Circles: Enhancing effective interactions by quantitative and qualitative visualization in user-centered design

Abstract

In this paper we analyze how effective the interactions between Mexican individuals that share a relationship, like family or friends, can be measured with a proposed social network tool. This tool is called Circles and its main function is to apply visualization methods to show graphically parameters like quality and quantity of time, where quality becomes more important due to the relation within interests or hobbies sharing. The process was based on User-Centered Design methods in order to find the main user’s needs, build prototypes according to final users, test the prototypes and get knowledge about the tool’s relevance in improving life quality.