2012. spring
Background
Nowadays, reading has been changed a lot since thecomputer is more and more popular. The digital one steadily replaces the traditionalprinted books and reading materials. With e-reader like Kindle and iPad’sincreasing share of market, people’s reading habit is also gradually changed.They prefer more casual way to read, like to spend more separated time on fast-reading,and have less time to make long review or deep thinking. This phenomenon alsohas some cultural and economic reason because of the rapid life pace and heavyworking pressure in cities.
On the other hand, people’s reading experience isalso altered by this context. In Hong Kong, free morning newspapers are senteverywhere, for white-collars to read on their way to work. Children usuallyplay with iPad in their spare time rather than tangible books or physical toys.And the reading behavior is easily distracted by other applications on thedevice or digital games. If people want to gain some valuable feedback or justenjoy the time, reading should be focused rather than as a multi-taskingbehavior.
What’s more, everyone can be creator of books oreven microblogs through Internet. The expanding amount of information and booksmake readers easily got lost, and waste a lot of time finding what is reallygood and valuable for them. Even expert reviewers cannot be always responsibleor expertise enough for every book and field.
Therefore, we want to make deep research on thereading behavior nowadays. The sustainable point from invention to disposalgoes beyond the media, reading space into a united experience. We want peoplecould learn more from reading, and help create a more social way to build asustainable reading community.
On the other hand, people’s reading experience isalso altered by this context. In Hong Kong, free morning newspapers are senteverywhere, for white-collars to read on their way to work. Children usuallyplay with iPad in their spare time rather than tangible books or physical toys.And the reading behavior is easily distracted by other applications on thedevice or digital games. If people want to gain some valuable feedback or justenjoy the time, reading should be focused rather than as a multi-taskingbehavior.
What’s more, everyone can be creator of books oreven microblogs through Internet. The expanding amount of information and booksmake readers easily got lost, and waste a lot of time finding what is reallygood and valuable for them. Even expert reviewers cannot be always responsibleor expertise enough for every book and field.
Therefore, we want to make deep research on thereading behavior nowadays. The sustainable point from invention to disposalgoes beyond the media, reading space into a united experience. We want peoplecould learn more from reading, and help create a more social way to build asustainable reading community.
1. Research
(1)Observation
We make observation on how people read involves inpeople’s daily life. Try to find their reading habit difference the currentsituation of books and other publications. There are some photos taken indifferent places and scenarios for people’s reading activity.
Figure 1 Observation 1 of reading
Figure 2 Observation 2 of reading
(2) Secondary Research
People’s reading habits, tools and even content have changed a lot withthe emergency of Internet and mobile devices, which causes their experienceshifted into a modern experience. Our research tries to find the overallsituation for this.
(a) Arising debate on printing books or E-books
Table 1 From Stephen Abram, PBooks vs. EBooks:Are there Educational Issues?
(b) iPads and Kindles causes E-book lending at libraries explodes
(b) iPads and Kindles causes E-book lending at libraries explodes
Figure 3 From John Paul Titlow, Thanks to iPads and Kindles, E-Book Lendingat Libraries Explodes
(c) Reading Experience - traditional way vs. modern way
Today's white-collar worker spends more time reading than eating,drinking, grooming, traveling, socializing or on general entertainment andsport - that is, five to eight hours of each working day. The computer and Internet?Both are reading revolutions.
(c) Reading Experience - traditional way vs. modern way
Today's white-collar worker spends more time reading than eating,drinking, grooming, traveling, socializing or on general entertainment andsport - that is, five to eight hours of each working day. The computer and Internet?Both are reading revolutions.
Yet reading embraces so much more than work or web. What music is to thespirit, reading is to the mind. Reading challenges, em powers, bewitches,enriches. We perceive little black marks on white paper or a PC screen and theymove us to tears, open up our lives to new insights and understandings, inspireus, organize our existences and connect us with all creation.
(A History of Reading, 2003,Steven Roger Fisher, Reaktion Books)
(d) How iPad change people reading behavior?
(d) How iPad change people reading behavior?
Yellow part is the time distribution on reading on Computer, and grey part is for iPad. We can see people like use iPad to read more frequently in their daily life.
(http://readitlaterlist.com/blog/2011/01/is-mobile-affecting-when-we-read/)
(e) Concept of sustainability
Figure 4 From wikipedia: Sustainability http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainability
2. Insights
2. Insights
(1) Expanding resources for books makes people hard to review and trustto read.
- How to build social network and trustful recommendation system?
(2) Almost every one can easily be the creator of books.
(3) Digital reading behavior create the increase for tangible one inreturn.
(4) Kindle (special e-book reader) using digital ink may be lessenergy-cost, ecological and sustainable in a way.
(5) Different purpose for reading (study, leisure, work) may cause thespace, time and focus shifting.
- Here comes that digtial reading media causes more deep readingbehavior than before.
(6) The high-pacing society makes people fast-reading, less time on longtime reading and have less access to public reading space and private readingroom.
(7) Children uses digital device for reading too early which may causessome negative effects on cognition.
- If creating lifelong readers is the goal, then every tool is needed.(Kindles for Kids)
(8) In Hong Kong, reading freenewspapers becomes a trend, but there haven't a formal way to treat the newspapersthat have been read.
