Design and Photo Exhibition

 

Who can enter

Anyone who uses transport or has an interest in transport and design including students, usability professionals, people who work in transport, and the general public.

Where to send your entry

  • By email: events@upasydney.org
  • Deliver to: The Hiser Group, North Sydney
    9:00am–5:00pm, Monday–Friday
  • OR, bring along on the day.

Closing date for entries

5:00 pm – Wed, 12 November
OR
bring your entry on the day.

Questions?

Email your questions to events@upasydney.org

Note: Submission deadline has been extended to 5pm 12th November 2008.

The Sydney Chapter of the Usability Professionals’ Association (UPA) invites you to contribute your ideas to a design and photo exhibition for World Usability Day (Thursday, 13 November). Entries will be displayed at our local World Usability Day event held at the University of Technology Sydney, and prizes will be awarded for the most innovative and interesting submissions.

Theme: Usability in Transportation*

In keeping with this years’ theme, the focus of the exhibition is on how we can improve the design of our current modes of transport, supporting systems and infrastructure to:

  • Better support the people that use them
  • Be more sustainable in the future

Why you should enter

Help us draw attention to the importance of usability in transportation. Share your ideas with others about what does and doesn’t work and your thoughts about how to create more usable transportation for Sydney.

* About the transportation theme

Transportation involves moving people and things from point A to B and includes a wide range of items designed for people to use:

  • Mode of transport – cars, trains, planes, boats, trucks, buses, bikes and more.
  • Supporting infrastructure – roads, bridges, tunnels, lights, street signs and more.
  • Technology, resources – getting tickets, maps, travel web sites and more.

How you can enter

Send us a quick sketch, diagram or some photos based on one of the two options below.

Option 1: Show an aspect of our current transport systems* that you think is either really good or could be improved. For example, this might be something you think is:
  • confusing, difficult or unpleasant for people to use
  • not very useful, inefficient or poses health or safety risks
  • particularly useful or enticing.
Please include a brief explanation of what is good or bad about each sketch or photo.
Option 2: Show an aspect of our current transport systems* that you think could be improved AND provide your suggestions for improvement that makes it:
  • a more user-friendly experience
  • more useful, helpful, pleasant or safer to use
  • easier to build or maintain
  • more sustainable in the future.
Please include a brief explanation of the issues with the current aspect and how your suggestion could improve the user experience or make transport more sustainable.

See an example entry.

Format for entries

Your entry can be in any of the following formats:

  • One A3 sized sketch or diagram (to be viewed at A3 size) – preferably a PDF, GIF or JPG file
  • One to four photos (to be viewed at 10 x 18 cm size)
  • A combination of photos and a sketch.

Important notes:

  • All parts of your entry (i.e., photos / sketches and explanation) must fit onto one A3 sheet of paper for display
  • The brief explanation can either be included in your A3 sketch (if sent in hardcopy), text in your email, or attached as a Word document.

What you need to include with your entry

  1. Your brief explanation of the example
  2. Label the parts of your entry that are illustrate the current design and the recommended improvements (if providing a ‘before’ and ‘after’ as described in Option 2)
  3. If you send more than one photo, please number them 1, 2… (maximum 4 photos)
  4. Your name, job role (or course of study if a student) and your email address – note that personal details will only be used in conjunction with this event

Where to send your entry

You can submit your entry until 5:00pm Wednesday, 12 November 2008, by either of the following:

  1. Email your entry as an attachment to events@upasydney.org
  2. Deliver your A3 page (containing original photo or drawing) to The Hiser Group, Level 10, 90 Arthur Street, North Sydney 2060 (9:00am – 5:00pm, Monday to Friday).
    Please mark your entry ‘World Usability Day Exhibition’.

    OR

  3. Bring your entry along to World Usability Day on Thursday, 13 November.

What happens after the Exhibition

Hardcopy entries can be picked up from the World Usability Day Exhibition at the conclusion of the event (5:00pm) or from The Hiser Group beginning Friday, 14 November. Note that uncollected entries will be retained for one month only.

Winning entries (and winner details) will be displayed on the UPA Sydney site until World Usability Day 2009 (12 November 2009)

Exhibition on World Usability Day

The exhibition will be on display throughout our World Usability Day event from 10:00am – 5:00pm at the University of Technology Sydney. We will endeavour to display all entries on the day, subject to space availability and timeliness of submissions.

Prizes for entries

Awards for the most innovative and interesting entries will be announced at the exhibition on World Usability Day. There will also be a ‘People’s Choice’ award, and visitors to the exhibition will be encouraged to comment on submissions and vote for their favourite entries. Winners will:

  • Receive an award certificate from the UPA
  • Receive a small prize (details forthcoming)
  • With permission of the winner, winning entries will also be displayed on the UPA Sydney website (www.upasydney.org) until World Usability Day 2009.