Taggr

Folksonomybarelycoversthehalfofit.
LydiaFletcher,JordanForbes,FrannyGaede,&VirginiaTrueheart

TableofContents
1

I.List:InstitutionsandDatasets3 II.AbstractandStatementsofInnovation a.StatementofInnovation34 b.StatementofSignificance4 III.Narrative a.EnhancingtheFieldthroughInnovation&EnvironmentalScan56 b.WorkPlan78 c.DataManagementPlan9 IV.Appendices a.Appendix1:ComparableApps1015 i.Tumblr(MobileOptimizedWebsite/iPhoneonlyApp/AndroidApp) ii.Postr iii.TumbleOn b.Appendix2:UseCaseScenarios1622 c.Appendix3:InterfaceMockups2325 i.Mockup1:HomeScreen ii.Mockup2:TagBrowse iii.Mockup3:RelatedTags iv.Mockup4:LoginScreen v.Mockup5:SaveTagtoGroup vi.Mockup6:GroupTagBrowse V.References&WorksConsulted2627

I.List:Institutions/Datasetsyourapplicationwilltakeadvantageof TumblrAPI II.AbstractandStatementsofInnovation StatementofInnovation Tumblr.comisasocialnetworkingandmicrobloggingwebsite,foundedin2007,which hasgrownsignificantlyinrecentyears1 ,andnowcontains83.4millionseparateblogswhich togetherhold37.2billionindividualposts2 .Itisheavilyusedtopost,share,andcurate multimediaobjects,suchaspicturesandvideos.Thesiteallowsuserstofollowfriends accounts,andalsotocreatetheirownmetadatabytaggingcontentthattheyhavechosento publish.AusersTumblraccountconsistsofbothhisorherownblogshomepage(e.g. johnsmith.tumblr.com)andalsoadashboardcontrolpagethroughwhichtheusercanadd postsandalsoviewpostscontributedbyotheruserswhoseblogstheyhavechosentofollow. Tumblrwasdesignedforviewinganduseonapersonalcomputer,butithasalsoreleaseda publicapplicationprogramminginterface(theTumblrAPI) 3 ,andseveralmobileapplicationshave sincebeencreatedtoextenditsapplicabilitytosmartphonesandtabletcomputers.These includeboththeofficialTumblrappsfortheiPhoneandAndroidphonebythecompanyitself4 , andavarietyofphoneandtabletappscreatedbyoutsidedevelopers.Thereisnotyetanofficial tabletapplicationfromTumblr,butthewebsiteitselfhasanoptionforoptimizedviewingon tabletssuchastheiPad. OneofthefeaturesthatstronglydifferentiatesTumblrfromcompetitorsocialmediaand bloggingwebsitessuchasLiveJournal,Facebook,Google+,andBloggeristheemphasisthat hasorganicallygrownuponthesiteforatypeofculturalproductthatconsistsinactive appreciationofa(usuallyartisticorcommercial)workandthecreationofadditionalculturalor artisticmaterialsthattransformthatworkinotherwords,afandom.Therearemanyother websitesservingfancommunitiesonlinenotably,therefanfictionsitessuchasfanfiction.net andarchiveofourown.orgserveasrepositoriesfortransformativenarrativefiction.However, Tumblrhasbecomeoneofthelargestandbestknownsitesformultimediamicroblogging specifically.TheTumblrlayouthasbeenfoundbythefancommunitiestobewelladaptedto postingpictures,videos,soundclips,andmyriadmemes,andtheusercreatedtaggingthatit
1

Halliday,Josh.TheGuardian,"DavidKarp,founderofTumblr,onrealisinghisdream."Last

modified2012.AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/jan/29/tumblrdavidkarpinterview. 2 Tumblr,"AboutTumblr."Lastmodified2012.AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.tumblr.com/about. 3 Tumblr,"TumblrAPI."Lastmodified2012.AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.tumblr.com/docs/en/api/v2. 4 Tumblr,"TumblrApps."Lastmodified2012.AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.tumblr.com/apps. 3

