Grouppage_mappingtheuser

Nature routes for expats
Expats are people that live outside their native country. The routes from Staatsbosbeheer go through the nature of the Netherlands. So this might be a nice way to explore the nature of Holland for the expats. When I think of an interface I immediately think about websites and apps, which is a funny contrast with the nature & routes, they are like opposites.
The people that go to this website want to explore and walk in nature, but since it’s about expats, maybe their Dutch isn’t so perfect yet. Using only icons and maps and arrows, a visual language might be interesting. A digital platform for something to do with nature seems mismatched.
Other possibilities for interfaces in this subject: maps, signage, big posters/boards, compass etc.

Web archive for gamers
The current website looks old, and words like ‘history’ and ‘library’ and ‘books’ give it a nostalgic vibe. While gaming feels like something very modern and new, innovative and futuristic. This contrast could be interesting. I also wonder if gamers would in any way be interested in this web archive. Feels like the wrong target audience a bit. So the challenge would be how can you make this interesting for gamers?
Ofcourse interfaces for gamers make me think of adventurous interfaces, you have to do something to gain something. Also something futuristic can get their attention probably. There are some similarities between this subject and the target audience. Both are very digital worlds, for example. Also there is a lot of time invested in both. Interesting comment in class: ‘the gaming world is a very man dominated world’.

Art in the public space for creatures of the night
So this platform is kind of a digital gallery of art, and it tells you where you can find it in Rotterdam. Mostly when you visit a museum you go in the morning or afternoon,
but not really by night.
That is an interesting contrast with the creatures of the night, aka night owls. People who live/work at night. The website is very white and bright, which is bad for your eyes when you are in the dark. For people who are looking at these artworks and locations on the site, it should be an interface that is accessible in the dark. It could be interesting to make a list of certain people/jobs that are in the night. And pick a certain sub group for target audience. Also, is it possible to visit the artworks by night? Are they even visible then?
Nowadays woman/girls are afraid of walking outside in the dark at night alone, could be an interesting target audience. Combining safety with creativity and functionality in the interface.

Nature routs for expats
This theme is about nature. Exploring the nature can be a way to get to know the new country you live in, as an expat or to even rediscover the country you have been living in for years. The routs could be a place for the expats to connect and communicate with others. Nature can seem like something that is not interesting. However, I don't agree with that. I looked into the different social media platforms of the Staatsbosbeheer and I found on Facebook, that there is a 'community' section of people posting pictures they've made in nature. It was interesting to see the different pictures that were uploaded and how some people were more drawn to little details and other more to more obvious things in nature.

Web archive for gamers
I think this is the most challenging one for me out of the three choices we have. I don't know a lot about the gaming world. However finding out that there is a space where so much web history has been stored is interesting to me. The word gamer is not a world I'm familiar with so I think that there is a lot of space to learn about different types of gamers.

Art in the public space for the creatures of the night
BKOR is a program that displays artists' artworks. Their goal is draw attention to the art but also to encourage artists to keep on creating. They involve the Rotterdammers and give them a voice to express themselves through their art.
The creatures of the night makes me wonder who or what is part of these creatures. My first thought were animals that get active when it's nighttime, like owls. But then I also think about everything that gets hidden during the night. In the absence of light you can't see everything, your eyes have to get used to the darkness to be able to see a little. The darkness does not only hide things from you but it can also make you more aware of some things like light or for some people being in the dark makes them more aware that they're alone.

Nature routes for expats
Natute, camping, hiking in forest, mapping. All of this is something close to my heart as a person, not only as an artist, and I was so excited to see it in our choices. I am also interested in exploring the nature of the Netherlands as me being both an expat and a hiker myself.
I can easily see myself connected to the topic. There could be a lot of work with visual language, signs and maps and making it digital seems like an interesting idea for me. Also working with Nature is something comforting and calm so I can see the direction in which our project might go.
However, I am asking myself - should you go with something that you are "feeling" or you should approach something new and unknown?

Web archive for gamers
The world of gaming and gamers is a different universe from mine. The website looks challenging to work with and to gain information from and it’s in contrast with the pictures my mind is imagining when thinking about video games. Nevertheless, I am not even fully sure what web archives means and in which context we should even take it in mind. In other words - I am pretty confused.
Both the topic and the group of users are so far from me as an artist and working only in the digital world is something new and definitely out of my comfort zone.
But maybe that’s the point?

