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Software products are tools that find more uses in the society every day, both professionally and in daily lives of members of the society. This thesis focuses on the problems and possibilities related to current software products. By analysis of the problems and current issues in the software field, possible contribution of a design-oriented approach to software products is explored. The thesis is supported by a study in the form of a semi-structured observation.

This project explores the future of podcasting as a digital audio media format for stories. As podcasts continue to grow in popularity the medium becomes more and more influential amongst all age groups. Unfortunately, existing solutions do not give enough attention to all possible aspects of the medium. Podcasts carry an untapped potential as they are often treated similarly to music files. This project consists of a platform, Cast3, with two separate products directed to listeners and creators of audio stories. The platform gives users a possibility to connect with similar minded people around specific topics through clubs. Inspiration and Method To understand the needs of listeners and creators of the stories, I immersed myself with the storytelling world and conducted a thorough research with conversations with both users groups, opportunities evaluations and concepts testing. The insights gathered during the research brought the conclusion that both listeners and creators tend to want more involvement and have stronger community gathered around audio stories. That is why the project’s goal is to form an audio story community for listeners and creators, where they connect through similar interests and share inspiring content. Result The final outcome of the project consists of a platform Cast3 that has 2 separate products directed to listeners and creators of audio stories. The platform gives users a possibility to connect with similar minded people around specific topics through clubs. The clubs are the spaces where listeners can exchange information, discover new content through a word of mouth and bond with the creators through live shows. The creators’ needs are supported through specialised tools that help to record stories and help to learn more about the listeners. The users of the platform can interact with audio stories through a redefined media format called freecasting. The new format improves a listening experience and respond to presently existing needs of listeners as well as creators.

Globally in the medical and healthcare field, due to technological advancement and higher success rate of life-saving procedures, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of blood stem cell transplants performed each year. Consequently, the demand for blood stem cells from the donors is continual. The process of acquiring these cells from donors has its obstacles. Once volunteers are willing to donate and are identified as a potential match to the patient, they go through various stages, involving a long waiting period for the donors.  The aim of the project  is to apply and combine interaction design practices in the healthcare and medical world: how it would affect and shape specific experiences for the blood stem-cell donor. I would propose a digital service design that provides strategies to enhance the donation journey experience for the volunteer donors and the stakeholders involved in the process. The thesis project explores how we might design alternative ways to enhance a donor experience through digital services.

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This study aims to present a design for a tool for sustainable integration of international students at KTH in Stockholm, Sweden. Integration has 3 main parts, social integration which is interaction with natives, structural which is concerned with a civic number, a job, and last but not least cultural integration which deals with customs, traditions, and religion. The tool has two main features, both of which are aiming to create favourable conditions for all three subsets of integration. The tool was developed by conducting 18 interviews, two rounds of prototyping and two rounds of user testing. It is made out of two main parts, namely informational and social. The information provided is both structural about institutions and getting around, whereas also information about cultural events, attendance at these by international students has the potential to strengthen social integration as well. The social part is designed as a 1-on-1 randomised chat that aims to encourage forming new friendships between international students and natives. This part allows new students to ask questions about anything, the process will get them randomly assigned to any native who shall answer which will create favourable conditions for forming new friendships between newcomers and natives. / Denna studie syftar till att presentera en design för ett verktyg för hållbar integrering av internationella studenter på KTH i Stockholm. Integration har tre huvuddelar, social integration som är interaktion med de infödda, strukturell integration som berör ett personnummer, ett jobb, och sist men inte minst kulturell integration som handlar om sedvänjor, traditioner och religion. Verktyget har två huvuddrag, som båda syftar till att skapa gynnsamma förutsättningar för alla tre undergrupper av integration. Verktyget utvecklades genom att genomföra 18 intervjuer, två prototyper och två testundersökningar. Den består av två huvuddelar, nämligen den informativa delen och den sociala delen. Denna information är både strukturell om institutioner och hur man tar sig runt, och information om kulturella evenemang, även deltagande i dessa av internationella studenter har potential att stärka social integration. Den sociala delen är utformad som en 1-till-1 randomiserad chatt som syftar till att uppmuntra skapandet av nya vänskaper mellan internationella studenter och de infödda. Denna del tillåter nya studenter att ställa frågor om vad som helst, processen kommer att slumpmässigt tilldela dem en infödd som är tillgänglig, vilket kommer skapa gynnsamma förutsättningar för att forma nya vänskaper mellan nykomlingar och infödda medborgare.