permitsallowsusersonthemainwebsitetosearch,sort,andfilterpostsinfluidand constantlyevolvingways. Unfortunately,thecurrentofferingofTumblrmobileapps,andparticularlytheunofficial appsforuseontabletcomputers,whiletheydoallowfortaggingandtagsearchingcapabilities, donotapproachthefulltagfunctionalityofthemainTumblrwebsite.Ourproposedapplication, tobecalledTaggr,willfillthisgapinthemarketbyfocusingspecificallyontagsortingand filtering.ThefeaturethatthecurrentlyavailableTumblrtabletappslackisthecapabilityfor discovery.Allofthetabletappsavailableareprimarilyconcernedwithrecreatingtheregular TumblrdashboardfortheuseronatabletourTaggrapp,ontheotherhand,willtargetusers whopreferusingthemainTumblrwebsitetosearchfortagsoutsideoftheirpresetdashboard preferences.Thiswillallowforgreaterdiscoveryofcontentnewtotheuser.TheTaggrappwill alsoallowforincreaseddiscoverybyofferingtheuseratagcloudofpopularandtrendingsearch terms,willprovideautocompletionofsuggestedtermsinthetagsearchbox,andwillsaveand autocompletetagspreviouslysearchedbyeachuser.Finally,Taggrscloudofsuggested searchtermswillchangeinrealtimeastheusercompletesmoresearches,alteringto incorporatetermsthattheuserhastypedaswellasrelatedsubjectterms. StatementofSignificance TheTaggrappisaproductthatwillgreatlyenhancetheuseofmetadatathroughout Tumblr.Tumblrtagsarefrequentlycolloquialandfocusonexpandingthecontentofapostrather thandevelopingastructuredmetadataschema.ThroughTaggr,userswillbeabletoharness thiscolloquialtaggingstructureinawaythatwillallowthemtobuildtheirownpersonalmetadata structuresandenhancetheiruseofTumblr.BecausetheTumblrtaggingsystemissovast, TaggrwillprovideacontrolledportalthatwillenableuserstonavigatetheTumblrtaggingsystem andclearandmeaningfulway. TaggrwillalsoallowuserstoaccessTumblrviatheirtablets.Currently,themost frequentaccesspointforTumblroutsideofapersonalcomputerisamobile.Byexpandingthe marketofTumblrrelatedappsontablets,Taggrwillencouragethetaggingsystemalreadyin usebyTumblrwhileencouraginguserstobecomecuratorsofblogcontent.Furthermore,Taggr isgoingtotakethetouchscreenbenefitsoftabletinteractionandintegratetheminsuchaway astocreateafunandengagingwaytocurate,store,andshareTumblrcontent.

III.Narrative EnhancingtheFieldThroughInnovation&EnvironmentalScan TheTaggrapprepresentsanengagementonthedesignerspartwithabroadswatheof academicandintellectualconsideration:thestudyofsocialtaggingisatajuncturebetweenthe studiesofinformationorganization,culturestudies,humancomputerinteractionand,inthe particularcaseofTumblr,linguistics. Socialtagging,broadly,istheuseofinformallyassigned,userdefinedkaywords5 toaid ininformationretrievalbyidentifyingtheobjectthattheyareattachedto.Forthemostpart,it operatesonatwoleveltaxonomyandhasgrowntobeanintegralpartofWeb2.0,where taggingfunctionsonmostsocialsitesasuserappliedkeywordstodescribecontentand facilitatequickretrievalofthatcontentlater.Forsingleusers,taggingfulfilsaverysimpleyet powerfulobjective:itaddsmetadatatoacollectionofobjects.6 OnTumblr,theprimarymeans ofbrowsingnavigationisthroughthetaggingsystemusersaddtagstopostsandbrowse populartagstofindblogsiftheydontalreadyknowofspecificblogsoruserstofollow. Collectionsofuserswithinasinglesocialsitecancreatetheirownfolksonomy(folk taxonomy)thatcanbesubjecttositeorcommunityspecificidiosyncrasiesand inconsistencies.7 InthecaseofTumblr,thereisevidencethatTumblrusershaveadaptedthe taggingsystemasanadditionallocationforcommentaryonapost,ratherthanthekeyword descriptionthatsocialtaggingistypicallythoughttorepresent.Ineffect,Tumblriscreatingits ownlanguageandmethodofcommunicationwithitsownsetofrulesbasedontheTumblr environmentandthisisbleedingintothewayusersspeakoutsideofthetaggingspaceas well.ThemajorityofTumblrsdialectcomesfrominfluencewithinthetagsystemresultingina lackofcapitalizationandpunctuationbecausethetaggingsystemTumblrusesrenders everythinginlowercasewithoutpunctuation. 8 Whilethisposesdifficultyfortaggingbased programsduetothehighvolumeofnonhomogenousmultiplewordtags,italsopresentsadeep wellofdatathatcanbeminedbyresearchersinavarietyoffieldstoinvestigatethisaspectof participatoryculture. AliShiri,"Anexaminationofsocialtagginginterfacefeaturesandfunctionalities:ananalytical comparison."OnlineInformationReview,33,no.5(2009):901919, http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/14684520911001909(accessedDecember5,2012). 6 MichaelDerntl,ThorstenHampel,RenateMotschingPitrik,andTomasPitner,"Inclusivesocial tagginganditssupportinWeb2.0services,"ComputersinHumanBehavior,27(2011): 14601466. 7 MichaelDerntl,ThorstenHampel,RenateMotschingPitrik,andTomasPitner,"Inclusivesocial tagginganditssupportinWeb2.0services,"ComputersinHumanBehavior,27(2011): 14601466. 8 Crowleyaziraphale(TheAngleshavetheImpala)12/01/2012whyisitthatallthemostpopular postsontumblr.QuotePost. http://crowleyaziraphale.tumblr.com/post/37011419322/edgebugturnabouttaisamysingingsou l<%22>.Mysingingsoul.25,400notes.AccessedDecember4,2012.
5

