Appeared in the Proceedings of International Design Research Symposium’06, CREDITS Research Center, ISBN 89-950046-4-9, pp.156-165, Seoul, Korea, November, 2006 (revised).
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Meanings of Tools, Support, and Uses for Creative Design Processes Kumiyo Nakakoji1,2 kumiyo@kid.rcast.u-tokyo.ac.jp 1 KID (Knowledge Interaction Design) Laboratory, RCAST, University of Tokyo, Japan 2 SRA Key Technology Laboratory Inc., Tokyo, Japan Abstract: When evaluating application systems for designers, the roles and effects of the systems must be taken into account. Existing research on design support tools often seems to pay little attention to such evaluation variations, however. This paper uses three physical tools, dumbbells, running shoes, and skis, as analogies to explore different types of computational tools for design processes; dumbbells help people to develop muscles, running shoes allow people to run faster, and skis enable people to ski. We describe what different schemes would be appropriate and inappropriate in evaluating each type of design support tool. Some existing research tools for design are presented as illustrations of each type of physical tool analogy. Keywords: Types of Design Support Tools, Evaluation Schemes, Tools providing New Experience in Creativity Design Processes 1. INTRODUCTION We have been studying computational tools for creative knowledge work for the last 15 years. Our approach has been to support creative knowledge work as an ill-defined, open-ended, design task, and our goal has been to design and develop application systems that people use, especially in the early stages of their design tasks [1][2][4][6][7][14]. We have applied design theories and cognitive models to understand how people engage in design tasks. Examples include sciences of design by H.A. Simon [10], reflection-in-action by D.A. Schoen [9], and design as a hermeneutics circle by A.B. Snodgrass and R.D. Coyne [11]. We have used knowledge-based techniques [1][2][4] and explored the space of visual interaction design in building tools for knowledge workers as designers [6][7][14]. In the course of conducting our research, we have situated our tools as aids that help people in their design process. We have been using the term “tools” to refer to such computer application systems. However, such relaxed usage sometimes keeps us from studying important differences in relationships between people and such application systems. People use tools in a variety of ways, such as to achieve a certain goal more quickly, to develop and learn a certain skill and knowledge, or to have a certain experience. They may not merely “use” a tool, however, but rather “play with” a tool or “engage in” the interaction with a tool. Rather than “tools,” the term “instruments” might better describe such aspects [12]. Hereafter in this paper, we use the terms “tools” and “application systems” to mean, respectively, computational tools and software application systems designed and built for supporting designers and

2006 International Design Research Symposium
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design processes, unless otherwise noted. When evaluating application systems for designers, the roles and effects of the systems must be taken into account. Existing research on design support tools often seems to pay little attention to such evaluation variations, however. This paper uses three physical tools, dumbbells, running shoes, and skis, as analogies to explore different types of computational tools for design processes; dumbbells help people to develop muscles, running shoes allow people to run faster, and skis enable people to ski. We describe what different schemes would be appropriate and inappropriate in evaluating each type of design support tool. Some existing research tools for design are presented as illustrations of each type of physical tool.
2. THREE TYPES OF SUPPORT During the Workshop on Creativity Support Tools sponsored by the National Science Foundation, held in September 2005 in Washington, DC [13], some of the participants experienced rather crucial confusions on the theme of the workshop: what does “creativity support tools” mean? Some regarded creativity support tools as a means to help people develop creative design skills; thereby, the ultimate goal of the tools would be that the users could demonstrate creativity without using the tools. Others thought that creativity support tools help people develop a creative solution, and still others held the view that creativity support tools allow users to experience creative processes. Although not thoroughly covering all of the viewpoints, some of the sources of such confusions can be illustrated with analogies to familiar physical tools: dumbbells, running shoes, and skis (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Three Types of Tool Support
People use these tools in their exercising processes, but when, why, or how they use each tool varies. Dumbbells help a person to develop muscles, but the use of a dumbbell per se is not likely to be the user’s goal (Figure 1(a)). A pair of running shoes helps a runner to run faster. The runner could run without the shoes, but is able to run faster if and only if he/she wears (uses) the pair of shoes (Figure 1(b)). A pair of skis as a tool, in contrast, enables a person to ski. Without skis, a person cannot have a skiing experience (Figure 1(c)).