IDC

Each day, we interact with hundreds of technological devices that help us organize our lives, achieve our goals, and indulge in our passions. For children today, technology is especially pervasive in all aspects of life. They learn and play using computers and other technological devices; as they grow, they build and maintain friendships using computers and mobile phones; they interact with one another virtually; and even find critical interpersonal support and therapy using computers, the internet and other technology-enhanced products.

Given the ubiquity of technology in children's lives, it is surprising that so few venues bring together those who are concerned with designing the technologies and the interactions with technology that are so important to children's lives. For this reason, IDC 2008 brought together, in the diverse city of Chicago, an international community of researchers, educators, and industry professionals concerned with interaction design for children, in order to think outside the toy-box.

The goals of the 2008 conference were to better understand children's needs, and how to design for them, by presenting and discussing the most innovative research in the field of interaction design for children, by exhibiting the most recent developments in design and design methodologies, and by gathering the leading minds in the field of interaction design for children - all in one place.

It is time to stop thinking of computers as the primary locus of technological design - this year we invited researchers to submit work on everything from cell phones to smart nail polish, from infant programming tools to technological design competitions for teens, and the papers we received reflected this diversification of technology for young people. It is also time to stop thinking of "children" as a homogeneous group - this year we hosted workshops for researchers designing for children with special needs, and concerning interaction design for marginalized young people, and we hosted a doctoral consortium for promising younger scholars. Invited panels on Screen Cultures and on Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice addressed over-arching issues in the field, and a keynote by Dr. Charlotte Cole of Sesame Workshop spoke to issues of globalization and localization. Finally, this year we invited researchers to step outside the domains of learning and play, and to consider designing for civic involvement, for democracy, and for physical well-being, and the papers in this volume reflect this diversification of applications for technology for young people.