Socialtaggingrepresentsthebroadestlevelofpossibilitiesforacademicresearch becauseitispervasivethroughoutallTumblrusersandblogs,butonasmallerlevel,selections ofTumblrusersandthewaytheyhaveadaptedthetaggingsystemcanbeimportanttoculture studiesscholars,particularlythoseinterestedintheparticipatorycultureoffandom.Tumblrisa growinghubofrichartisticexpressionsforavarietyofpopularfandomcommunitiesbecauseof itsblendofthemoretraditionalsocialnetworkingandbloggingplatforms.9 Fandomsoccuras thenaturalcollectionoflikemindedpeoplewholookonlinetofindotherswhosharetheirpassion forandinterestinanovel,movie,TVshow,play,comicbook,videogames,orhistoricalfigure10 andresultinthecreationoftextualandvisualobjectsthatarereferredtobyacademicsas transformativeworkswithinaparticipatoryculture.Mostacademicswhostudyaspectsof fandomparticipatoryculturecomefrommediastudiesorliterarystudiesbackgrounds,but increasinglyparticipatorycultureisbeingstudiedbypsychologists,informationscientists,and culturalhistorians.Itisalsoincreasinglyprominentinbroadersocietalconsciousnessduetothe popularityofworkssuchasFiftyShadesofGrey,whichbeganitsexistenceasTwilight fanfiction,andthusbringsalloftheperipherymoralandlegalissuesrelatedtofanfictionand fandomcreationsintothelimelight. Taggr,therefore,asanappthatworkssolelyontheexplorationofarichsocialtagging systempredominantlyutilizedbytransformativeworkcreatorsandconsumers,providesanew mediatoolthatoffersanadvancedsocialtagbrowsingtoolthathasaparticulardrawforusers andresearcherswhoareinterestedinthetransformativeworksparticipatoryculturethatuses Tumblrasitsnexus.WebelieveTaggrhasthepotentialforusebypsychologistsandother socialresearchersandinformationscientistsinterestedintheinteractionsbetweenusersand thesocialtagcultureonTumblr.Linguistsandotherlanguageresearcherscanuseittobrowse throughandstudytheorganicdevelopmentoftheTumblrdialect. IndevelopingTaggrandseekingtounderstandtheecologywithinwhichitwillflourish,we identifiedandstudiedthreenativeiPadappsandthetabletoptimizedTumblrmobilesite(see AppendixI:ComparableApps).Toourknowledge,noneofthesecompetitorappswas developedorishighlyutilizedbyresearchersinterestedinfandomculture,socialtagging,or folksonomydevelopment.

