Christoph Beckmann/Teaching- and Research Assistent/Computer Engineer
About

Me in September 2008.
About Me
I am a end-twen-aged research- and teaching assistant at the HCI Group of the University of Bamberg and I am affilliated with the Cooperative Media Lab. I have a wide-spread field of interest in the meaning of Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), Ubiquitous Computing (UbiComp), and Social Sciences.
I am strongly interested in Recommender Systems and Media Spaces, especially the bridge between computer science and social sciences for connecting groups while working and living together.
Particular Interests
- Ubiquitous Computing (UbiComp)
- Human Computer Interfaces (HCI)
- Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW)
- Group Recommender Systems
- Media Spaces
- Defining Contexts
- Social Media
- Photography DSLR & Medium Format (Log)
Publications
Journals and Reviewed International Conferences
- Beckmann, C., Gross, T. and Kastl, F. RobustTrav: NAT Optimisation for the RobustCooperation Suite. In Proceedings of the Twentieth Euromicro Conference on Parallel, Distributed, and Network-Based Processing - PDP 2012 (Feb. 15-17, Munich, Germany). IEEE Computer Society Press, Los Alamitos, (accepted).
- Beckmann, C. and Gross, T. AGReMo: Filmempfehlungen fuer Ad-Hoc Gruppen auf mobilen Endgeraeten (AGReMo: Movie Recommendations for Ad-Hoc Groups on Mobile Devices; in German) In Mensch & Computer - 11. Fachuebergreifende Konferenz fuer interaktive und kooperative Medien - M&C 2011 (Sept. 11-14, Chemnitz, Germany). Oldenbourg, Munich, 2011. pp. 335-338. (ISBN: 978-3-486-71235-3).
- Beckmann, C. and Gross, T. AGReMo: Providing Ad-Hoc Groups with On-Demand Recommendations on Mobile Devices. In Proceedings of the European Conference on Cognitive Ergonomics - ECCE 2011 (Aug. 24-26, Rostock, Germany). ACM, N.Y., 2011. pp. 179-183. (ISBN: 987-3-86009-113-5).
- Gross, T., Beckmann, C. and Schirmer, M. GroupRecoPF: A Distributed Platform for Innovative Group Recommendations. In Proceedings of the Nineteenth Euromicro Conference on Parallel, Distributed, and Network-Based Processing - PDP 2011 (Feb. 9-11, Ayia Napa, Cyprus). IEEE Computer Society Press, Los Alamitos, 2011. pp. 293-300. (ISBN: 978-0-7695-3939-3).
- Beckmann, C. and Gross, T. Towards a Group Recommender Process Model for ad-hoc Groups and On-Demand Recommendations. In Proceedings of the 2010 International ACM Conference on Supporting Group Work - Group 2010 (Nov. 7-10, Sanibel Island, FL). ACM, N.Y., 2010. pp. 329-330. (ISBN: 978-1-4503-0387-3). (PDF, 549k).
- Gross, T., Beckmann, C. and Schirmer, M. The PPPSpace: Innovative Concepts for Permanent Capturing, Persistent Storing, and Parallel Processing and Distributing Events. In Proceedings of the Eighteenth Euromicro Conference on Parallel, Distributed, and Network-Based Processing - PDP 2010 (Feb. 17-19, Pisa, Italy). IEEE Computer Society Press, Los Alamitos, 2010. pp. 359-366. (ISBN: 978-0-7695-3939-3).
- Gross, T. and Beckmann, C. CoLocScribe: Selektive Informationsfreigabe in einem Media Space (CoLocScribe: Selective Information Disclosure in a Media Space; in German). In Mensch & Computer - 9. Fachuebergreifende Konferenz fuer interaktive und kooperative Medien - M&C 2009 (Sept. 6-9, Berlin, Germany). Oldenbourg, Munich, 2009. pp. 463-466. (ISBN: 978-3-486-59222-1).
- Gross, T. and Beckmann, C. Advanced Publish and Subscribe for Distributed Sensor-Based Infrastructures: The CoLocScribe Cooperative Media Space. In Proceedings of the Seventeenth Euromicro Conference on Parallel, Distributed, and Network-Based Processing - PDP 2009 (Feb. 18-20, Weimar, Germany). IEEE Computer Society Press, Los Alamitos, CA, 2009. pp. 333-340. (ISBN: 978-0-7695-3544-9).
