Patina is a research project that explores a new class of design, which adds a layer of use-based information to digital objects. In doing so, it imbeds social preferences and trends into the object itself. This layer of social traces is intended to make an informative difference to users, to facilitate greater involvement and provide means by which designers can improve their work.

My research focuses on the inadvertant traces we leave while navigating through web-based information and narrative spaces. It focusses on how such traces can be represented on top of digital objects to signify how others use those social commodities.

PatinaMap: Thailand Long Pied Long Took
The most mature prototype which explores a history-of-use on the world wide web with different filters, sound, (a)synchronous use, depth, and paths.
 
Thesis Proposal
This is my thesis proposal. I was accepted by the MIT DCGS and therefore it's likely that this is what will become.

Touch of Time
A story about how social traces are witnesses to human experience, drama and comedy.

This is a pretty crude social trace that does very little of what I'm interested in, but oh well.

simpleTrace2
Another version of what you see above, but including some simple color, transparency and brightness capabilities.

Chicago Tribune
Some experiments with how Patina can affect web-based news stories and community specifically designed for our NiF partner, the Chicago Tribune.

Summer Plan (1997)
This document is in process and reflects the direction I'm heading in. I don't know why I'm putting this on the web. For my own reference, I guess.