Building a New Internet Chat System for Sharing Timing Information

Chat system has gained popularity as a tool for real-time conversation. However, standard chat systems have problems due to lack of timing information. To tackle this problem, we have built a system which has the following functions: 1) function of making typing state visible; 2) floor holding function at the start of typing. The evaluation results show that the sys-tem with each new function significantly increases the number of turns, which indicates the effectiveness of the new functions for smooth communication. The survey results showed that the system with the function of making typing state visible significantly different from that without them concerning 1) easiness of adjusting the timing of utterances and smoothness of conversations, and 2) easiness of using the system.