WorkPlan
WorkontheTaggrapp,afterallfunctionalrequirementsarelaidout,hasnecessarily begunwiththewritingofusecasescenariosandapreliminarywireframeanddesignofthe appslayoutandlook.ThislatterhasbeenaccomplishedontheKeynotepresentationsoftware andhasbeeninformedbycomparisonswithotherappscurrentlyintheAndroidandAppleApp Participatoryfandom(ParticipatoryFandomonTumblr)12/16/2011DemographicsofTumblr Use.TextPost. http://participatoryfandom.tumblr.com/post/14319348671/demographicstumblruse.Original Poster.15notes.AccessedDecember3,2012. 10 BeccaSchaffner,"Indefenseoffanfiction,"TheHornBookMagazine,85,no.6(2009): 613618.
9

Stores,includingthoseofourcompetitors.Thenextstepwillbetoacquiredeveloperstatusfor theplatformsthatweintendTaggrtoworkonAndroidandAppletabletcomputers.Thenwe willdrawupanondisclosureagreement,designedtoprotectourkeyideas,andproceedtothe hiringstageoftheprocess,postingadvertisementsforpositionssuchasprogrammer,graphic designer,andusabilityexpert,andmarketer.Wewillinterviewcandidates,makingsureto requirethattheysignournondisclosureagreementbeforereleasinganyproprietaryinformation tothem. Oncewehavesignedonournewemployees,thefirsttasksettothegraphicdesigner willbetoproduceadraftofthemainiconfortheapp(withinputfromourmarketer)andto produceupdatedversionsoftheoriginalwireframedesigns.Ourprogrammerwillbeaskedto deliveranadhocversionoftheappusingthesedesigns,onewhichwillonlyrunlocallyonour testertablets,notyetforreleasetotheAppStores.Nextwillcomeinhousequalityassurance, inwhichwetesteveryusecasescenariotoensurethatallareworkingasplanned.Atthispoint, wewillhaveeveryemployeeconducttestingtogatherasmuchconstructivecriticismas possiblefromwithinourorganization,thenwewillmovetoamorestructuredversionofiterative usertesting,ledbyourusabilityexpert.Theusabilityexpertwillconducttestgroups,solicituser feedback,andattempttoidentifyanyareasofimprovement.Thentheappwillbesentbackto theprogrammerorgraphicdesignerasrequiredforadditionalchanges,cyclingbacktouser testingaftereachroundofimprovements.Marketingchoices,suchastheappstitleand potentialdescriptivekeywords,willalsobeconsideredinuserfocusgroups.Whennoadditional feedbackisforthcomingfromtheusertestgroups,wewillsendourcompletedapptothe AndroidandAppleAppStoresforreviewforinclusionamongtheirofferings.Atthispoint,the marketersrolewillincrease,asheorshecreateswrittendescriptionsandscreenshotsfor promotingTaggrintheAppStoresandelsewhereonline. Ourevaluationofoursuccesswiththisprojectwillbebasedonacombinationofthetotal numberofadopterswhohavepurchasedanddownloadedourapp,ourappsrankingswithinthe twoAppStoresofferings,andthespreadoffavorablefeaturesofTaggrwithinblogsandother newssourcesfocusedontechnology,Apple,Android,andonappsspecifically.The selfevaluationprocesswillhavetobeanongoingconsideration,asTaggrspopularityincreases orwanes.

Tasks Prototype AcquireDeveloper Status

People CreativeTeam CreativeTeam

Technology TumblrAPI,Keynote TumblrAPI, Developer Permissionsfrom AndroidandApple Balsamiq,Photoshop, 7

DevelopIcon/Update

GraphicDesigner

Wireframe InhouseApp Inhouseusertesting AdjustAppbasedon informalusertesting feedback FormalUserTesting AppRedesign MarketEvaluation Programmer Testers Programmer

Illustrator Java,Python,Apple andAndroidTablets AppleandAndroid Tablets Java,Python,Apple andAndroidTablets AppleandAndroid Tablets Java,Python,Apple andAndroidTablets AppleandAndroid Tablets,Nvivo Java,Python,Apple andAndroidTablets AppStores

