The Path is the Reward: Considering Social Networks to Contribute to the Pleasure of Urban Strolling

Abstract

Most (mobile) online map services focus on providing their users the most efficient route to their target location. In this paper we investigate the relationship between the physical and digital urban navigation to improve wayfinding for pedestrians by enhancing their experiences when strolling through a city. With our application "Space Recommender System" we describe a new wayfinding approach by implementing common digital online methods of commenting and recommender systems into the physical world, using voting data from social network services. Initial findings highlight the general importance of the walking experience to the public and suggest that implementing social media based recommendations in route finding algorithms enhance the pleasure of urban strolling. The initial user tests of the system in a real world context together with collected feedback and the observations throughout the design process stimulate the discussions of wider issues and highlight its potential for future novel wayfinding applications.