Abstract
Recently, households have begun to adopt networking technologies to interconnect devices within the home. Yet little is known about the consequences for households of setting up and living with these complex networks, nor the impact of such technologies on the routines of the home. In this paper, we report findings from an empirical study of households containing complex networks of computer and audio/visual technologies. Our study finds that home networks require significant household effort not just to coordinate their use, but also their set up and maintenance. We also show how the coordination around networking has to be worked into the routines of the home and the householders.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Anderson, B., C. Gale, A. P. Gower, E. F. France, M. L. R. Jones, H. V. Lacohee, A. McWilliam, K. Tracey, and M. Trimby. (2002): Digital Living—People-Centred Innovation and Strategy, BT Technology Journal, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 1–20.
Brown, B., A. J. Sellen, and E. Geelhoed (2001): Music Sharing as a Computer Supported Collaborative Application. In Proceedings of the 7th European Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work ECSCW’ 01, Bonn, Germany, Sept 16–20. Kluwer, pp. 179–198.
Chalmers, M. (2004): A Historical View of Context, Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), vol. 13, no. 3, pp. 223–247.
Crabtree, A. and T. Rodden. (2004): Domestic Routines and Design for the Home, Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), vol. 13, pp. 191–200.
Cummings, J. N. and R. Kraut. (2002): Domesticating Computers and the Internet, The Information Society, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 221–232.
Ducheneaut, N. and R. J. Moore (2004): The Social Side of Gaming: A Study of Interaction Patterns in a Massively Multiplayer Online Game. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW’ 04), Chicago, Illinois, Nov 6–10. ACM Press, pp. 360–369.
Edwards, W. K. and R. E. Grinter (2001): At Home With Ubiquitous Computing: Seven Challenges. In Proceedings of the UbiComp 01, Atlanta, GA, Sept 30–Oct 2. Springer-Verlag, pp. 256–272.
Frohlich, D. M., S. Dray, and A. Silverman. (2001): Breaking Up is Hard to Do: Family Perspectives on the Future of the Home PC, International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, vol. 54, no. 5, pp. 701–724.
Harper, R. (ed.) (2003): Inside the Smart Home. Springer, London, UK.
Hindus, D. (1999): The Importance of Homes in Technology Research. In Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Cooperative Buildings (CoBuild’99), Pittsburgh, PA, October 1–2. Springer-Verlag, pp. 199–207.
Horrigan, J. B. and L. Rainie (2002): The Broadband Difference: How Online Americans’ Behavior Changes with High-Speed Internet Connections at Home. Pew Internet Foundation, Washington D.C.
Kiesler, S., B. Zdaniuk, V. Lundmark, and R. Kraut. (2000): Troubles With the Internet: The Dynamics of Help at Home, Human Computer Interaction, vol. 15, no., pp. 323–351.
Kraut, R., T. Mukhopadhyay, J. Szczypula, S. Kiesler, and W. Scherlis. (1999): Information and Communication: Alternative Uses of the Internet in Households, Information Systems Research, vol. 10, no. 4, pp. 287–303.
O’Brien, J., T. Rodden, M. Rouncefield, and J. Hughes. (1999): At Home with the Technology: An Ethnographic Study of a Set-Top-Box Trial, ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 282–308.
Petersen, M. G., K. H. Madsen, and A. Kjær. (2002): The Usability of Everyday Technology—Emerging and Fading Opportunities, ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 74–105.
Rainie, L. and J. B. Horrigan (2005): A Decade of Adoption: How the Internet has Woven Itself into American Life, Report, Pew Internet Foundation, Washington, D.C.
Randall, D. (2003): Living Inside a Smart Home: A Case Study, in R. Harper (ed.) Inside the Smart Home, Springer-Verlag, London, UK, pp. 227–246.
Rodden, T. and S. Benford (2003): The Evolution of Buildings and the Implications for the Design of Ubiquitous Domestic Environments. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing (CHI’ 03), Fort Lauderdale, FL, Apr 5–10. ACM Press, pp. 9–16.
Star, S. L. (1999): The Ethnography of Infrastructure, American Behavioral Scientist, vol. 43, no. 3, pp. 377–391.
Tolmie, P., J. Pycock, T. Diggins, A. MacLean, and A. Karsenty (2002): Unremarkable Computing. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 02), Minneapolis, MN, Apr 20–25. ACM Press, pp. 399–406.
Venkatesh, A., E. Kruse, and E. C.-F. Shih. (2003): The Networked Home: An Analysis of Current Developments and Future Trends, Cognition, Technology and Work, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 23–32.
Vitalari, N. P., A. Venkatesh, and K. Gronhaug. (1986): Computing in the Home: Shifts in the Time Allocation Patterns of Households, Communications of the ACM, vol. 28, no. 5, pp. 512–522.
Voida, A., R. E. Grinter, N. Ducheneaut, W. K. Edwards, and M. W. Newman (2005): Listening In: Practices Surrounding iTunes Music Sharing. In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing (CHI’ 05), Portland, Oregon, Apr 2–7. ACM Press, pp. 191–200.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2005 Springer
About this paper
Cite this paper
Grinter, R.E., Edwards, W.K., Newman, M.W., Ducheneaut, N. (2005). The Work to Make a Home Network Work. In: Gellersen, H., Schmidt, K., Beaudouin-Lafon, M., Mackay, W. (eds) ECSCW 2005. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4023-7_24
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4023-7_24
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-4022-1
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-4023-8
eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)