UsabilityExpert Programmer Business Researcher/Usability Expert Programmer

FinalAppRedesign BasedonUser Feedback ReleaseofApp

CreativeTeam

d.DataManagementPlan
Rolesandresponsibilities ProjectmanagersLydiaFletcher,JordanForbes,FrannyGaede,and VirginiaTrueheartwillhaveprimaryresponsibilityformanagingalldata relatedtotheapplicationandkeepingtheplanuptodatewithchanging legalandacceptedpractice.Aneutralthirdpartywillconductquarterly checkstoensureongoingcompliancewiththestandardsoutlinedhere.If anyofthecurrentprojectmanagersdeparttheproject,theirreplacement willbetrainedanddemonstratecompetencyindatamanagement.Ifall projectmanagersretireandtheprojectisshutdown,anysensitiveuser 8

data(usingapplicableHIPAAstandardsforpersonalidentifiers)willbe destroyed.Nonsensitiveinformationwillbepreservedindefinitelyonlocal orcloudservers. Expecteddata Thisprojectwillgeneratebothsensitiveandnonsensitivedata.Potentially sensitivedatacapturedincludesuserinputsuchassearchqueriesand poststhatarelikedinapp.Searchqueriesarecollectedonlyforthe purposesofpopulatingthe"trending"wordcloudonthehomescreenof theappandwillbedeletedatleastweekly.Nonsensitivedataincludes datapulledfromtheAPI(whichwillbecachedforamaximumofthree days),proprietarysoftwarecode,andthealgorithmsthatproducethe "RelatedTags"feature.Sensitiveandnonsensitiveinformationwillbe storedonlocalserversbackupsofnonsensitiveinformationwillbekept onAmazonSimpleStorageServiceserversanddoneweekly. Periodofdataretention Sensitiveuserinformationwillbediscardedatleastweeklyandwillnever beshared.Nonsensitiveinformationwillbepreservedindefinitely portionsofcodemaybemadeavailableviaGitHubwithacopyleftlicense, butthe"RecommendedTag"algorithmwillbekeptprivate. Dataformatsanddissemination AlluserdatawillbekeptinaSQLdatabaseandpurgedweekly. Applicationdatawillbekeptin.pyc,.java,.jar,.class,.h,.m,and.mmfiles onlocalandAmazonWebServiceservers.

IV.Appendices a.Appendix1:ComparableApps i.Tumblr(MobileOptimizedWebsite/iPhoneonlyApp/AndroidApp) Whyisthisappsuccessful? TheTumblrmobileoptimizedsiteandphoneappshavethebenefit ofbeingtheofficialproductsoftheplatform.Theyreproducethe lookandfeelofthebrowserversionandofferfamiliarcontrolsand colorschemes.Theirfeaturesareconsistentacrossplatforms, butthefocusforthemobileproductsisoncontentconsumption theuserexperiencehasbeenpolishedtoencouragethisexpected use.Viewingcontentisarelativelyseamlessexperience,with eternalscrollandstraightforwardnavigation. Whatisitsrankandhasitbeenconsistent? TheofficialTumblrapphasconsistentlybeenrankedinthetop100 socialnetworkingappsintheiTunesAppStoresinceJuly2009 andthetop20socialnetworkingappssinceFebruary2011.Ithas beeninthetop200overallappssinceJuly2011.TheTumblrapp forAndroidhasbeeninthetop10socialnetworkingapps.These statisticsdirectlycorrelatewithariseintraffictotheirwebsite,as wellinthelastyear,Tumblrstraffichasdoubled.Theirmobilesite viewsareup50%overlastyear. Whydopeoplewantthisapp? With94,828totalratings,theTumblriPhoneappcurrentlyhasa fourstaraveragerating.With64,864totalratings,theTumblr Androidappcurrentlyhasafourstaraveragerating.Userslikethe consistencywiththebrowserversionandfamiliarnavigationand userexperience. Hasthisappmadethecustomeraravingfan? PeopleusingtheTumblrapparealreadyravingfansofthe product.Theyarevocalabouttheproblemstheyexperienceand thefeaturestheystilldesire.Theyareenthusiasticconsumersof eachupdate,buteasilyfrustratedbybugsandthepaceof development. Doesthisappprovokeanimpulsebuy? N/Aappisofferedfreeofcharge Whatneedsdoesthisappfulfill? Thisapphasseveralimportantfeatures:itisofficial,itsinterfaceis familiartotheuserbase,andbrowsingthedashboardisa seamlessprocess.Recentlyaddedsearchcapabilitieshave improvedtagbrowsing,butthesefeaturesarenotparticularly robustasofyet. DidIbecomearavingfanaftertryingit? Itsclean,itssimple,anditmanagescontentconsumptionquite 10

