Human Computer Interaction Dr. Zahid Hussain Abro QUEST Nawabshah

Goals of HCI are to produce usable and safe systems, as well as functional systems. These goals can be summarized as to develop or improve the safety, utility, effectiveness, efficiency and usability of systems that include computers as well as Usability and User Experience

Human-Computer Interaction Human Computer Interaction User ExperienceUsability Interface

The Shopping Analogy Types of experiences –Good or Bad Every user is unique –Experiences are unique

User Experience – A Definition The user experience is the holistic combination of everything that the user –Sees –Touches –Feels –Interacts with

But now User Experience (UX): UX: the entire experience of a user with a product or interface. An umbrella term which encompasses: Information Architecture User-Centered Design / Usability Engineering Graphic Design Interaction Design

Good and Bad Experiences Good experience Bad experience Frustration Resentment Anger Satisfaction Happiness Elation

Usability - Abstract-level Constituents Ease of Use (Could I use it?) + Usefulness (Would I use it?)

Usability Ensures that interactive products are easy to learn, effective to user and enjoyable from the users perspective is defined by ISO as "the extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use". measures the quality of a users experience when interacting with a product or a system

Perspective ? People perceive the same item in different ways What do you see in the Image ?

Usability & User Experience User Experience Goals Usability Goals

Usability Goals Effectiveness Efficiency Safety Utility Learnability Memorablity

Effectiveness How good the system is at doing what it is supposed to do –Porsche example the system was effective enough to detect the high intake of Air in Fuel system –The Alarm clock is effective in the way that it would play music in exactly the same way it is supposed to –Your mobile phone? Are these systems really effective ? Think again !! –Main goal of HCI is to evaluate things from the Users perspective

Efficient The way system supports its users in carrying out their tasks Does the product help users sustain a high level of productivity? How fast?

Safety Protecting the user from dangerous conditions and undesirable situations Avoid errors or give a way to exit or recover from error Preventing the user from making serious error by reducing the risk of wrong keys/buttons being mistakenly activated (an example is not placing the quit or delete-file command right next to the save command on a menu.) Providing users with various means of recovery should they make errors. Other safety mechanisms include undo facilities and confirmatory dialog boxes that give users another chance

Utility System providing the right kind of functionality so that the user can do what they want

Learnability How easy a system is to learn to user

Memorability How easy the system is to remember once learnt Riding a bicycle

User Experience Goals Satisfying Enjoyable Fun Entertaining Helpful Motivating Aesthetically Pleasing Supportive to Creativity Rewarding Emotionally Fulfilling, etc., etc.

Fun Emotionally fullfilling Rewarding Satisfying Entertaining enjoyable helpful Motivating Aesthetically pleasing Supportive of creativity Efficient to use Easy to remember Effective to use Easy to learn Safe to use Have good utility Usability Goals

Usability and user experience goals How do usability goals differ from user experience goals? Are there trade-offs between the two kinds of goals? –e.g. can a product be both fun and safe? How easy is it to measure usability versus user experience goals?

Todays Revelation Dont Make me THINK, is the key to a usable product

User Centered Design / Usability Engineering an approach for employing usability all development proceeds with the user as the center of focus, with advantages of usable, accessible, and accepted product. iterative process to improve usability of a system

User Centered Design as a Process (ISO 13407) 1. Plan the human centered process 2. Specify the context of use 3. Specify user and organisational requirements 4. Produce design solutions 5. Evaluate design against user requirements Meets requirements

Usability and Quality

Quality and Software What is Quality? –You like a product –Does not break down QA Teams

Quality is conformance to specifications (British Defense Industries Quality Assurance Panel)

Quality is conformance to requirements (Philip Crosby)

Quality is fitness for purpose or use (Juran)

Quality is a predictable degree of uniformity and dependability, at low cost and suited to the market (Edward Deming)

Quality is synonymous with customer needs and expectations (R J Mortiboys)

Quality is meeting the (stated) requirements of the customer- now and in the future (Mike Robinson)

Quality is the total composite product and service characteristics of marketing, engineering, manufacturing and maintenance through which the product and service in use will meet the expectations by the customer (Armand Feigenbaum)

Totality of characteristics of an entity that bears on its ability to satisfy stated and implied needs (ISO 8402 : 1994)

What is a Product?

Product A generic term that refers to –Goods –Services Failure to meet quality requirements in either dimension can have serious negative consequences

… implied needs must be turned into requirements … PMBOK

Software Quality The extent to which a software product exhibits these characteristics –Functionality –Reliability –Usability –Efficiency –Maintainability –Portability

Software QA Teams Only test requirements Customers and users????

