Research III

Found a few interesting interactive websites including games and mobile applications that are created to serve the purpose of raising awareness. Most of the interactive websites are done using flash. Due to the size of the graphics used in the websites, it took quite a long time to load a certain page.

Interactive website
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Quit doing it
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- innovative online tools to help people to quite tobacco, including the colorado, quitline and the all new fixnixer.
- user will be exposed to a simulation of a lab where there are 4 levels which are: research, development, result and lobby.
- user can also click on Quitline or Fixnixer as well as to send to the friend who is trying to quit tobacco.
//research level//
- users are able to know what are the substance that can be found in a cigarette. information about the substance are provided to the users after they move and drag the scanner and click.
-users also get to know the effect of the substance to humans
//development level//
- on this level, users are required to choose 3 excuses that they think they can't quit tobacco.
- after they have selected the most 3 excuses, the lab will start "blasting" ( kind of like destroy it) all these 3 excuses and give solution analysis to the users.
//result//
- users are lead to another level after they have went throught the development level.
- videos about fixnixer and quitline are provided for the users who wants to learn more about it.
- users who have already decided to quit are given link to join the quitline, or else, they can choose to go back to the 'lab' and explore more.
- users are also able to view testimonials that left by other users who have successfully quit tobacco and share their experiences.

|| not 100% helpful in quitting tobacco, but at least users will learn about the negative effects of tobacco in an interesting interactive way.

|| relaxing in terms of color mood where users don't feel stress or scared when they are navigating the website

|| impact is small

http://www.quitdoingitlabs.com/

HURT
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-interactive website to raise awareness of hidden domestic violence in women and children in Australia, which represents by a 3D house that can be explored.
-users click on the objects in the house to watch video clips of interviews with people who have experienced domestic violence.
- users can choose either they want to watch only men/women/children or all.
- there are 27 characters who are linked to over 100 videos in the website.
- different objects are linked to videos of recreated interview of different characters retelling their experience as it relates to that particular room or the object.
- this website is created to hope to increase attention to and outrage towards this prevalent.
http://www.hurt.net.au/about.htm -
-why are they using house  - play a significant role in the experience domestic violence in australia, to make bigger impact
-story based on real experience
-why they made it - because these experience in Australia can lead to extensive and pervasive long term consequences. // australia has also limited awareness about domestic and family violence, the power and control dynamic and how it affects people. to aim to draw attention to the issue, providing people with insight into horrible experience of domestic and family violence.

|| the 3d house looks normal which shows that people can't usually see what is happening from the outside of the house.

|| users get to know the insight of the house

|| is successful as it provides useful information about domestic violence

|| it's similar to eva/evie's project (Yap Ah Loy) which is created to educate people/ showing interviews in video clips.

|| not as much interactions.

http://www.hurt.net.au/hurt.htm

*http://www.studynet2.herts.ac.uk/ - server down.


Mobile application
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iCondom
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-partnered with MTV staying alive to launch a mobile app to help raise awareness of using condoms among teens.
-gather crowd source information to create a source of information about retailers and machines that stock condoms.
- users are able to receive information about where their nearest stockist is on a map by using GPS location technology in the app.
- users are also able to learn practice safe sex.
- this app relies on sources from other people to update whether the machines are out of order or shops have run out of stock.
- it's a user generated map.

|| it can be not reliable as the information given by people may not be accurate

|| it is interesting as most of the teenagers nowadays carrying their smartphones everywhere they go. || they are able to get information fast and easy. therefore it may help to increase the usage of condoms among teens.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/icondom-your-condom-dispenser/id397179684?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4


Heart4life
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- mobile app to raise awareness on the importance of heart health such as blood pressure and cholesterol level.
- it keeps track of your cardiovascular health through videos and information directories.
- quiz
-the objective is also to encourage users to start aware and prevention at home.
- users are enable to learn CPR throuhgh an animated video as Professor Terrance Chua mentioned that there are not enought people who are trained in CPR / comfortably with administrating CPR.
- therefore, this app could help users to learn to do CPR

|| this app is launched by The Singapore Heart Foundation

|| this is quite helpful as people usually want to know about their risk of heart disease. thru this app, users are able to assess their own risk of heart disease from simple quiz.

|| hence, it helps to create awareness of ppl on the importance of heart health.

http://www.myheart.org.sg/heart-safe-singapore-2/mobile-cpr-download/ 


The Gay History project
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- based on providing LGBT history to the users to spread awareness about LGBT.
- it features personal stories by Clevesy and any contributors who wish to share their experience.
- news can be posted from anywhere the user has service
- users receive up to date news regarding gay, lesbian, and bisexual and transgender people.
- users are also allowed to ask questions and to be answered by other users regarding anything
- users allowed to share their own experience/story to receive support from others.

|| not much interactions, not in depth interactions, just the history of LGBT

||users might tend to get boring as there are alot of reading to do

|| some users might not get interested in this topic by using this app.

|| but it could be useful to people who want to learn more about LGBT

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gay-history-project-for-ipad/id368028686?mt=8


Games (website)
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The End
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- a interactive game that provide self- discovery that integrates strategy, puzzles and questions into a world which the user explores a range of commonly or less commonly bout death
- help to explore beliefs about life, death and other people. it's also a platform for users to experimenting with different combinations and approaches to see different outcome.
- this game is targetted to 14 - 19 years old teenagers
- at the beginning of the game, users are allowed to customise their own avatar which will be representing themselves throughout the whole journey in the game.
- along the way, users will encounter questions and are required to solve several puzzles in order to continue the game.
- after the avatar is created, the profile is created as well. the profile of the user will be shown in the webpage with objects they have found, stars and trophies they have collected and also total play time
- users are able to log in to Facebook to check out friend's score and to see the answers that their friends have chosen.
- users will see the 'key of knowledge' during the game when they 've collected the key. there are usually quotes about life, death from well-known people
- users will come across the 'doors of decision' where they have to answer a philosophical question about life.

|| interesting as the user has their own profile . this helps the user to know themselves better as things will be recorded along the way they play.

|| interesting games such as puzzles allow users to think and come out with a strategy in order to defeat the enemy (instead using violence as we always see from other games)

|| instructions are provided along the way to help users to navigate in the game (incase they have forgotten how)

|| not really challenging except for the puzzles quiz

http://www.playtheend.com/