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Human-Computer Interaction

Human-Computer Interaction. Icons Direct Manipulation. Lecture Overview. Definition Advantages and disadvantages Factors affecting meaningfulness Form and function Design guidance Classification. Icons: Definition. Pictographic symbols - focus on essential features

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Human-Computer Interaction

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  1. Human-Computer Interaction Icons Direct Manipulation

  2. Lecture Overview • Definition • Advantages and disadvantages • Factors affecting meaningfulness • Form and function • Design guidance • Classification

  3. Icons: Definition • Pictographic symbols - focus on essential features • Represent underlying • objects • data structures • processes in a form which corresponds to the real world • Can be entertaining, clever and visually appealing

  4. Advantages of Icons • Recognition • Users remember meaning more easily than for command names • Searched and selected faster than text • Compactness • Can often convey meaning more rapidly than symbolic language • Use less space than text • More features can be presented on one screen

  5. Advantages of Icons (Cont’d) • Comprehensibility • Can convey objects, data and actions • Universality • Relatively language- and culture-independent • Facilitates porting to international markets • Plenty available for re-use • Micons (moving icons or animated icons) • Can represent dynamic aspects • (No clear evidence better than static)

  6. Disadvantages of Icons • Ambiguity • Dependent on user, task and context • Cannot completely replace words in some complex situations • Costly / difficult to design good new icons • Micons - if too many on screen, can be distracting and jerky in movement

  7. Factors Affecting Meaningfulness of Icons • Context • Specific vs General • Easy --------- Difficult to deduce meaning • Tasks • Visual vs Verbal • Easy ----------Difficult to design

  8. Tooltip Microsoft Excel Factors Affecting Meaningfulness of Icons • Text • Addition increases understanding - especially if abstract, vague, large icon set

  9. Icons: Addition of Text

  10. Psion 3a Icons ‘More’ icon ‘More’ icon

  11. Factors Affecting Meaningfulness of Icons • Concept • Concrete vs Abstract • Easy ---------- Difficult to design • Discriminable • From other icons

  12. Range of Icon Functions (Rogers, 1989) Function Example Labeling Menu item Indicating System state Warning Error message Identifying File storage Manipulating Tool for zooming and shrinking Container Object for placing discarded objects Gestalt pattern Structure in programming language

  13. Design of Icons • Poorly understood by computer professionals • Everyday icons are the subject of much research e.g. flight arrivals /departures • Trend towards higher quality graphics

  14. Design Guidance • General HCI guidelines apply • Re-use / re-work existing designs • Test representation with users • Avoid symbols unless meaning already known • Use icon design tools to experiment

  15. ISO Standard’s Classification • Interactive icons • Mediate user interaction with software application • Non-interactive icons • Status indicators

  16. Icons Classification(ISO/IEC Based) Icons Interactive Non-interactive Status Indicator Object Pointer Control Tool Selection Text Graphics Cut/copy Spellcheck Up/down arrows Fill Eraser Pencil Hourglass ‘LEDs’ Device Data Container Folder In-basket Document Chart S’sheet Printer Telephone

  17. IBM Common User Access Workplace Environment (1988):3 Categories of Icons • Container • Data • Device

  18. Lecture Review • Definition • Advantages and disadvantages • Factors affecting meaningfulness • Form and function • Design guidance • Classification

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