- Beckmann, C., Schirmer, M., Paul-Stueve, T. and Gross, T. Sens-ation: Eine Plattform zur Entwicklung ubiquitaerer Umgebungen (Sens-ation: A Platform for Developing Ubiquitous Environments; in German). In Mensch & Computer - 7. Fachuebergreifende Konferenz fuer interaktive und kooperative Medien - M&C 2007 (Sept. 2-5, Weimar, Germany).Oldenbourg, Munich, 2007. pp. 273-276. (ISBN: 978-3-486-58496-7).
Book Chapters
- Sülzenbrück, T. and Beckmann, T. Vardump: The Power of Seeing What's Behind In Lua Programming Gems, Eds. L. H. de Figueiredo, W. Celes, R. Ierusalimschy, Lua.org, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, December 2008, pp. 29-32. (ISBN 978-85-903798-4-3).
Misc. Publications
- Beckmann, C. and Gross, T. Towards Group Recommendations at Work In Workshop Social Media at Work (WS 7) of the Twelfth European Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work - ECSCW 2011 (Sept. 24-28, Aarhus, Denmark).
- Beckmann, C. and Gross, T. Leichtgewichtige Auswahlentscheidungen fuer Gruppen am Beispiel eines Recommender-Systems fuer Filme (Light-Weight Selection Decisions in Group Expemplified in a Recommender-System for Movies; in German). In Workshop-Proceedings der Tagung Mensch & Computer 2009 - 9. Fachuebergreifende Konferenz - Grenzenlos frei!? (Workshop-Proceedings of the Mensch & Computer Conference; in German)- M&C 2009 (Sept. 6-9, Berlin, Germany). Logos Verlag, Berlin, 2009. pp. 213. (ISBN: 978-3-8325-2181-3).
- Beckmann, C. and Gross, T. CoLocScribe: A Media Space for Information Disclosure in Storytelling. Technical Report # BUW-CSCW-2008-03, Computer-Supported Cooperative Work Group, Faculty of Media, Bauhaus-University Weimar, Bauhausstr. 11, 99423 Weimar, Germany, Oct. 2008.
Research Activities
Currently, as a research assistent at the HCI Group, I am working on the following projects:
- DFG-Project: Recommender Systems for Group Consumption of Hedonic Media Products: Theoretic Modelling, System Development and Quality Testing. Reco Website @CML [since 04/2010, ongoing]
- BMI-Project: TransKoop TransKoop Website [since 04/2010, ongoing]
Teaching Activities
In the current term I am teaching the following projects/assignment sessions at the University of Bamberg:
- HCI-Proj-B: Projekt Mensch-Computer-Interaktion UnivIS-Website @UniBA [Winter term 2011/2012]
- HCI-US: Ubiquitäre Systeme Assignments UnivIS-Website @UniBA [Winter term 2011/2012]
- HCI-Proj-M: Sens-ation PEP: Parallel Event Processing UnivIS-Website @UniBA [Summer term 2011]
- HCI-MCI-M: Mensch-Computer-Interaktion Assignments UnivIS-Website @UniBA [Summer term 2011]
As a teaching assistent at the BUW, I have supervised the following projects:
- GroupReco: Explore GroupReco: Explore Website @CML [Summer term 2010]
- Social Group Networking SGNet Website @CML [Winter term 2009/2010]
Thesis
GReMo's main screen showing a
recent group recommendation.
Master's Thesis: GReMo
Recommender systems provide users with recommendations and support them when choosing between an overwhelming amount of alternatives in their everyday lives, i.e. last.fm for listening music, Amazon for buying products. These systems encompass a variety of algorithms for estimating preferences for single-users. Outstanding are collaborative filtering methods that estimate a single person's taste by the similarity in taste of other related users of the system. Users of these systems express their taste by giving ratings concerning items to the system.
GReMo: Concept and Implementation of a Mobile Group Recommender System
However, most activities or items recommended by such systems are conducted or consumed in groups, i.e. watching a movie together in a movie theatre. Consequently, the system should regard the group as a union and provide recommendations to them, instead of presenting recommendations that are dedicated to single users. This emerges several challenges addressed in this thesis, i.e. the recommendation process should consider the group's nature and its preferences.
The thesis describes the concept, implementation and development of a end-user mobile group recommender application that provides both a sophisticated group recommender interaction concept, as well as powerful merging strategies for combining individual predictions into a group recommendation. The group recommender interaction concept includes three phases: (1) negotiation preparation, (2) negotiation process, and (3) negotiation result, and is implemented in an application running on a mobile device. The merging strategies provide straightforward and group satisfaction maximisation approaches and are implemented in the group recommender system.