Art in the public space for creatures of the night
Thinking about our three options my mind immediately goes to the third one and I can definitely see why. It just makes the most sense from the three of them. Even before making any kind of research about it, just seeing the word “art” is enough for my brain to give a signal “this is something familiar”.
BKOR is a program that displays artists' artworks, like a visual gallery in a way. I find this interesting but then again, familiar, and this thought is comforting for me. From the three of them it’s definitely the one I am understanding the best.
However, do I want to try something different and just challenge myself?

After a small hour of discussion, we came to the conclusion that the ‘Web archive for gamers’ would be the right choice for us.
The ‘Nature routes for expats’, and ‘Art in the public space for creatures of the night’ seemed too comfortable for us. We have expats in our group, and some of us are big fans off hiking/walking/nature. And of course we are all studying an art major, so the ‘Art in the public space for creatures of the night’ also seemed like an obvious choice.

We acknowledged that the ‘Web archive for gamers’ seemed scary and uncomfortable for us. Because we all know nothing about the collection as well as the target audience. If we would choose this collection, it would be like a blanc canvas for all of us. Which results in a lot of possibilities to learn, explore, research, and mostly to suprise ourselves.

We also talked about how the target audience gamers is a big group, and we can probably specify this to a smaller subgroup. We discussed the most obvious video gamers, but also board games and how in history being a gamer meant being a gambler. The collection and the target audience seem like two opposites. Nevertheless we are very much looking forward to dive into the research and discover these two new worlds!

Nature routes for expats
This topic concerns people who are loving the nature and they are internationals in the specific country. It’s interesting how we can make a design for the nature itself. Different posters, maps and routes with different landmarks. Repeating the word “nature” in my head, I immediately start to think about the green and its shades. Looking through the site I was completely lost, probably because it’s in Dutch and I can’t speak that language. Second really noticeable thing was that the design of the site itself for was quite unattractive- just a simple Wordpress templates filled with a few images, that’s not a design for me.  For example if the concrete organisation wants to gain customers, it will be cool if they are change their way of expressing and showing the information.
I’m not 60 year old, I want something that will catch my eye !

Web archive for gamers
We as a group should choose something that unite our visions and struggles. Because we are in a graphic design major, first we talked about the topic concerns the arts, of course. But after a few discussions we came up with the idea to work with the one that is not really familiar for us. And namely “Web archive for gamers”. We had a meeting and we discussed the possibilities that this topic could give us. In my opinion, the game industry today is a really huge part of the entertainment. For every new game coming out, there is a big team of artists and designers, developers and programmers that stays behind. Even for some games there’s a whole orchestra creating music specially for the game itself.  Personally, I think that this topic will be really interesting for researching and creating designs for. I’m not saying that is going to be easy, but let’s try with the hard, because it always provides better opportunities. I’m happy that my team is agree with all the facts, because that’s the first step for working in a collective, to have comprehension.

Mapping the self & the other

Body
Do gamers eat and drink unhealthy? Why?
Are gamers in good physical shape?
Do gamers have good hygiene?

Private
Do gamers have diplomas, education etc?
Do gamers have cat /are they cat people?

Personality/mentality
Does lack of sleep result in short temper?
Are gamers competitive?
Are gamers introverts and antisocial?
Do gamers have social skills?
Do gamers have less self-control than other people?
Do gamers stay up late to game?
Does that connect to addiction?
Can playing games (like shooting games)
change the mentality of players, more aggression…?

1.1 We kind of thought all gamers might have bad eating habits, so they only eat fastfood and drink red bull. But during our research we came across a blog of a gamer girl, that was also vegan. And the more we read into this subject, the more surprised I was about the outcome. Many gamers boys or girls, men or women, are actually trying to eat healthy and exercise too, because they are aware that they are sitting the majority of the time, and they want to stay fit.

1.2 I’m curious about the community of gamer girls, and their lifestyles. I really respect the gamers that have this healthy diet and that do exercises, because I relate to the ‘sitting the majority of the time’ part. As a designer (student) you also sit most of the time behind your laptop, and it can be hard to make sure that you keep moving and staying fit.
I know gamer girls can be judged, or they are expected to behave a certain way, they can be expected to be bad gamers, or to dress sexy for a livestream for example. That I feel bad for and I hope that that will change. I know not all people/men think about gamer girls that way, but the stereotype is definitely there. I would love to be part of the healthy gamer girl community, but I’m a terrible gamer and I can’t stand losing, so seems like a bad idea.

