The iTour project: a study of the design and testing of effective online animated tours as a form of interactive online documentation

The iTour Project is an empirical study of the design of online interactive animated tours (iTours), and establishes a knowledge base for technical communicators and new media designers working in this area. The key objectives of this research were to understand the features of effective iTours; to explore the processes and techniques of designing and testing effective iTours; and to establish new praxis in new media design for technical communication.

Design artefacts resulted from six key activities including: (1) Sub-project 1- RMIT Multimedia Online documentation with basic animation; (2) Sub-project 2- Online @ RMIT Orientation with some iTour animation; (3) Third-party iTour analytical review to deconstruct iTours and determine key elements; (4) Sub-project 3- Online @ RMIT iTours; (5) iTour Guidelines; and (6) A second, more comprehensive third-party iTour analysis to test the Guidelines.

The outcome of the research is encapsulated in a web site that binds the artefacts of design sub-projects with a set of Guidelines. These Guidelines form a conceptual, structural and operational framework for iTour designers, and draw on the knowledge established while designing and testing iTours, analysing third-party iTours, and researching comparative fields. These fields include technical communication; new media; web; usability design and testing; and, to a lesser extent, software design and testing. The Guidelines, in conjunction with the knowledge base, were developed to facilitate effective communication through iTours.

Through this research, the design action case study was established as a hybrid research approach: design research and action research are blended; and knowledge is situated within, and derived from, a case study. In support of design research, the PDIOR design cycles have been specified and include these phases: plan; develop; implement; observe; and reflect. The PDIOR approach combines design research and action research in a cyclical mode to explore technical communication and new media activities.

Finally, eleven principles for designing effective iTours emerged from this research project. Articulation of these principles, in addition to the Guidelines, contributes new knowledge in the field for technical communicators, new media designers and others, who wish to engage in iTour design.