Welcome
Thank you for visiting my website, which provides an overview of the capstone project I completed for my Masters of Science in Human-Computer Interaction at Iowa State University, Spring 2016. The highlights of the project milestones are summarized on the corresponding pages. A PDF file containing each deliverable in its entirety is available for download from each page.
Project Overview
Throughout my studies at Iowa State, I have sought better understanding of the needs of people experiencing separation or isolation, and I have found myself gravitating toward designing software solutions that I describe as relationship builders -- solutions that seek to overcome or alleviate the challenges associated with separation or isolation. The capstone project has provided me the opportunity to explore a new relationship builder concept, Tele-Story.
Tele-Story creates rich, shared experiences based on the age-old tradition of reading a storybook to a young child by transforming an e-book into a personalized audiobook.
From a touchscreen interface, users select an e-book, record their voice reading the book aloud, along with all the personal commentary that makes reading together a close experience; then, send the book to a child. The child that receives the book can access it from another device, listen to it, and, then, send a thank you note back.
These shared experiences can lessen the heartache of separation and isolation, and increase the quality of life for persons living in those conditions. For the young child, Tele-Story connects them to distanced loved ones forever.
Tele-Story creates rich, shared experiences based on the age-old tradition of reading a storybook to a young child by transforming an e-book into a personalized audiobook.
From a touchscreen interface, users select an e-book, record their voice reading the book aloud, along with all the personal commentary that makes reading together a close experience; then, send the book to a child. The child that receives the book can access it from another device, listen to it, and, then, send a thank you note back.
These shared experiences can lessen the heartache of separation and isolation, and increase the quality of life for persons living in those conditions. For the young child, Tele-Story connects them to distanced loved ones forever.