The DELAY Framework: Designing for Extended LAtencY.

This paper introduces the Designing for Extended Latency (DELAY) Framework meant to inspire new systems that support social interaction in high-latency settings such as interplanetary communication, intermittent internet access, and time-zone incompatibilities. The framework includes six dimensions: Goal, Communication Genre, Sequencing, Cardinality, Mutability, and Responsiveness. We describe the iterative design process used to create the Framework, as well as three novel prototypes designed to increase social connectedness and social presence in high-latency situations: 1) the InSync app that allows partners to perform activities simultaneously even though they only see proof of their synchronicity later; 2) the After the Beep system that lets users leave IoT messages that are triggered by the recipients; and 3) the Surrogate platform where players play group battle games against "surrogate" artificial intelligence avatars that mimic unavailable individuals. Data from two design workshops validates the usefulness of the framework for generating new solutions to high-latency scenarios.