Usability Engineering

Usability Engineering
Author: Mary Beth Rosson
Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann
Total Pages: 456
Release: 2002
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 1558607129

Usability engineering is about designing products that are easy to use. This text provides an introduction to human computer interaction principles, and how to apply them in ways that make software and hardware more effective and easier to use.

The Semiotic Engineering of Human-computer Interaction

The Semiotic Engineering of Human-computer Interaction
Author: Clarisse Sieckenius De Souza
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 318
Release: 2005
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 9780262042208

A theory of HCI that uses concepts from semiotics and computer science to focus on the communication between designers and users during interaction. In The Semiotic Engineering of Human-Computer Interaction, Clarisse Sieckenius de Souza proposes an account of HCI that draws on concepts from semiotics and computer science to investigate the relationship between user and designer. Semiotics is the study of signs, and the essence of semiotic engineering is the communication between designers and users at interaction time; designers must somehow be present in the interface to tell users how to use the signs that make up a system or program. This approach, which builds on--but goes further than--the currently dominant user-centered approach, allows designers to communicate their overall vision and therefore helps users understand designs--rather than simply which icon to click. According to de Souza's account, both designers and users are interlocutors in an overall communication process that takes place through an interface of words, graphics, and behavior. Designers must tell users what they mean by the artifact they have created, and users must understand and respond to what they are being told. By coupling semiotic theory and engineering, de Souza's approach to HCI design encompasses the principles, the materials, the processes, and the possibilities for producing meaningful interactive computer system discourse and achieves a broader perspective than cognitive, ethnographic, or ergonomic approaches. De Souza begins with a theoretical overview and detailed exposition of the semiotic engineering account of HCI. She then shows how this approach can be applied specifically to HCI evaluation and design of online help systems, customization and end-user programming, and multiuser applications. Finally, she reflects on the potential and opportunities for research in semiotic engineering.

Human-Centered Software Engineering - Integrating Usability in the Software Development Lifecycle

Human-Centered Software Engineering - Integrating Usability in the Software Development Lifecycle
Author: Ahmed Seffah
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 406
Release: 2006-06-26
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 1402041136

Human-CenteredSoftwareEngineering: BridgingHCI,UsabilityandSoftwareEngineering From its beginning in the 1980’s, the ?eld of human-computer interaction (HCI) has beende?nedasamultidisciplinaryarena. BythisImeanthattherehas beenanexplicit recognition that distinct skills and perspectives are required to make the whole effort of designing usable computer systems work well. Thus people with backgrounds in Computer Science (CS) and Software Engineering (SE) joined with people with ba- grounds in various behavioral science disciplines (e. g. , cognitive and social psych- ogy, anthropology)inaneffortwhereallperspectiveswereseenasessentialtocreating usable systems. But while the ?eld of HCI brings individuals with many background disciplines together to discuss a common goal - the development of useful, usable, satisfying systems - the form of the collaboration remains unclear. Are we striving to coordinate the varied activities in system development, or are we seeking a richer collaborative framework? In coordination, Usability and SE skills can remain quite distinct and while the activities of each group might be critical to the success of a project, we need only insure that critical results are provided at appropriate points in the development cycle. Communication by one group to the other during an activity might be seen as only minimally necessary. In collaboration, there is a sense that each group can learn something about its own methods and processes through a close pa- nership with the other. Communication during the process of gathering information from target users of a system by usability professionals would not be seen as so- thing that gets in the way of the essential work of software engineering professionals.

Human-Centered Software Engineering

Human-Centered Software Engineering
Author: Ahmed Seffah
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 409
Release: 2009-06-19
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 1848009070

Activity theory is a way of describing and characterizing the structure of human - tivity of all kinds. First introduced by Russian psychologists Rubinshtein, Leontiev, and Vigotsky in the early part of the last century, activity theory has more recently gained increasing attention among interaction designers and others in the hum- computer interaction and usability communities (see, for example, Gay and H- brooke, 2004). Interest was given a signi?cant boost when Donald Norman suggested activity-theory and activity-centered design as antidotes to some of the putative ills of “human-centered design” (Norman, 2005). Norman, who has been credited with coining the phrase “user-centered design,” suggested that too much attention focused on human users may be harmful, that to design better tools designers need to focus not so much on users as on the activities in which users are engaged and the tasks they seek to perform within those activities. Although many researchers and practitioners claim to have used or been in?uenced by activity theory in their work (see, for example, Nardi, 1996), it is often dif?cult to trace precisely where or how the results have actually been shaped by activity theory. Inmanycases, evendetailedcasestudiesreportresultsthatseemonlydistantlyrelated, if at all, to the use of activity theory. Contributing to the lack of precise and traceable impact is that activity theory, - spite its name, is not truly a formal and proper theory.

Handbook of Human-Computer Interaction

Handbook of Human-Computer Interaction
Author: M.G. Helander
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 1202
Release: 2014-06-28
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 1483295133

This Handbook is concerned with principles of human factors engineering for design of the human-computer interface. It has both academic and practical purposes; it summarizes the research and provides recommendations for how the information can be used by designers of computer systems. The articles are written primarily for the professional from another discipline who is seeking an understanding of human-computer interaction, and secondarily as a reference book for the professional in the area, and should particularly serve the following: computer scientists, human factors engineers, designers and design engineers, cognitive scientists and experimental psychologists, systems engineers, managers and executives working with systems development. The work consists of 52 chapters by 73 authors and is organized into seven sections. In the first section, the cognitive and information-processing aspects of HCI are summarized. The following group of papers deals with design principles for software and hardware. The third section is devoted to differences in performance between different users, and computer-aided training and principles for design of effective manuals. The next part presents important applications: text editors and systems for information retrieval, as well as issues in computer-aided engineering, drawing and design, and robotics. The fifth section introduces methods for designing the user interface. The following section examines those issues in the AI field that are currently of greatest interest to designers and human factors specialists, including such problems as natural language interface and methods for knowledge acquisition. The last section includes social aspects in computer usage, the impact on work organizations and work at home.