well.Itdoesnotyethaveanativetabletequivalentandthe possibilitiesoftagsearchandbrowsehavenotyetbeenexplored. Willthecustomeruseitagain? AsmallminorityofcustomerswillpursuealternativeTumblrapps foravarietyofreasons:theyreusingatablet,theywantbetter contentcreationcapabilities,ortheydisliketheinterface.However, Tumblristheinstinctivechoiceofmostusersandremainsthe mostusedandbestratedoftheecosystemofTumblrapps. Howaretheymarketingtotheircustomers? Theyreplayingupthefamiliaritywiththebrowserinterfacethe sameshadeofblue(#2f4b66),thefavandappiconarenearly identical,andtheposticonsareconsistent.WhenvisitingTumblr inamobilebrowser,abanneratthetopofthepagewillsuggest theuservisittheirappstoretodownloadtheapp. Whatisthecompetitiveadvantageofthisapp? Asafree,officialappactivelypromotedbytheverypopular browserbasedsite,Tumblrhasadistinctadvantageoverother apps. Whatdoesthisappcost?Arethereinapppurchases?Advertisements? Tumblrhasyettomonetizeitsmobileappsitcurrentlymakesits moneythroughpremiumthemes(whichcannotbeseeninapp, thoughtheyarevisibleinthemobileoptimizedsite),userpinned posts,andsponsoredradarposts. ii.Postr Whyisthisappsuccessful? PostrwasreleasedinApril2012asTumbleBeeandsawsome initialsuccessasarelativelypolishednativeiPadapplicationinthe absenceofanofficialTumblriPadapp.Itsvisibilityanduserbase increaseddramaticallyNovember27,2012whentheappwas madeavailableforfreefor24hoursandreducedthepriceforthe foreseeablefuturetotakeadvantageofthepositivewordofmouth engenderedbythegiveaway. Whatisitsrankandhasitbeenconsistent? PostrsrankpeakedonNovember27,2012whenitwasrankedin thetop10ofsocialmediaappsandtop200overall.Since returningtopaidappstatus,ithasdroppedsomewhatinthe rankings,thoughitremainsinafarbetterpositionthanbefore goingfreeforaday.Previousspikesanddropsintherankingscan beattributedtopricedropsandincreases,respectively. Whydopeoplewantthisapp? ReviewerspointtoPostrsminimalistinterface,supportforlarge images,advancedcontentcreationandcurationfeatures (managingqueue,searchingandcreatingtags,reblogging)and 11

pulltoupdategestures.Severalreviewersmentionedthatthiswas theapptheywerehopingTumblrwouldbuild. Hasthisappmadethecustomeraravingfan? WhileonlyaravingfanwouldseekoutaTumblrappinthefirst place,onlyapoweruserwouldbeinterestedenoughtopurchase aTumblrclient.Thatsaid,powerusershavetheirownunique needsandrequireacomprehensivefeaturesetandresponsive designteamtoattractandretainsophisticatedusersbeyonda stintasafreeapp. Doesthisappprovokeanimpulsebuy? Asafreeapp,Postriscertainlyattractiveandfullfeaturedenough todrawasignificantcrowd.Asapaidapp,thescreenshotsarea littlelacklustertheapplooksfarbetteronthetabletthaninthe screenshots.Atthe$1.99pricepoint,itmaybetemptingenough forcasualusers,buta$2.99pricepointwillnarrowtheaudienceto thoseseriousenoughtopurchaseaTumblrappwhenanofficial clientcouldbereleasedanydayandthemobileoptimizedsiteis relativelyfullfeatured. Whatneedsdoesthisappfulfill? ThereisadefinitegapinthemarketforaniPadTumblrapp,and Postrisanattractiveproductwithawellconsideredfeatureset andoptimizedtabletlayout.Postrdoeswellwithlargeimagesand imagesets,whichareverypopularpoststhatarenotalways wellrenderedinthebrowserversion.Rebloggingactivitiesare considerablystreamlinedandfacilitateamoreactivestyleof browsingthedashboard. DidIbecomearavingfanaftertryingit? Imagesarerenderedbeautifullyandquickly.Thenavigationis intuitiveandtheinterfaceissuperlative.Theappwasthoughtfully designedforthetablet,integratingwithofflinereadingapplications likeInstapaperandenablingofflinepostcreationanddashboard browsingcapabilitiesbycachingrecentposts,likes,andreblogs. Willthecustomeruseitagain? Powerusersarenotpatientwithbugsiftheyexperienceerrors duringtheirinitialexplorationoftheapp,theyarenotlikelytoreturn. Asuperiorinterfaceforpostcreationandimageviewing,however, willbequitethedraw.Ifuserswhodownloadedtheappforfreeare pleasedwiththeirexperience,theywillrefertheirfriendsand followers. Howaretheymarketingtotheircustomers? PostrsfreeappdaytooktheiOScommunitybystormtheprice changewasannouncedonmostmajorAppleblogsandanumber ofpopulartechblogs.Thescreenshotsarenotasappealingas 12

