Danny Lämmerhirt and Marit Hoefsloot are dedicated researchers focusing on emerging technologies, such as apps, and critically questioning cultural assumptions. They conduct experiments with alternatives grounded in public values and actively collaborate with society to develop towards an open, honest, and inclusive future.
Waag works with the mobile phone, a stacked ecosystem consisting of:
They focus on what is valuable to the user. For instance, on the Booking.com website, aspects such as budget, discounts, the look-and-feel of the hotel (images), and location are crucial. This approach helps them assess the worth of an app based on public values.
Fundament This layer comprises the context in which something exists or develops.
Design Process Every context and experience being digitized has a deciding influence on how the digitalization will take shape. A good design process is dependent on the project, the values, and the device.
Burger Central The user is viewed as a citizen in a democratic society, not just a consumer in a business model or at the bottom of a state. The user stands at the top of the stack. This concept focuses on how we handle interaction with technology: how we use it and how it uses us.
Waag had us perform several exercises where we were questioned on what is important to us and the way we experience phones. What makes a good phone, and what makes a bad phone? How far is too far or helpful? These exercises were really eye-opening and it made me curious about the rest of the work they do at Waag, as well as made me question our devices. How do we use tech and how does it use us? These are
The moment they started to explain what they do, I found myself intrigued. Our mobile devices are more than just tools to us, but we are also tools to them, and that is something to be aware of as you interact with it, especially being a developer. What choices do you make in your model of phone, your choice of browser, the apps you install? Being a developer goes beyond just making websites and goes into understanding the intricacies of the environment the web lives on. Different points of view can drastically shape the way one interacts with their device. I've always been one to hesitate before installing or buying anything to question the safety and morality, but this Weekly Nerd boosted that.. in a good way! Being safe is good. Conscious consumption is good. And really, this is information that should be more common than it is.