Objective
This testing phase was meant to understand how the printer installation works both as a standalone experience and as something encountered after the other prototypes. Since this piece sits slightly differently from the games and printed materials, I wanted to see whether it could still prompt meaningful reflection on its own, and whether prior engagement with the earlier prototypes would affect the depth of response.
Process Breakdown
Testing with Different Kinds of Users
For this prototype, I tested with two types of participants: people who had already interacted with my previous prototypes, and people who were simply walking by and encountered the installation by itself. This turned out to be quite useful, because the two groups behaved differently. Participants who had already gone through the earlier prototypes tended to give longer, more thoughtful and more detailed responses. By contrast, users who only encountered the printer installation on its own gave shorter, more spontaneous responses.What This Difference Suggests
This suggests that the installation can function in both modes, but it may play a different role depending on context. When it comes after the earlier prototypes, it seems to work well as a reflective outlet or final expression point, allowing people to process and articulate what they have already been thinking about. On its own, however, it behaves more like a quick emotional prompt that captures an immediate response rather than a deeply processed one. Neither mode is bad, but they produce different kinds of contributions.Iteration of the Card System
The testing process also helped refine the prompt card system itself. The first version used random cards that players could freely choose from, but this confused people because the relationship between the cards and their family situation was not clear. The second version introduced numbered cards that created a sense of scale from closeness to distance, which was more structured but still not intuitive enough, and people still chose semi-randomly. The final version worked much better because each card represented a more specific current feeling, which helped players identify a clearer entry point into the experience. The collection boxes followed the same logic, framing what players want from their familial relationships rather than only where they currently stand.Insights for the Installation as a Whole
These user tests showed that the installation is not just about the printer or the tapping interaction, but about how clearly the visitor can locate themselves within the system. Once that became easier, the interaction also became more meaningful. The tests also helped me understand that the same installation can generate different depths of response depending on whether it is encountered as part of a larger journey or by itself as a standalone object.Key Takeaways
- The printer installation can work both as a standalone interaction and as a reflective endpoint after the other prototypes, but these two contexts produce noticeably different kinds of response.
- Clear emotional labelling was essential in helping users understand how to participate meaningfully in the system.