Informing the Development of Calendar Systems for Domestic Use

Time, Ownership and Awareness: The Value of Contextual Locations in the Home

“…Several researchers have already begun to explore various aspects of communication in the home, e.g., [1,2,3,7]. In particular, Crabtree et al's study identifies "prime sites" in the home for introducing ubiquitous technology to support communication [2,3].…”

Presence, Routines, and Technology Discrepancy – Information Exchange between Parents and Preschool Teachers

“…Families need to keep track of information from various sources about events, responsibilities, people, and things. Paper calendars displayed in the kitchen or other central places in the home are common tools to help families [1,7]. Taylor & Swan have also described how this is done using paper lists [11] and other home made organizing systems such as charts or notebooks [10] to achieve the flexibility needed in combination with the beauty, personalization, and functionality desired.…”

“…The attempts bear witness of the difficulties to replace well established domestic routines based on traditional tools such as notice boards and paper calendars with information technology. Crabtree et al [1] points out that it is not a good idea to replace a paper wall calendar with individual electronic calendars since the wall calendar has an important purpose of serving as a central point of information and awareness. Neustadter et al show in their trials with the LINC prototype digital wall calendar that it is not trivial to replicate the flexibility and the ease of use of the paper calendar even though they have taken important steps in the process [7,8].…”

“…A wall calendar in the kitchen is a common way to organize information concerning various family members [1,7]. Three of the interviewees reported that their family had one where everything was written down.…”

“…Various studies have shed light on families organize their lives using various tools such as paper lists [11], home made organizing systems [10], and paper calendars [1], how they communicate and coordinate their information [3], and how this work could be supported by smart home systems [2]. This research has focused on the family as a unit and explored how family members communicate with each other, organize incoming information, and negotiate their everyday tasks.…”