-Tactics and Concepts for Highly Mobile People

sharing at the same time merge closer together in order to listen to the same content. The
informants were asked to upload music to the system and play it through ML.
6.2.5. Evaluation and themes within MusicLink
The evaluation of ML is more thorough than of ALC as we have developed a stable
prototype that has undergone multiple design loops. The following evaluation illuminates
different elements in the prototype concerning communication through music, the role of
sending and sharing a song, the importance of real time, the differences between a one-­‐to-­‐
one communication or multi user system and lastly I discuss designing for serendipity.
The home and music listening has become a very intimate and private affair. Are people
interested in making it social and how is that done best for the domestic sphere? I
propose MusicLink as a technology probe to approach the future of social music listening
in remote locations.
The study is structured in three steps with each user: Initial interview about music
consumption and social aspects of music listening and communication with others in the
study asked in an open-­‐ended way. Second step was two weeks of testing with logging of
the actions taking place in the system. Third step is then the follow up interview asked in
an open-­‐ended way, concerning the usage of the prototype and exploring how it has
affected communication and music listening. The interviews have been voice recorded,
transcribed and analyzed through line-­‐by-­‐line coding and affinity diagrams.
The study was carried out in 4 different setups:
1. A family with young children sharing with a remote family (Age: mid 30s)
2. A couple living apart Denmark-­‐Norway (Age: in mid 20s)
3. Two teenage twins sharing with each other (Age: 15)
4. A couple sharing between work locations (Age: early 30s)
All in all 10 participants were involved in the study having the software run in their
homes. They all participated because of their interest in the feature of sharing music and
none were compensated financially for their participation.
The findings from the evaluations point towards a range of topics, that needs to be
considered when designing a synchronous music experience between remote people. One
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