system. Perceived affordances are what<br />

actions the user perceives to be possible. According to Donald Norman, in graphical,<br />

screen-based interfaces, the designer primarily can only control perceived affordances.<br />

That is, while a user can click anytime he/she wants to, the real question is: Does the user<br />

perceive that clicking on that location is a meaningful, useful action to perform? (1999).<br />

Constraints, on the other hand, fall into three categories: physical, logical, and cultural.<br />

Physical constraints are closely tied to real affordances (e.g., it is impossible to move the<br />

cursor outside the screen). Logical constraints, which use reasoning to determine the<br />

alternatives, are valuable in guiding behavior. Finally, cultural constraints are<br />

conventions shared by a cultural group (Norman, 1999). According to Norman, “A<br />

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