"Where am I in this information space?" Bifocal Display Concept Video, 1982, via the Interaction Design.org Encylopedia

The following video about the Bifocal Display concept is an interesting look at how a set of ideas unfolded in the early 1980's. These ideas took flight and influenced many of the design concepts we view as "new" today.


The video was posted on the on-line Interaction Design Encyclopedia, a free, open source multimedia resource that includes a range of chapters written by leading researchers and practitioners from fields related to Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Interaction Design (IXD), User Experience (UX), Information Architecture (IA), Usability, and more.



"People want to see context...." -Robert Spence

1980's Paper Prototype of  Carousel Concept (screen shot from video)

"Let's apply this idea to my in-tray,  an information that is quite varied, and often full of surprises..." -Robert Spence


For more information, see the article by Robert Spence and Mark Apperley on the Interaction -Design.org website.  Scroll down to "The Bifocal Display Explained" for great sketches of the concepts discussed in the video.  


Also take a look at the recent videos from InteractionDesign.org related to this topic.  What a great way to gain insight about the design and development process!


Video 1: Introduction to the Bifocal Display
Video 2. Main guidelines and future directions
Video 3: How the Bifocal Display was invented and launched


REFERENCE
Spence, Robert and Apperley, Mark (2011). Encyclopedia entry on Bifocal Display. Retrieved 9 February 2011 from Interaction-Design.org: http://www.interaction-design.org/encyclopedia/bifocal_display.html


RESOURCES
Interaction-Design.org YouTube Channel
Interaction-Design.org