ximpel - 10 years of immersive media experiences

XIMPEL10 Years of Immersive Media Experiences

Hugo Huurdeman, Winoe Bhikharie, Anton Eliëns

University of Oslo, VU University Amsterdam

ximpel.net / bit.ly/VisualNavigationProject

Presentation at Big Video Sprint conference, Aalborg, Nov. 2017

•The past ten years, online video has transformed from a mere novelty to one of the most popular pastimes on the internet.

•While online video platforms, such as YouTube, provide countless possibilities to disseminate traditional video, they lack options to create deep, interactive and immersive experiences.

XIMPEL

• Using XIMPEL, an open media platform*, you can weave together video, audio, images and other media

• thus constructing highly interactive narratives

• * (based on HTML5 & XML)

Versatility

• The versatility of XIMPEL is exemplified by the wide variety of its use in the past ten years, including

• online interactive media applications

• multimedia education, and

• interactive exhibitions involving large touch screens.

The journey

• This presentation will take you on a journey along 10 years of XIMPEL

Once upon a time...

The journey

• This presentation will take you on a journey along 10 years of XIMPEL

• Discussing seven key characteristics of the framework

1. Immersion

• No distractions

• Immersive environments (using video, machinima, etc)

• Who do you Trust? (2016)

• Treasure Hunting Pyramid Castle Island Fairytale (2016)

• Seamless branching

•“Poor man’s immersion” [Eliëns et al 2007]

• deploying the immersive realism of video, based on conventions of storytelling and film editing

• (substitute for interactive 3D immersion)

2. Choice• Offer possibilities of choice without leaving the

environment

• Provides sense of agency

• Allows for a variety of serious (and experimental) techniques

• Space Suitcase (2008)

• Forest of Life (2015)

3. Story graphs

• Model choices and narratives

• Also as an educational tool

• Branch, converge, loop, etc

3. Story graphs

• Model choices and narratives

• Also as an educational tool

• Branch, converge, loop, etc

• Or even randomness

•50s Driving Challenge (2009)

4. Multiple viewpoints

• Offer a variety of viewpoints (authoring)

• Explore viewpoints by following paths (playing)

•Code of Conduct (2013)

•Reversed Cluedo (2015)

5. Reflection & Feedback• Allow for viewer reflection by showing followed paths

• Utilize custom score variables

• “Between narrative(s) and gameplay” [EliensEtAl2008]

• Show custom materials b/o choices

• Offer feedback

• Climate Profiler (2007-2009)

6. Declarative format

• Something “in-between” pure design & pure coding

• Create XML playlists

• Specify what, but not how

• (assistive tools)

6. Declarative format

• Something “in-between” pure design & pure coding

• Create XML playlists

• Specify what, but not how

• (assistive tools)

7. eXtensible

• Add new modules (media types) for whichever functionality you are interested in (Javascript)

• Some examples include:

• Minigames, maps, ..

• touch-based book viewer, visualizations

Mikaela Aamodt | Dan Michael Heggø | Hugo Huurdeman | Helge Mjelde | Live Rasmussen | Heidi Rustad | Kyrre Låberg | Nina Thodesen

Visual Navigation Project

University of Oslo Library

bit.ly/VisualNavigationProject

Project Outline & Progress

rethink how users can explore & interact with library materials

in the digital and physical library space

Visual Navigation Project

bit.ly/VisualNavigationVideo

Large video collection - 100 (streamed) events per yearCross-links with collection, topic experts, researchers, etcHow to connect and visualize in sensible ways?

Mikaela Aamodt | Dan Michael Heggø | Hugo Huurdeman | Helge Mjelde | Live Rasmussen | Heidi Rustad | Kyrre Låberg | Nina Thodesen

Visual Navigation Project

University of Oslo Library

bit.ly/VisualNavigationProject

Project Outline & Progress

XIMPEL 10 years - Why?•Power of the “empty canvas”

•you can add interactivity, but you don’t have to …

•you can add multiple storylines, but you don’t have to …

•you can add annotations, but you don’t have to …

•you can add custom media types, but you don’t have to …

•you can add gaming elements, but you don’t have to …

XIMPEL 10 years - How?

•Simplicity - (relatively) easy to maintain

•Declarative (XML) format

•Extendable & open-source

•Contributions by aficionados & students

XIMPEL in the next 10 years • Further extend interaction

modalities

• eye tracking, …

• Extend feedback

• textual and graphical

• Profiling methods

• statistics-based recom-mendation of choices

• Simultaneous interactions

• Further develop MOOC features

• New media types

• 360 degrees, etcetera :)

Role in video-based research dissemination

• XIMPEL could serve as a way to:

• enhance interactivity and transparency in illustrating and disseminating video-based research online

• export video and annotations (from analysis tools)

• use as “display resource”

•visualize (multistream) video & annotations (using templates)

• alternative for “immersive” viewing experience?

• e.g. large touch screens (touch, swipe, pinch)

Role in video-based research dissemination

• e.g., as a display resource ( model from Pea & Hoffert ’07 )

Role in video-based research dissemination

Role in video-based research dissemination

• XIMPEL could serve as a way to:

• enhance interactivity and transparency in illustrating and disseminating video-based research online

• export video and annotations (from analysis tools)

• use as “display resource”

•visualize (multistream) video & annotations (using templates)

• alternative for “immersive” viewing experience?

• e.g. large touch screens (touch, swipe, pinch)

challenge-

any datasets & annotations we

can test?

..big thanks!

• XIMPEL.net• Winoe Bhikharie, Marek van de Watering, prof. Anton Eliëns • All contributors, incl. Melvin Roest

• University of Oslo Library:• All colleagues & collaborating students & study participants

• & organizers BigVideo conference congress!

XIMPEL10 Years of Immersive Media Experiences

Hugo Huurdeman, Winoe Bhikharie, Anton Eliëns

University of Oslo, VU University Amsterdam

ximpel.net / bit.ly/VisualNavigationProject

Presentation at Big Video Sprint conference, Aalborg, Nov. 2017