Shared landmarks in complex coordination environments

We explore the concept of social landmarks in complex, shared information and coordination environments. Previous research in navigation and shared spaces has tended to emphasize individual navigation, formally inscribed spaces, social filtering, and boundary objects. Based on ethnographic research into complex collaborative work in organizations, we extend the concept of navigational "landmarks" to include not only individually-used documents, but also shared landmarks in the form of persons, roles, and events. This emerging concept of social landmarks may be applied in identifying and representing these coordinating points, to support the work of teams and organizations in complex projects. Categories and Subject Descriptors H.5.3 [Group and Organizational Interfaces]: collaborative computing, computer-supported cooperative work, theory and models. General Terms Office work; Collaboration; Coordination; Articulation. Keywords Landmarks; Boundary objects

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2005
• Where: CHI
• Authors: Michael J. Muller, Olga Kuchinskaya, Suzanne O. Minassian, John C. Tang, Catalina Danis, Chen Zhao, Beverly L. Harrison, Thomas P. Moran
• Keywords: CHI 2005, Complex Collaborative Work, Human Computer Interaction, Keywords Landmarks, Social Landmarks