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Simulating Chat room/Instant messaging (case 493)

  1. #1

    Simulating Chat room/Instant messaging (case 493)

    Hi,
    I've been trying to use Medialab to simulate either a chat room or instant messenger program that has a participant interact with a fictitious other. I've seen the question brought up several times on the forums, so I was wondering if anyone had any experience with trying to execute such a task and how they went about doing it. Thanks in advance for any and all help!

  2. #2
    jarvis24 Blair Jarvis, Administrator
    Did you find a link that was more or less in the direction you are trying to go? Maybe start with that as a reference point (just post it here in a reply) and we can go from there. I know usually we end up discussing embedded web apps, custom items and whether or not the discussion between participants is real or fabricated.

  3. #3
    Hi,
    For the most part I only found users asking how to create simulated chats, but the conversation didn't seem to get much further from there. I know there is one sample task out there (http://www.empirisoft.com/Support/showthread.php?t=789) but I was hoping for more of a conversation between the participant and a fictitious other than this task provides. If there are other links on the forum that would be great! Otherwise, I'm aiming to simulate just a short conversation between the participant and a fictitious other, preferably utilizing custom items but web apps are a possibility. Thanks again for your help.

  4. #4
    Hi!

    I read through this thread and was excited to see that someone else was trying to figure out the same thing-- how to simulate an online chat room. I noticed though that the thread was left kind of open-ended. Was anyone ever able to figure out how to simulate an online chat room? I also read that there were instructions in German on how to do such a thing. Was there an English version?

    Any help would be appreciated!

    Thanks in advance!

    Erin

  5. #5
    jarvis24 Blair Jarvis, Administrator
    Depends on what kind of simulation you are trying to do. If the participant is real (a good chance, no?) and you are trying simulate chat with that individual, it's certainly much trickier. i.e., much trickier than a participant simply watching simulated chat between two or more "virtual" subjects.

  6. #6
    hi--

    I am trying to figure out how to simulate chat between a real individual and a virtual individual, so it looks like it is the trickier of the two options you mentioned. Still possible?

  7. #7
    jarvis24 Blair Jarvis, Administrator
    How would you know how to simulate the replies in advance of the conversation (e.g., the real participant asks "what do you like to eat?" kind of thing). Or were you thinking of something simpler? Like having virtual third party who says "Please tell us your names--Player 1?" Real person types "Bob" and virtual subject types "Ed". i.e., so the questions are known in advance hence the answers can be prepared also in advance. Or something like that..!

  8. #8
    Hi!

    We were thinking that the computer would act as the third party and be the one to ask the participants the questions like you mentioned. How could that be done? is there a code/formula that can be put into MediaLab to do that?

  9. #9
    Hey--

    Sorry to bother you with the same question again, but I was wondering if you had had the chance to read my last comment/question about how to program MediaLab so that the computer can act as the third party that asks the other two participants (real people) questions?

    Thanks! I appreciate it!

    Erin Brown

  10. #10
    The attached experiment builds on Rene Kopietz's sample javascript chat window.

    This sample provides a Qualtrics task on the left side and a chat window with canned messages on the right side. The participant feels like he/she is participating in a chat while completing the Qualtrics task. The responses.xls file contains all of the canned messages. The chat.html file references the responses.xls file for which messages to display. The chat.html file contains javascript that makes the chat "feel" real - with different timing for each chat message and real time updating of the chat window when the subject types something in. You'll need to update the CSS file to fit your screens if the formatting looks weird.

    More info on Qualtrics integration here:
    http://www.empirisoft.com/support/showthread.php/5646-How-do-I-run-Qualtrics-through-MediaLab?highlight=qualtrics

    1752

  11. #11
    Thanks for these files, lilliancz!

  12. #12
    Depends on what kind of simulation you are trying to do. If the participant is real (a good chance, no?) and you are trying simulate chat with that individual, it's certainly much trickier. i.e., much trickier than a participant simply watching simulated chat between two or more "virtual" subjects.


    Hi, can you please advise on how I can get participants to watch a simulated chat between two or more virtual subjects? Ideally, I'd like to run this study online, perhaps through Qualtrics. But I'm open to any means possible. Hope someone can help.