Here, this and next: evaluating public engagement with multiple, distributed and interlinked devices.

Location-based applications have been used to guide users through multiple points of interest, engaging them in the exploration of new places, the collection of items and the practice of exercise. However, existing approaches are often designed for mobile devices, which can be a barrier to more instant and broad access. We examine a new approach for locative media which consists of placing multiple physical and interactive devices in public places. The idea is that when passersby interact with a device, they are encouraged to carry on and discover the others. Through two in-the-wild studies, we investigate how to engage and support such experiences by carefully designing content, spatial arrangement as well as indications to the multiple devices. Findings showed what motivates people to interact with this kind of location-based media, and what discourages them. Such insights can be useful for designers of future multi-device public installations.