Enabling Programmable Self with HealthVault

Preface

Outline of the Work

Microsoft HealthVault is the most prominent example of a personally controlled health record. With its open API, flexibility, and connections with multiple health care providers, it gives people interested in monitoring their own health an unprecedented opportunity to do their own research on their own data. This concise book will explain what you can store in HealthVault, how to enable automatic updates from well-known fitness devices, and how to use programming libraries to create reports and investigate trends of interest to you. Programmable Self is a combination of Quantified Self and motivational hacks. Quantifying what you want to change about yourself and using motivational tools to ensure consistent change has been a proven recipe for successful behavioral change. It's a lot easier to start walking more if you have to tell your coworkers how many steps you walked yesterday!