The Dual Nature of Usability Usability is both Strategic Tactical

Interdisciplinary Nature of HCI write note

What is HCI? HCI is a large interdisciplinary area Emerging as specialty concern within several disciplines, each with different emphases –Computer science (application design and engineering of human interfaces) –Psychology (the application of theories of cognitive processes and the empirical analysis of user behavior) –Sociology and anthropology (interactions between technology, work, and organization) –Industrial design (interactive products)

What is HCI? HCI concerned with: –Joint performance of tasks by humans and machines –Structure of communication between human and machine –Human capabilities to use machines –Algorithms and programming of interfaces –Engineering concerns in designing and building interfaces –Process of design, specification and implementation –Design trade-offs

What is HCI? Various aspects –Science Human capabilities to use machines –Engineering Building interfaces –Design Design tradeoffs

Factors in HCI Organizational Factors Training, job design, politics, roles Work organization Environmental Factors Noise, heating, ventilation,lighting Health and Safety Stress, headaches, Musculo-skeleton, disorders Cognitive processes and capabilities The User Motivation, Enjoyment, Satisfaction, Personality Experience level Comfort Level Seating Equipment layout User Interface Input devices, output displays, dialogue structures, User of colour, icons, commands, graphics, natural language 3-D, user support materials, multimedia Task Factors Easy, complex, novel, Task allocation, repetitive,Monitoring, skills, multi-media Constraints Costs, timescales, budgets, Staff, equipment, building structure System Functionality Hardware, software, application Productivity Factors Increase output, increase quality, decrease costs, decrease errors,Decrease labour requirements, decrease production time, Increase creative and innovative ideas leading to new products

Interdisciplinary Nature of HCI HCI is understanding the Complex Relationship between Human and Computers Two Distinct Species Successful Integration is dependent upon the a better understanding of both Species Hence HCI borrows and establishes its roots in Disciplines concerned with both

Interdisciplinary Nature of HCI HCI has roots in many disciplines HCI is inter-disciplinary in nature

Anthropology Artificial Intelligence Engineering Design Ergonomics & Human Factor Linguistics Social Organizational Psychology Philosophy Computer Science Cognitive Psychology HCI

Interdisciplinary Nature of HCI – Human Side Cognitive Psychology Social Organizational Psychology Ergonomics and human Factors Linguistics Philosophy Sociology Anthropology

Cognitive Psychology write note Understanding human behavior and mental processes Human information processing –See –Feel –Touch –Smell –Taste How much information can be processed and remembered

Social Organizational Psychology Studying nature and causes of human behavior in social context Four core concerns –Influence of one individual on another persons attitude and behavior –Impact of a group on its members attitude and behavior –Impact of a member on groups activities and structure –Relationship between the structure and activities of different groups Informs designers how computers affect working practices

Ergonomics or Human Factors To define and design tools and various artifacts for different work, leisure and domestic environment to suit the capacities and capabilities of users Ergonomist translates the above information from the above mentioned sciences into context of design of products Increase feelings of comfort and satisfaction Concerns –Hardware design –Radiation from VDUs –Repetitive Strain Injury (RPI)

Linguistics Scientific study of languages Command-object (delete report OR report delete) Understanding structure (syntax) and meaning (semantics) HCI goal is to develop natural language interfaces

Philosophy, Sociology and Anthropology Contribution in the sense of Soft Sciences for HCI Considers introduction of IT in society Ethnography involves observing people write very short note Cognitive psychology tries to predict Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) write note

CSCW Matrix

Interdisciplinary Nature of HCI – Computer Side Computer Science Artificial Intelligence Engineering Design

Other Disciplines Computer Science –Provides knowledge about capability of technology –Developing techniques to support software design, development and maintenance Artificial Intelligence –Intelligent Computing concerned with simulating human behaviour –HCI – development of expert and tutoring systems Engineering –Engineering takes finding of sciences and utilizes them in the production of artifacts Design –Design contributes creative skills and knowledge to this process

Discipline of HCI

Evolution and History of HCI

Groundwork for HCI: 1960s – Early 1970s Man-machine Symbiosis" (Licklider, 1960) –Symbiotic relationship –Computers would contribute in creative process Augmentation of human intellect (Engelbart, 1963) SketchPad system at MIT (Sutherland, 1963) –Ideas for displaying, manipulate, copy pictures –Use of input devices

Groundwork for HCI: 1960s – Early 1970s Parallel developments –Interactive graphic interfaces –Interactive text processing systems –Line and display editors –WYSIWYG editors –Computer graphics (CAD/CAM)

Difference in Approach: Late 1970s and 1980s US –How computers enrich lives –Facilitating problem-solving and creativity –Empirical evaluation –Psychology of programming Europe –Theories of HCI –Methods of design –Formalize usability

Early Days of HCI Early days of computing computers were used and operated by Engineers / Technical Staff only 1970s: technology explosion –Notion of user-interface arises, a.k.a. Man-Machine Interface (MMI) –User-interface became a concern for system designers and researchers Growing realization –Success depended on improving physical aspect of UI –user friendly was often just lip service and making UI aesthetically pleasing

Role of Academic Researchers Academic researchers were more interested in how computers enriched human life They investigated –people side of interaction –Limitations and capabilities of humans Other issues found –Training issues –Working practices –Management and organizational issues

Birth of HCI HCI term adopted in mid-1980s Another HCI definition –A set of processes, dialogues, and actions through which a human user employs and interacts with a computer.

Landmark Systems in Evolution Three systems were landmarks in evolution –Dynabook –The Star –Apple Lisa Unifying theme in these systems –Easy-to-use for all –Visual spatial-interface

Dynabook – 1970s Brainchild of Alan Key and his Associates in Xeroxs Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), California Intention –Develop highly-responsive book-sized PC Colour display Radio link to a world wide computer network –Could function as Secretary Mailbox Reference Library Telephone Center Amusement Center

The Star Same team of Dynabook Desktop Sized Personal Workstation Intended for Individual Use First Time a Mouse was Used Xerox as slow to capitalize on its invention

Apple Lisa – Early 1980s Apple exploited this discovery (Star) Lisa developed Macintosh developed –Smaller, cheaper and more powerful version than Lisa The concept of GUI