2.1 The stereotypes of adult man that are fat, eat unhealthy, live in their moms basement etc.
Also the stereotypes of girls that are super sexy or very much girly girls (a lot of pink and kawaii) and people say they are bad gamers. Also that gamers are super aggressive and that the games make them violent and that they become violent because of those games.

2.2 For the first example I saw the signifiers: fat man, pimples, beer/cola cans, pizza, double chins, unshaven beard.The second one: two ponytails, a lot of pink, big boobs, big but, not so much clothes, even the word sexy. The third one: an aggressive facial expression, body language, aggressive symbols (skulls, stars etc.) like he is swearing. I found all these images when I googled gamers illustrations, because I knew I would find a lot of stereotypes (maybe not on purpose from the illustrators). I believe the sexy gamer girl illustration is supposed to be a logo, the fat man gamer in from southpark, and two others are from stock websites.

3.1 For the girl gamer stereotype it’s definitely sexism. I’m not sure who spreads these stereotypes, and what their intention is. There is a change that boys spread this stereotype, but that is just my assumption. As a girl I would never spread a stereotype like that about myself, but maybe some girl want to be seen that way. For the southpark one, I don’t watch south park that often, but I know that that program is on comedy channel or something, and it’s supposed to be comedy. I can imagine they created this character just to make fun of the stereotype itself, not per se gamers. I don’t think there is a bad intention behind it.
The illustrations of the girl gamers look very detailed, someone really tried to make it a pretty picture. I don’t think this person was intentionally drawing this stereotype, but thought that it was just a pretty girl, dressed a bit sexy, and that it would be a cute idea for a drawing.
Gamers are sometimes also linked to nerds or geeks, and I don’t really know where this comes from. Maybe because gaming takes up a lot of time and the gamers might be seen as anti-social, so not spending real life time with friends, and of course nerds (which is also a big stereotype on it’s own) don’t have many friends. And maybe that is why they game so much because they don’t have a social life. I think it might be something like that, the origin of the gamer nerd stereotype.

3.2 iHasCupquake is a famous girl gamer on youtube, and her banner is all rainbow unicorn, cupcake (even in her name) so very girly girl, and of course this can just be because she loves that aesthetic, but to me it also seems a bit over the top. So maybe it’s just for her branding/character on youtube.

1.1 My first assumptions of our user group were quite a lot and coming from all directions - movies, social media, tv, etc. For example I assumed that gamers are more of introverts (closed people) and not so much into social life. However, diving into more research I saw by giving this assumption I completely misunderstood the fact that the gaming world is big and actually really a social world. There are also different types of gamers - for example “influencer gamers”, whose main focus and ideas are based on popularization of gaming as a profession - exactly the opposite of my assumptions of the “antisocial, closed gamer”.
Another big assumption of mine that was definitely debunked was the idea of the “unhealthy gamer lifestyle” we all have in mind when thinking about gamers sitting on desks all day and all night long, eating junk food. Surprisingly to me, we were able to find that many gamers nowadays are focused on breaking this stereotype by promoting a lot of healthy living tips and tricks for gamers (and for people sitting and working on a desk in general). There are also a lot of connections between vegan/vegetarian kitchen, healthy recipes, etc. and the gaming world, which was really unexpected to me.

1.2 Not long ago I was struggling with finding the best way in which I can relax and just have some chill time not related to my studies (not related to Art in general), something to keep me focused on something else for a while and to prevent me from thinking about tasks, homeworks, etc. During that time a friend of mine introduced me to video gaming just for fun, nothing serious, and I was so surprised to find out that I actually like it. I can’t say I am considering myself a gamer but maybe I am now part of that specific user group of gamers that are just enjoying some fun and relaxing time in front of the computer with friends. This is also helping me during our research project, because I feel I am able to understand our users more like this.
I am also finding myself interested in game design now that I have some experience with different types of games, so I am definitely admiring the work of game designers (who are usually gamers themselves). I am definitely thinking more positive about this user group and I am happy I was able to surprise myself.