- Causes resource waste
- How to build social network and trustful recommendation system?
(2) Almost every one can easily be the creator of books.
(3) Digital reading behavior create the increase for tangible one inreturn.
(4) Kindle (special e-book reader) using digital ink may be lessenergy-cost, ecological and sustainable in a way.
(5) Different purpose for reading (study, leisure, work) may cause thespace, time and focus shifting.
- Here comes that digtial reading media causes more deep readingbehavior than before.
(6) The high-pacing society makes people fast-reading, less time on longtime reading and have less access to public reading space and private readingroom.
(7) Children uses digital device for reading too early which may causessome negative effects on cognition.
- If creating lifelong readers is the goal, then every tool is needed.(Kindles for Kids)
(8) In Hong Kong, reading freenewspapers becomes a trend, but there haven't a formal way to treat the newspapersthat have been read.
- Causes resource waste
3. Further Study
According to previous research, we choose Free Newspaper in Hong Kong as our further design topic.
There are 5 free newspaper suppliers in Hong Kong, creating 3 million copies per day. The newspaper is free and distributed around the MTR station and public space. The content are full of advertisement and only 1/8 of them are pure news.
There are 5 free newspaper suppliers in Hong Kong, creating 3 million copies per day. The newspaper is free and distributed around the MTR station and public space. The content are full of advertisement and only 1/8 of them are pure news.
- Information overflow; Resource Waste
- White-collar people use that for instant news
- Old people gather a lot of that for selling to recycler
- Parents worry child could get some unhealthy information from newspapers.
- Paper wasting through huge publications and less recycling.
- White-collar people use that for instant news
- Old people gather a lot of that for selling to recycler
- Parents worry child could get some unhealthy information from newspapers.
- Paper wasting through huge publications and less recycling.
(1) The Relationship in Newspaper Business
Figure 5 The relationship in newspaper business
(2) Problems
- Paper used per day equal to >8300 trees and 3.5 sizes of Victoria Park
The newspaper suppliers make less effort to take value of the wasted newspaper.
The survey from the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong investigated 1531 citizens for free newspaper. It shows that 70% of reader would actually open the newspaper and around 20% read. Others just throw them away next corner. The paper resource is wasted severely. Around 50% of the newspaper throws them into normal dustbin; less people put them into the recycling box.
- Hong Kong has no paper-recycle factory, so all the wasted paper is exporting aboard for disposal.
The paper-making and recycling factories are high polluted to local environment. The wasting paper will also cause negative effects on other places.
4. Proposal
Our proposal is provide a whole system for sustainable reading newspaper. According to research, the concept of sustainability is consisting of environmental, social and economical solutions. Therefore, our system will be included these three parts:
Recycling the paper resource (environmental), increasing the awareness of society (social) and switching the economic profit (economical).
Recycling the paper resource (environmental), increasing the awareness of society (social) and switching the economic profit (economical).
Figure 6
- Set up recycling boxes in public space to collect the wasting newspapers
The free newspaper is only used on people’s way to work or breakfast time. People seldom keep these easily-obtained papers. The free newspaper should not be once-only used, and the newspaper supplier shall help build these devices for people to reuse and reread the newspaper.
Acorrding to the research, we found that people always spreading and reading these newspaper while waiting in the vehicle, so we set up the recycle points near the MTR / Bus station.
Figure 7 Free Newspaper Recycling Box
- Hold activity in PolyU linking the paper wasting with plants disappearing
What if PolyU has no green plants and trees? The grey campus would lose its original fresh energy. People’s environmental-protecting and resource recycling awareness would be aroused if they know some change from their surrounding environment. We want to hold connect people’s daily reading activity with the sustainable outcomes directly.
Figure 8 A possible sustainable activity in HK PolyU
The traditional way to create profit from free newspaper is one cause for the unsustainable outcome. As more and more Hong Kong people use mobile devices to read and communicate, we should shift a paper-less way for people to get quick news and less distracted by newspaper. And find the way to gain profits for newspaper provider.
(a) Combing the paper and digital media for free newspaper can be a win-win situation.
Our proposal is to combine the QR code into the newspaper. Multi-media news information like recording voice, short video and images can be browsed when people use their mobile to scan the QR code on tangible newspapers. The advertisement can be digital attached to online news, rather than printed full color and full paper. The role of media is changing from producing paper and profit-earning tools into information provider. This shall be more suitable for modern Hong Kong and sustainable way to take value of digital media.
Figure 9 showing how it works.
Figure 10 An example of the sustainable newspaper
The figure below shows the traditional mode of the free newspaper in HK. From the picture, we can find that the publisher are creating a paper media platform to the public. And this paper platform is the one that cause the harm of environment. (Figure 11)
Figure 11 The traditional mode
So what if let the publisher switch their business mode to only producing information?
Nowadays we can see so many advertisements in MTR station with LED Tickers, we think it is a good way to add the news title to this equipments.
Nowadays we can see so many advertisements in MTR station with LED Tickers, we think it is a good way to add the news title to this equipments.
Figure 12 a possible new mode
The original idea is that we can tide the advertisement together with news. For instance,you can see this news out of the windows when the train is moving fast. (Figure 13)
Figure 15 A prototype for LED Tickers News
