Ch@t Room: An Interface Design for a Graphical Meeting Place–The La-Lay Online Multi-functional Communication System

Chu-Yu Christine Cheng

doi:10.25907/00600

Computer mediated-communication has become an integral feature of modern society; furthermore, it has become a fundamental driving force behind many of the social anges of the 21st century. However, despite the rapid technological developments that have occurred in recent years, the Internet is clearly still in its infancy. There is constantly the promise of newer and better things, always just over the horizon, which promise to change and improve the way we live our lives and communicate with each other. This project combines two of the most popular online communication systems-Graphical Online Chat Rooms and Instant Messenger Systems (IMS) into one unique system, the La-Lay Online Multi-function Communication System. The name chosen for this project, "La-Lay," comes from the Taiwanese dialect, meaning a "friendly informal conversation", which is similar in meaning to the English word "chat". The choice of this term from the Taiwanese dialect is deliberately intended to reinforce the social identity and the ultural experience of the project's intended audience. The creative component of this project is intended to provide a user-friendly chat room environment with a particular cultural aesthetic specifically targeting the Taiwanese user. One of the greater (idealistic) aspirations of the Internet's original creators was to create a so-called "global village". The author, however, would argue that globalisation increasingly comes at the cost of cultural diversity. Therefore, the La-Lay project is targeted exclusively at the Taiwanese on-line community in an attempt to raise awareness of local and regional identity whilst embracing the obvious benefits of high-tech, instantaneous Internet communication. Avatar characters are used as the primary identity vehicle for human computer interaction in the La-Lay project. This Creative Arts dissertation provides an in-depth analysis of the theories of computer-mediated communication, the relationships between user and computer device and the contemporary social pheno ena accompanying changes in new media technology from a distinctly Taiwanese perspective. Instead of following the trend of globalisation apparent in the online environment, the La-Lay project is an online graphical multi-functional communication system that is specifically designed for Taiwanese cultural environment. The project emphasises the importance of local identity and hence promotes cultural diversity in an age of globally based corporations and ever growing international networks. Furthermore, the La-Lay system is intended to conform to a core value of the Internet; that is, the provision of an anonymous environment in which users may express their personal thoughts and freely experiment with a range of customised, virtual identities.

Ch@t Room: An Interface Design for a Graphical Meeting Place–The La-Lay Online Multi-functional Communication System

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