2.1
- All gamers are living unhealthy life; they are not in good physical shape.
- Gamers are antisocial, introverts.
- Gamers are not interested in their education.
- Gamers are all nerds.
- Gamers are all teenage boys.

2.2
- Junk food (pizza, burgers, snacks…)
- Game chairs/ desks
- Glasses
You can find objects connected to these stereotypes all over the internet, in memes, Instagram pages, especially all over american movies. It’s the typical “gamer” image that is being shown to the world.

3.1 Stereotypical thinking occurs during the social categorization of a group of people and in modern society one of the most powerful sources of stereotypes is the media. So I believe most of these “rumors” are coming through the influence of it. I think one of the systems of oppression that is part and takes a major role in the stereotyping concerning gamers and gaming is sexism, because as I already expressed one of the typical stereotypes is “Gamers are all boys” and that’s obviously not true.

3.2 I believe many examples of gamers using the stereotypes and “breaking” them can be found online, for example in Youtube where now it is a common thing for the influencer gamers to show to the world how you can be a healthy gamer. There are many videos and accounts based on proving all the stereotyping wrong and based on the many views I believe there are a lot of people who are standing against all these assumptions.

1.1 The first assumption I had of gamers is that they prefer gaming over everything else. I think this assumption is too generalised. Many gamers do prioritise gaming over other things. For instance pro gamers, who game for a living. However, this is not any different from other people, who often prioritise their work over everything else.
The second assumption I had, was that gamers play video games as a way to escape their reality. There are many different reasons why gamers game for hours. Some play for hours as a job, some play for entertainment or for social reasons. Nevertheless, others do play as a way to escape their reality. When I researched about this, I could confirm that this was the case for some players. I also found out that these gamers had more problems of procrastination than those who play for other reasons.
The third assumption I had, was that gamers get obsessed or addicted. This can be true but I would debunk this assumption because when my group was researching into different user groups, we found gamers who were interested in healthy lifestyles. One example, are the vegan gamers, who built a community that connected the lifestyle of being vegan to the gamer world. Moreover, I also found many website on the internet about 'healthy gaming' and 'how to be a healthy gamer'.

1.2 One aspect I relate to the gamers is that we both spend hours in front of a screen. I do it to work on my assignments for school and they do it too when they're gaming. That's when I asked myself the question why people dislike gamers because they only spent time in front of their screen when I do it too, for example. The only difference is the reason why we do it.
Besides, I would say that I feel like I understand this user group a little better. I learned about the reasons why people game and I also could see how much gaming matters to them. I found a picture on the internet about how gamers were never alone because they were part of a big community and I really liked that aspect of it.

2.1A) The stereotype of gamers who are aggressive. There are a lot of games about guns, weapons and shooting people or things to be able to survive. And I would say that is where the stereotype comes from, because after playing for hours violent games it's possible that some gamers can't put apart reality and video games and the aggression they felt while gaming becomes normal to them.
B) The stereotype of girl gamers, who are in most games portrayed as sexy. There is a fine line between 'sexy' and being sexualised. One example are the proportions of women in video games and I often see the lack of realism in how the women look.
C) The stereotype of having a unhealthy lifestyle. I found three different stereotypes about this: unhealthy because of the food they eat, unhealthy because of the lack of exercise and unhealthy because of the lack of sleep and having a social life. They all come together, because gamers are being seen as people who only sit and play.

2.2 unhealthy food, fast food, no exercise, bad posture
You can find them as jokes, memes and also on tv, for example tv shows like South Park.

3.1 People who don't anything about gamers spread these stereotypes. I assume that they don't really think about how these stereotypes can affect them.
When I was doing some research I learned about how the gaming world is manly. It's a world where female gamers have a hard time finding their place. Because of this, I would say a system of oppression is sexism. I also found an article about racism in the gaming world. For instance how game images reinforce race stereotypes.

Recap first 200 signs & first knolling

New potential usergroups

1. Pokimane (gamer/influencer)
The 24-year-old Twitch streamer known as Pokimane has more than
7 million followers on the platform. Her fashion style mixes comfort, cute spectacle and streetwear.