HCI and Usability for Education and Work

HCI and Usability for Education and Work
Author: Andreas Holzinger
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 503
Release: 2008-11-19
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 3540893504

The Workgroup Human–Computer Interaction & Usability Engineering (HCI&UE) of the Austrian Computer Society (OCG) serves as a platform for interdisciplinary - change, research and development. While human–computer interaction (HCI) tra- tionally brings together psychologists and computer scientists, usability engineering (UE) is a software engineering discipline and ensures the appropriate implementation of applications. Our 2008 topic was Human–Computer Interaction for Education and Work (HCI4EDU), culminating in the 4th annual Usability Symposium USAB 2008 held during November 20–21, 2008 in Graz, Austria (http://usab-symposium.tugraz.at). As with the field of Human–Computer Interaction in Medicine and Health Care (HCI4MED), which was our annual topic in 2007, technological performance also increases exponentially in the area of education and work. Learners, teachers and knowledge workers are ubiquitously confronted with new technologies, which are available at constantly lower costs. However, it is obvious that within our e-Society the knowledge acquired at schools and universities – while being an absolutely necessary basis for learning – may prove insufficient to last a whole life time. Working and learning can be viewed as parallel processes, with the result that li- long learning (LLL) must be considered as more than just a catch phrase within our society, it is an undisputed necessity. Today, we are facing a tremendous increase in educational technologies of all kinds and, although the influence of these new te- nologies is enormous, we must never forget that learning is both a basic cognitive and a social process – and cannot be replaced by technology.

Patterns of HCI Design and HCI Design of Patterns

Patterns of HCI Design and HCI Design of Patterns
Author: Ahmed Seffah
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 282
Release: 2015-05-28
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 331915687X

As interactive systems are quickly becoming integral to our everyday lives, this book investigates how we can make these systems, from desktop and mobile apps to more wearable and immersive applications, more usable and maintainable by using HCI design patterns. It also examines how we can facilitate the reuse of design practices in the development lifecycle of multi-devices, multi-platforms and multi-contexts user interfaces. Effective design tools are provided for combining HCI design patterns and User Interface (UI) driven engineering to enhance design whilst differentiating between UI and the underlying system features. Several examples are used to demonstrate how HCI design patterns can support this decoupling by providing an architectural framework for pattern-oriented and model-driven engineering of multi-platforms and multi-devices user interfaces. Patterns of HCI Design and HCI Design of Patterns is for students, academics and Industry specialists who are concerned with user interfaces and usability within the software development community.

Software Engineering and Human-Computer Interaction

Software Engineering and Human-Computer Interaction
Author: Richard N. Taylor
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 300
Release: 1995-03-15
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 9783540590088

This volume presents the thoroughly revised proceedings of the ICSE '94 Workshop on Joint Research Issues in Software Engineering and Human-Computer Interaction, held in Sorrento, Italy in May 1994. In harmony with the main objectives of the Workshop, this book essentially contributes to establishing a sound common platform for exchange and cooperation among researchers and design professionals from the SE and HCI communities. The book includes survey papers by leading experts as well as focused submitted papers. Among the topics covered are design, processes, user interface technology and SE environments, platform independence, prototyping, interactive behaviour, CSCW, and others.

Engineering for HCI

Engineering for HCI
Author: Claus Unger
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 373
Release: 2016-01-09
Genre: Computers
ISBN: 0387349073

The volume contains all papers presented at the Working Conference on Engineering for Human-Computer Interaction (EHCI'95), grouped into the topic areas Formal Methods, Tools, Multimedia, Architecture, CSCW, and Design. It includes transcripts of all discussions among the presenters and the conference participants. It further contains the results of several mini-workshops held during the conference on topics like the Human Context, How to make Formal Methods Useful, Rapid Implementation and Development, Usability Testing, CSCW Mini Scenarios.

Designing with Blends

Designing with Blends
Author: Manuel Imaz
Publisher:
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2007
Genre: Computers
ISBN:

How recent research in cognitive science offers new ways to understand the interaction of people and computers and develops a new literacy for well-informed, sensitive software design. The evolution of the concept of mind in cognitive science over the past 25 years creates new ways to think about the interaction of people and computers. New ideas about embodiment, metaphor as a fundamental cognitive process, and conceptual integration--a blending of older concepts that gives rise to new, emergent properties--have become increasingly important in software engineering (SE) and human-computer interaction (HCI). If once computing was based on algorithms, mathematical theories, and formal notations, now the use of stories, metaphors, and blends can contribute to well-informed, sensitive software design. In Designing with Blends, Manuel Imaz and David Benyon show how these new metaphors and concepts of mind allow us to discover new aspects of HCI-SE. After 60 years, digital technology has come of age, but software design has not kept pace with technological sophistication; people struggle to understand and use their computers, cameras, phones, and other devices. Imaz and Benyon argue that the dominance of digital media in our lives demands changes in HCI-SE based on advances in cognitive science. The idea of embodied cognition, they contend, can change the way we approach design by emphasizing the figurative nature of interaction. Imaz and Benyon offer both theoretical grounding and practical examples that illustrate the advantages of applying cognitive concepts to software design. A new view of cognition, they argue, will develop a cognitive literacy in software and interaction design that helps designers understand the opportunities of digital technology and provides people with a more satisfying interactive experience.