theymighthavebeen,buttheclean,whiteinterfaceisvisibleand thegesturalinterfaceiswelldemonstrated.Theicondesignisso boringthatithasbeenmentionedinseveralcustomerreviews,but itsalsoinoffensiveandrepurposesTumblrsreblogicon.The developerswebsiteisveryattractiveandhasexcellentcopy describingtheappsfeatureset. Whatisthecompetitiveadvantageofthisapp? Postrispursuingadifferentialadvantage,offeringanativeiPad experiencewithacleaninterfaceandrobustfeaturesetfora premium. Whatdoesthisappcost?Arethereinapppurchases?Advertisements? Postr,asofDecember2012,costs$1.99.Beforeitsstintasafree app,itcost$2.99.Therearenoinapppurchasesor advertisements. iii.TumbleOn Whyisthisappsuccessful? TumbleOnwasreleasedonAugust24,2011.Overtime,it developedathoroughlyuniquefeaturesetthathasnotbeen approximatedorduplicatedinanyotherthirdpartyTumblrapp.Itis focusedonimageconsumption,creatinganinfinitescrollof scaled,tiledimagesthatcanbetappedtoenlarge.TumbleOns distinctivefeatureistheiranalytics:anyblogortagcanbe analyzedtopresenttheuserwithalistofrelatedblogsand/ortags basedonreblogs,likes,andcolocation. Whatisitsrankandhasitbeenconsistent? TumbleOnhasconsistentlybeeninthetop20socialmediaapps sincethereleaseofversion3.1onAugust9,2012.Priortothat, theappwasconsistentlyinthetop100,butrarelybreaking40. Whydopeoplewantthisapp? TumbleOnoffersaverydifferentinterfacefromtheofficialTumblr mobilewebsite/apps,Postr,andsimilarapps,optingforcolors, playfulness,andtextureoverminimalistdesign.Theapp developersmaintaincuratedlistsofrecommendedblogsand analyticsencourageserendipitousdiscoveryandbrowsingoutside oftheendlessdashboardscroll. Hasthisappmadethecustomeraravingfan? Thisappoccupiesaninterestingmiddlegroundbetweenthefree, officialTumblrappandapowerusercourtingthirdpartyapplike Postr.Itofferssomecursoryphotosharingandreblogging features,butthedevelopmenteffortwasfocusedincreatingan innovativebrowsingexperience. Doesthisappprovokeanimpulsebuy? At$1.99,TumbleOnhitstherightpricepointforaniPadapp,and 13

