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Chapter 1: What Users Do

Chapter 1: What Users Do. When designing software interfaces, we must ascertain who will be using the software and why they will be using it. Example: Desktop Day Calendar. Description: Small, sits in corner of desktop display, allows viewing of current day information only. Users: Anybody.

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Chapter 1: What Users Do

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  1. Chapter 1: What Users Do When designing software interfaces, we must ascertain who will be using the software and why they will be using it. Example: Desktop Day Calendar Description: Small, sits in corner of desktop display, allows viewing of current day information only Users: Anybody Tidwell Course Notes

  2. More Calendar Examples Example: Daily Planner Description: Allow user to mark planned meetings and notes to self Users: Students, office workers, assistant producers Example: Monthly Planner Description: Allow user to enter month-long plans Users: Project managers, team leaders, producers Tidwell Course Notes

  3. Additional Calendar Example Example: Yearly Planner Description: Allow user to view entire year and edit far-reaching plans Users: Upper management, executive producers Tidwell Course Notes

  4. Pattern #1: Safe Exploration Allow users to explore an application without penalties Example: In our “My TV Guide” application, users could return to a prior network and the entered data would be restored. Execute Tidwell Course Notes

  5. Pattern #2: Instant Gratification Avoid discouraging delays without feedback Example: In this “County Demographics” application, users are given a progress indicator (and possibly a county-by-county screen refresh) to indicate that the statewide demographics are still being tabulated. Execute Tidwell Course Notes

  6. Pattern #3: Satisficing Use necessary & sufficient approach to labels, layouts, navigation, etc. Example: In this “Presidents” example, users are provided with the means to go forward and backward through the presidents, with additional choices provided only as they were needed. Execute Tidwell Course Notes

  7. Pattern #4: Changes in Midstream Allow users to interrupt processes and/or choose alternatives Example: In one variation of the “County Demographics” assignment, an Application.DoEvents() method is used to facilitate user interruption of a time-consuming statewide demographic display. Execute Tidwell Course Notes

  8. Pattern #5: Deferred Choices For relatively unimportant information, allow users to respond later Example: In this “Meeting Scheduler” example, default values are inserted for some dates (e.g., today’s date for the current calendar, the next week for the range of possible meeting dates), allowing the user to alter them later if desired. Execute Tidwell Course Notes

  9. Pattern #6: Incremental Construction Keep users engaged in the “flow” of the application Example: In the original version of the“CountyDemographics” application, the only visual feedback provided to users is the progress indicator; in the later version, a county-by-county fill also occurs. Execute Tidwell Course Notes

  10. Pattern #7: Habituation Handle similar events similarly in different (& the same) applications Example: Various Microsoft products (e.g., PowerPoint, Access, Word) use the same basic Paste menu (Paste, Paste Special, etc.). Tidwell Course Notes

  11. Pattern #8: Spatial Memory Users tend to remember command locations, going there w/o reading Example: SIUE’s WebMail application has a link on the upper right of each e-mail folder’s display to return to that folder’s directory and an iconic link on the upper left to just go to the INBOX folder’s directory. Tidwell Course Notes

  12. Pattern #9: Prospective Memory Provide users with the ability to return to unfinished work Example: Notepad reminds the user that recent changes will be lost if they’re not saved. Tidwell Course Notes

  13. Pattern #10: Streamlined Repetition Reduce the amount of repetitive, tedious activities the user must do Example: Open File Dialogs and Save File Dialogs facilitate file access without forcing the user to search directories and folders for appropriate locations. Tidwell Course Notes

  14. Pattern #11: Keyboard Only By preference or physical limitation, some people won’t use a mouse Example: This “Periodic Table” example provided consecutive tab indexes so the user can utilize the tab key to cycle through the entire table of elements. Execute Tidwell Course Notes

  15. Pattern #12: Other People’s Advice Consult with potential users and other designers for interface feedback Example: Our Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory in EB 3048 provides CS 321 students with the opportunity to have students examine and critique their applications. Tidwell Course Notes

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