Supervisors
Prof. Tom Gross
Dr. Bernd Schalbe
Related
- Chair Computer Supported Cooperative Work @ BUW
- CoLocScribe presentend @ Mediengang 2010
- Prof. Tom Gross (Website)
CoLocScribe's Public Screen
Bachelor's Thesis: CoLocScribe
In spring 2008 I have received the my Bachelor's degree in Media Systems with the top-most grade of 1.0/1.0 for the Bachelor's Thesis CoLocScribe at Bauhaus-University Weimar, Germany: Defence was 16/04/2008 ~ 7.00 p.m., B11 R014
CoLocScribe: Technological Concepts and User Observation of Information Disclosure in a Mediaspace
Mediaspaces, since their first prototypes in the research field of Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), aim at mediating communication and providing assistance for collaboration of people working together at distributed places. Mediaspaces make of audio and video connections in order to facilitate the process of working together. However, it is still a challenge to provide an appropriate support for the absent natural communication in a mediaspace. Gesticulation, mimic, or paralanguage are self-evident in face-to-face situations, but such natural communication aspects are lacking in a mediaspace.
Additional information, provided in a mediaspace about peoples´ current working context or on working artefacts enormously contribute to the process of work in the sense of reducing the geographically affected distance and compensate for the lack of information that otherwise would be available in face-to-face settings. This provides a common understanding and the feeling of being aware of working together in a group.
This is strongly connected with information disclosure, which refers to the precise sharing of information among people. Because people want to embody themselves towards others, they want to disclose information selectively. Research on information disclosure stands for the analysis of circumstances of disclosing information to others.
This thesis presents a qualitative study for analysing information disclosure under the circumstance of co-present others in a mediaspace. Therefore a mediaspace on the base of an event-based infrastructure was built. The mediaspace, supporting video connections and providing awareness information was used by the participants of the study. Subsequently, a semi-structured interview was done and three different user types, handling information disclosure differently, were conceptualised. The three Ps as a concept will lead to further implications for further disclosure designs in mediaspaces.
Supervisors
Prof. Tom Gross
Prof. Andreas Ziemann
Related
- CoLocScribe Website @ CMLab
- CoLocScribe presentend @ Mediengang 2008
- Prof. Tom Gross (Website)
- Chair Computer Supported Cooperative Work @ BUW
- Chair of Media Sociology @ BUW
Student Projects
While studying at the BUW, I have done the following projects. The order of appearing is reverse chronologically.
- SensES: Student research project in summer-term 2009
- WiiMore: Student project in winter-term 2008/2009
- Media Lounge: Student research project in summer-term 2008
- Yet Another Ada File Download Utility – YAAFDU: Student project in summer-term 2008
- CoLocScribe: Bachelor's thesis in winter-term 2007/2008
- UbiStock: Student project in summer-term 2006
- del.icio.us Browser: Student project in summer-term 2006
- Network-Monitoring, Packet Capture & Analysing Tool: Student project in winter-term 2005/2006
- Sens-ation 3: Managing Events and Context: Student research project in winter-term 2005/2006; Sens-ation 3 Website @ CML
- PUI – Physical User Interfaces: Scenarios and Prototyping: Student project in summer-term 2005; PUI Website @ CML
Know How
- Programming Languages: JAVA (SE, ME), Objective-C (mainly iOS since 3.2), C++, C, SCHEME, Ada, Python, Pascal, LUA, SH
- Web Development: PHP, Symfony, MySQL, XHTML, CSS, Javascript, JSP
- Document Formats: XML, XML Schema, XPath, UML, RDF, OWL
- Graphic Frameworks: OpenGL, AvangoNG
- Platforms: Mac OS X, Windows (since 3.11), Linux (mainly gentoo and Debian)
- Office: TEX, Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel), Pages, Keynote
- Graphic Software: Adobe Graphics Suite (Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Acrobat, Lightroom), Blender
- Tools: XCode, Quartz Composer, Matlab, Intrexx Xtreme
Contact
HCI Group
Univeristy of Bamberg
96045 Bamberg
Germany
European Union
Phone: +49 951 863 3942
Address:
Germany
European Union
Email:
PGP Fingerprint:
Twitter: My public Twitter time line.
Facebook: My Facebook profile.
top ↑©2007–2011 Christoph Beckmann (Last Update: 2011-10-24 19:09:16)