2. Her fans (teenage girl gamers)
Fashion for their fans, players display a wide array of styles, from a team-branded hoodie to a camo jacket to Pokémon cosplay.
Teenagers that might game themselves and look up to the famous gamers. Maybe they want to become gamers themselves.

3. ZooMaa (professional gamer)
Known as ZooMaa, he is a professional Call of Duty League player for the New York Subliners, part of the Andbox esports organization, which houses a clothing design arm. Earlier this month, he announced that he would be stepping back from competition due to ongoing wrist pain, though he will continue to stream.

4. Vegan gamers, young adults/grown ups
Minecraft But I Play Vegan Minecraft to show the world that the path of a vegan is the only way forward in the voxel-based fantasy hit video game developed by Mojang & produced.
The Vegan Gamers step into the world of M4.

5. Gamers and cooking (girls/woman 25 - 35)
A Geeky Gal https://ageekygal.com
Hey ya’ll! My name is Meg. I’m 28 years old. I’m a 2D/3D artist hybrid by day. By night, I am a geeky gal, the blogger who has her hands in all things geek including gaming, cosplay, tech, fashion, and reviews! I’m up for it all: traveling, conventions, cosplaying, reviewing new and popular products, interviews, meeting anyone from celebrities to small town cosplayers to people like you, my readers.

6. Gamblers (influencer) Age 40
Brian Christopher
is a popular YouTube Star specializing in Slot Machine Gambling Videos. We have managed to pump out a total of 685 VIDEOS on YouTube alone which brought us 67,000,000 VIEWS, 22M hours of watched videos (15,277 days worth!) and 103,000 NEW SUBSCRIBERS!

7. Retro gamers
Retro meaning- This is aspect in which everything is old-fashioned, but it is super modern nowadays.
"Retro" seems to imply it was either before you were born or can actually remember firsthand.
Nerds, geeks, gamers, retrogamers, speedrunners, hackers, demosceners, makers, hardware, technology lovers

8. Disabled gamers
The AbleGamers Foundation is an American nonprofit organization and foundation dedicated to improving accessibility in the video game space, enabling more people with disabilities to be able to play video games

9. Addicted gamblers
Of course, as everything else
there is a bad side of the things. It could be really dangerous for our life if we are addicted to it and don't think straight.

Recap 200 signs_The Time Travellers

Dungeons and Dragons Players:
Dungeons and Dragons, or D&D, is a fantasy role-play game first published in 1974. Each player is assigned to a specific character and embarks upon imaginary adventures within a fantasy setting.
Forum users: Active forum users refers to those who are actively engaged in online discussion sites where people hold conversations in the form of posted messages.
Role players:
This refers to anyone who engages in activities where they assume the role of a character in a fictional setting.
Technophiles: The term technophile refers to anyone who has a strong enthusiasm for technology.
LARPers: Live action role-playing is one form of role-playing game where participants physically act out their characters’ actions. The players pursue goals within a fictional setting represented by the real world, while interacting with each other in character
Trading Card Game Players: Trading card game players refers to those who play collectible card games such as Magic: The Gathering. These games involve specially designed cards and require strategic game play.
Console Gamers: Console gamers are devoted players of electronic games that are played on consoles such as an Xbox, PlayStation or Wii.
MMO gamers: A MMORPG, or massively multiplayer online role playing game, is a genre of role playing video games where a very large number of players interact with one another in an online virtual game world. MMORPGs are distinguished from other role play games by the number of players and the games persistent world which continues to exist and evolve even when the player is offline. The most popular MMORPG on the market today is World of Warcraft.
Teammates: The term teammate is referring to any collection of members from a team. This can include, but is not limited to, paintball teams, debate teams, or football teams.
Geeks: Geek is a slang term referring to someone who may be peculiar and overly intellectual.
Students: In this context, student is referring to anyone who attends an educational institution
Teenagers: The term teenager refers to anyone between the ages of 13 and 19
Comic book enthusiast: Comic book enthusiast are those individuals who hold a high enthusiasm for this genre of literature. Comic books comprise of narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, which are often accompanied by both dialogue and directive prose.
Arcade Gamers: Arcade gamers are individuals who frequently play coin operated entertainment machines. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, and merchandisers (claw machines)
Online Gamers: The term online gamer refers to a devoted player of electronic games that are played through an Internet connection in conjunction with other individuals. This includes playing with both people they know and do not know in the real world.