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Preserving Communication Context 229
Figure 2
First draft of MAJIC
The second factor deemed essential for “achieving a feeling of to-
getherness during videoconferencing” (390) is the continuity of back-
ground images. In this interpretation of “seamlessness” if images
run into each other, it is difficult to tell where one ends and the next
begins; “if users are surrounded by other participants with a seam-
less background, they can feel as though they are together.” (386) In
actual fact, the backgrounds must be “matched” at the seam. But
this is only a prototype; MAJIC proposes doing away with the actual
background altogether and replacing it with an artificial one that
can be chosen to create a desired mood, to relax or to inspire (386
and personal communication). This would be done using a chro-
makey blue background.
Laboratory evaluations of MAJIC I and observations of use at a
trade fair led to several improvements or additions in MAJIC II. For
example, in a questionnaire administered to forty students, three-
quarter size images were rated more convincing than life-sized ones.
This led to experiments to determine the ideal relationship between
distance from the image and image size and an adjustment in
MAJIC II. There have also been a number of strictly technical im-
provements: improvement of image quality, reduced size of the pro-
totype, etc.