skip navigation
Go to Foraker Design
Usability First
Your Online Guide to Usability Resources
Home
Resources
Intro to Usability
Courses
Books
Humor
Links
Methods
Glossary
Search
Categories
A-Z Index
Submit a Term
Job Postings
Applications
Website Design
Usability ROI
Accessibility
Groupware
Consulting
Site Tools
Site Map
About Us
Feedback
Foraker Design Foraker
Design

Usability Glossary: snapshot


(groupware) a quick photo of another person that updates periodically to provide a basic awareness of their presence. (Also called a "porthole".)

Snapshots are vaguely similar to a videoconference, except that no audio is provided, the frame rate is intentionally quite slow (so the person's movement is not distracting), and the idea is not to be looking at the person and conversing with them, but to just have a general sense, as if they were working in the same room as you, of whether they are there, what they might be working on, and whether they are busy or they can be interrupted.

Snapshots are potentially quite useful for closely-knit workgroups who wish to coordinate even though they aren't co-located.

see also

awareness
videoconferencing

categories

Glossary Categories > Widgets
Glossary Categories > Groupware > Groupware Widgets
Glossary Categories > Multimedia > Video

© 2002-2010 Foraker Design - Provider of Usability & Web Design Services Foraker Design