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This essay uses a case study to examine in a particular school the nature of these interactions. By examining this case using ethnographic methods including walking tours and interviews the essay gains an insight into how the physical environment interacts with the learning environment in the school. The research identifies four main points of interaction. The need for ownership of space, the quality of the study environment, the atmosphere of the school and the need for privacy. These areas of interaction are identified also within the research with teaching staff at the school. From this research there appears to be evidence in favour of open school models which have significant variation and flexibility of space to allow for both teachers and students to adapt the environment to their various needs. The open school model does however invite significant benefits in terms of non-formal learning situations and new forms of interaction between teachers and students.

The ongoing consumer transition from offline to online shopping in the fashion retail industry requires retailers to take action. Not only do consumers shop more online, they also go online for research of retail products. Forecasts tell that bringing the online experience to offline stores might bridge the gap between the two channels. The online experience provides high-end digital content, and puts a demand on the product information offline as this was found crucial for the customer experience. The marketing possibilities in-store was found to be an advantage to bricks-and-mortar retailers. Thus, this study aims to investigate how the customer experience can be enhanced in retail bricks-and-mortar stores through digital product information. A survey was conducted to identify user requirements in terms of product information. An augmented reality prototype was formed to satisfy the identified user requirements. The prototype was tested in two user studies that evaluated the content, visualization, interaction and satisfaction. The prototype was iterated between the two user studies. The most crucial parameters of fashion retail product information were established, together with implications for the visual representation and interaction. It was found that there were unfulfilled user needs with existing service options, which were satisfied with the use of an augmented reality prototype for product information retrieval. The use of AR for this purpose also proved to be able to contribute to an omnichannel solution for multi-channel retailers. The conclusion was thus that the customer in-store experience could be enhanced by the introduction of an augmented reality prototype for product information retrieval, taking into account the implications for content, visualization and interaction provided in this study. / Den pågående konsumentövergången från offline till online shopping i modedetaljhandeln kräver att detaljhandlare vidtar åtgärder. Förutom att konsumenterna handlar mer online, använder de också onlinebutiker allt mer för undersökning av produkter. Prognoser förtäljer att införandet av onlineupplevelsen till offline-butiker kan överbrygga klyftan mellan de två kanalerna. Onlineupplevelsen tillhandahåller högklassigt digitalt innehåll och ställer krav på produktinformationen offline, eftersom denna konstaterades vara en avgörande faktor för kundupplevelsen. Marknadsföringsmöjligheterna i fysiska butiker har visat sig vara en fördel för detaljhandlare som existerar i offlinekanalen. Således syftar denna studie till att undersöka hur kundupplevelsen kan förstärkas i fysiska detaljhandelsbutiker genom digital produktinformation. En enkätundersökning genomfördes för att identifiera användarnas krav när det gäller produktinformation. En augmented reality-prototyp formades i anspråk att tillfredsställa de identifierade användarkraven. Prototypen testades i två användarstudier, som utvärderade prototypens innehåll, visualisering, interaktion och tillfredsställelse. Prototypen itererades mellan de två användarstudierna. De mest kritiska parametrarna för produktinformation fastställdes, tillsammans med implikationer för visuell representation och interaktion. Det kunde konstateras att en AR-prototyp kunde tillfredsställa ännu omötta användarbehov för inhämtning av produktinformation. Användningen av AR för detta ändamål visade sig också ha möjligheten att bidra till en omnichannel-lösning för modehandlare som existerar i flera kanaler. Slutsatsen var således att kundupplevelsen i fysiska detaljhandelsbutiker kan förstärkas genom införandet av en augmented reality-prototyp för produktinformationsinhämtning, genom att ta hänsyn till de implikationer gällande innehåll, visualisering och interaktion tillhandahållna i denna studie.