Hubbub

Abstract

There is a need for lightweight communication tools that give people awareness of colleagues, friends, and family and that let them initiate and retrieve messages with trivial effort. Existing instant messenger applications are a good step, but most provide minimal awareness and are not easily accessible from the road. Hubbub is an instant messenger that runs on a wireless Palm and a PC, enabling people to maintain background awareness of others and send them quick messages. It uses a novel concept of "sound instant messages," i.e., earcons that have meaning, such "Hi" or "Thanks." Each user has a Sound ID that announces their sound messages and their changes in availability. Users can protect their privacy and control sound overload.