200 likes | 309 Views
Course Wrap-Up. IS 485, Professor Matt Thatcher. C.J. Minard (1781-1870). What is HCI?. Human the end-user of the program Computer the machine that the program runs on Interaction the user tells the computer what they want (inputs) the computer communicates the results (outputs).
E N D
Course Wrap-Up IS 485, Professor Matt Thatcher
What is HCI? • Human • the end-user of the program • Computer • the machine that the program runs on • Interaction • the user tells the computer what they want (inputs) • the computer communicates the results (outputs)
Where Does HCI Occur? User User Interface Applications Software Systems Software Data base and Telecommunications Hardware HCI = designing, prototyping, and evaluating UIs
Organizational & Social Issues Task Design Technology Humans What is UI Design?(The Design Triangle)
What Is Usability? • Easy to learn • how long does it take for typical users to learn relevant tasks? • Easy to Remember • how easy is it to remember from one session to the next? • Efficient to use • how long does it take to perform benchmark tasks? • Minimal error rates • how many and what kinds of errors are commonly made? • if they occur, is good feedback provided so users can recover • High user satisfaction (subjectively pleasing) • confident of success and visually pleasing
Who Builds Interfaces? • A team of specialists (ideally) • graphic designers • interaction / interface designers • technical writers • marketers • technical support • test engineers • software engineers • customers/users • client • and more…
Keys to Designing and Building Successful UIs • UI design cycle • User-centered design (UCD) • Task analysis and contextual inquiry • Rapid prototyping • Evaluation • Iteration
UI Design Cycle Design Evaluate Prototype
User-Centered Design “Know Thy User” • Demographics • age, gender, geographic location • Individual characteristics • education, job experience, computer skills, physical limitations • Cognitive abilities • perception and memory • Mental models • Keep the design centered on users • Keep users involved throughout process (early and often)
Impact of Cognitive Abilities “Know Thy User” • Demographics • age, gender, geographic location • Individual characteristics • education, job experience, computer skills, physical limitations • Cognitive abilities • perception and memory • Keep the design centered on users • Keep users involved throughout process (early and often)
Task Analysis and Contextual Inquiry • Observe existing work practices • Identify and characterize the tasks users need and want to perform • Characterize the environment in which they perform these tasks • Create scenarios of actual use • Try out new ideas before building sftwr
Rapid Prototyping • Build a mock-up of the UI design • Low-fidelity techniques • paper-based sketches and storyboards • chauffeured prototypes • Visio, SmartDraw, drawing tools, etc. • High-Fidelity techniques • interactive, computer-based prototypes • Access, Dreamweaver, Frontpage, GoLive, HTML, Visual Basic, Director, Flash, HyperCard, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.
Evaluation • Test with real users (participants) • user testing • Expert reviews (evaluations w/o users) • heuristic evaluations • cognitive walkthroughs • pluralistic walkthroughs • consistency checks • and many more...
Iteration at Every Stage!!! Design Evaluate Prototype
Goals of the Course • Learn to design, prototype, and evaluate UIs • the importance of human factors in the design of interactive software applications • cognitive / perceptual constraints that affect UI design • task analysis and contextual inquiry • technology tools used to prototype UIs • techniques for evaluating a UI design • importance of iterative design for usability • the real-world applications of course concepts and tools • how to work together on a team project • how to communicate your results to a group
Course Format • Lectures • Interactive classes/assignments/applications • Everyday objects • Sun web design • E-Groceries • Web design patterns • UofA web design (Tracey Hummel) • Killer Robot • Team presentations and interactions
High-Level Goals of this Course • Formalizing the obvious • Increasing your sensitivity and awareness • identifying the problem and why it is a problem is 90% of the battle • many designers fail because they can’t break from their own conceptual models to even see the problems, much less solve them • Providing a set of tools and structures with which to solve design problems • design of software, doors, term papers, or anything for that matter • Instill passion and interest in (HCI and UCD)