New HCI techniques for better living through technology

In the Human Computer Interaction community, researchers work on many projects that investigate the efficacy of new technologies for better living, but unlike other research fields, these researchers must have an approach that is typically multi-disciplinary. Technology is always developing thus improving our lives in many ways like education, health and communication. This due to the fact that it is supposed to make life easier. This dissertation explores three main aspects: the first is learning with new technologies, the second is the improvement of real life by using innovative devices while the third is the usage of mobile devices in combination with image processing algorithms and computer graphics techniques. We firstly describe the progress on the state of the art and related work that have been necessary to implement such tools on commodity hardware and deploy them in both mobile and desktop settings. We propose the usage of different technologies in different settings, comparing these solutions for enhancing the interaction experience by introducing virtual/augmented reality tools for supporting this kind of activities. We also applied well-known gamification techniques coming from different mobile applications for demonstrating how users can be entertained and motivated in their working out. We describe our design and prototype of several integrated systems created to improve the educational process, to enhance the shopping experience, to provide new experiences for travellers and even to improve fitness and wellness activities. Finally, we discuss our findings and frame them in the broader context of better living thanks to technology, drawing the lessons learnt from each work while also proposing relative future work.