itsconsistentlyhighrankingsindicatethisisanacceptableprice pointforapolishedsocialnetworkingapp.Thescreenshotsand copyontheiTunesAppStorepageanddevelopershomepageare bright,bold,andinteresting. Whatneedsdoesthisappfulfill? InadditiontofillingthevoidleftbytheabsenceofanofficialTumblr iPadapp,TumbleOnbringsdiscoveryandbrowsabilitytoavast quantityofcontent.ThefocusonimagesplaystoTumblrs strengthsandreducessomeofthedevelopmenttimeneededto supportotherposttypes. DidIbecomearavingfanaftertryingit? Imagesarerenderedbeautifully,thoughimagesetswerenot alwayspresentedasintended.Theanalyticsfeatureistruly impressiveandwouldbeparticularlyinterestingforthose interestedinexploringanewtopicofinterestorfandom. TumbleOnsdevelopershavemadeanumberofutilitiestheybuild fortheappavailableunderanopensourcelicense,whichisvery encouragingbehavior. Willthecustomeruseitagain? ScrollingthroughTumbleOnisratherlikescrollingthrough Pinterest:itsaneverendingstreamofinterestingandbeautiful thingsthatareoftenrelevanttoyourinterestsandoccasionally, bizarrelyofftopic.Ithasthesameaddictivequality,withitspopup windowsforenlargedimagesandeffortless,infinitescroll. Howaretheymarketingtotheircustomers? TumbleOnhascultivatedadesignsensibilitythatpervadesthe app,thedeveloperswebsite,andtheappsTumblrthatisbold, colorful,andquiteplayful.Thescreenshotsandiconarebright, graphic,andveryattractive.LikePostr,TumbleOnwasofferedfor freefortwodaysinlateNovember,butthisdidnotnoticeably increasetheirrankings,whichwerealreadyinthetop20ofsocial networkingapps. Whatisthecompetitiveadvantageofthisapp? TumbleOnispursuingadifferentialadvantage,offeringanative iPadexperiencewithaninnovativebrowsinganddiscovery experience,alongwithabold,playfulinterfacethatfocuseson Tumblrsroleasimageboard. Whatdoesthisappcost?Arethereinapppurchases?Advertisements? TumbleOn,asofDecember2012,costs$1.99,apricewhichhas remainedconsistentsinceOctober2011.Thoughthedevelopers curateacollectionofrecommendedblogs,thereisnoindication thattheseblogspayfortheprivilegeofbeingrecommended.There arenoinapppurchasesoradvertisementsintheapp. 14

b.Appendix2:UseCaseScenarios

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c.Appendix3:MockupIllustrations i.Mockup1:HomeScreen

22

ii.Mockup2:TagBrowse

iii.Mockup3:RelatedTags

23

iv.Mockup4:LoginScreen

v.Mockup5:SaveTagtoGroup 24

vi.Mockup6:GroupTagBrowse

V.References&WorksConsulted 25

AliShiri,"Anexaminationofsocialtagginginterfacefeaturesandfunctionalities:ananalytical comparison."OnlineInformationReview,33,no.5(2009):901919, http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/14684520911001909(accessedDecember5,2012). AppAnnie.com,"TumbleOnHDTumblrAppforImagesHistory."AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.appannie.com/app/ios/tumbleonhdtumblrappforimages/ranking/history/. AppAnnie.com,"TumblrRankHistory."AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.appannie.com/app/android/com.tumblr/ranking/history/. AppAnnie.com,"PostrRankHistory."AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.appannie.com/app/ios/postrfortumblr/ranking/history/. Alexa.com,"Tumblr.comSiteInfo."Lastmodified2012.AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/tumblr.com. BeccaSchaffner,"Indefenseoffanfiction,"TheHornBookMagazine,85,no.6(2009):613618. Broughton,Vanda.""Thefallandriseofknowledgeorganization:newdimensionsofsubject descriptionandretrieval."AslibProceedings.62.no.4(2010):349354. Crowleyaziraphale(TheAngleshavetheImpala)12/01/2012whyisitthatallthemostpopular postsontumblr.QuotePost. http://crowleyaziraphale.tumblr.com/post/37011419322/edgebugturnabouttaisamysing ingsoul<%22>.Mysingingsoul.25,400notes.AccessedDecember4,2012. Halliday,Josh.TheGuardian,"DavidKarp,founderofTumblr,onrealisinghisdream."Last modified2012.AccessedDecember4,2012. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/jan/29/tumblrdavidkarpinterview. Kennedy,James."Fandom2.0:ACelebrationoftheReader."VoiceYouthAdvocates.33.no.5 (2010):412414. MichaelDerntl,ThorstenHampel,RenateMotschingPitrik,andTomasPitner,"Inclusivesocial tagginganditssupportinWeb2.0services,"ComputersinHumanBehavior,27(2011): 14601466. Moore,RebeccaC."AllShapesofHunger:TeenagersandFanfiction."VoiceYouthAdvocates. 28.no.1(2005):1519. Notess,GregR."Nextgenerationsocialnetworksandsearch."Online.36.no.3(2012):4446. Participatoryfandom(ParticipatoryFandomonTumblr)12/16/2011DemographicsofTumblr 26

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