[ExI] The Field of HCI

Mike Dougherty msd001 at gmail.com
Thu Jan 31 02:56:41 UTC 2013


On Wed, Jan 30, 2013 at 9:14 PM, Natasha Vita-More <natasha at natasha.cc> wrote:
> Human-computer interaction is one field I am teaching two classes in (theory
> and prototyping) and I’d like to ask you all for any insights, suggestions,
> latest theories, methods, etc. that would be helpful to these undergrad
> students who want to their work at a master’s level.
>
> Most of these students are working in HCI areas of apps, gaming, video, and
> interface design, 3D modeling, etc.  They have a very weak theoretical
> background, but they are anxious to learn.
>
> If anyone has taught HCI at the undergrad or grad level, please let me know.
> And if you have not but can offer insights and suggestions, that would be
> much appreciated!

My introduction to HCI was taught with an accompanying text "The
Design of Everyday Things" (Donald Norman).  We were advised that it
was a bit dated, but that (imo) helped me see 'affordance' outside the
context of computer interfaces and instead examine real objects.
Since humans evolved in the real world, our brains expect objects to
act according to principles that don't necessarily exist in the
software world.  Without those grounding principles it's very easy to
make a mess of UI.  In short, I thought it was exceptionally helpful
to understand how and why ease-of-use (in physical/functional form and
corresponding mental models) can be translated to HCI

It was so effective that I can't see a door marked "push" with a
pull-handle and not immediately assume the designer of the door was a
complete failure.  I have also adopted the philosophy (and have been
teaching it to jr. developers) that "user error" the IT nerds like to
make fun of should really be viewed as design failures.  Failures on
the part of those IT nerds for not delivering a product with natural
constraints which result in proper usage rather than horrible HCI that
encourages users to create problems.  While true, it's also a good way
to remind devs to stop complaining about users and get back to work
fixing the HCI mistakes their customers have identified for them.  :)

I also had the thought that when tool-making tools are built, they'll
need some governing rules about how humans consume contextual clues
and discover functionality in the UI - else AI & makerbots could
implement interfaces that humans are literally incapable of using.

In this context I'll also share this funny anecdote:  I consider
myself fairly adept at using computer interfaces (30 years=plenty of
practice) yet my first experience with an Apple iMac was a disaster.
I understand Apple is all about appealing, modern design, etc.  I
assumed hitting any key would wake the computer from standby; it
didn't.  I found myself pushing the Apple logo on the face of the
monitor; didn't work.  I performed various permutations of the
three-fingered salute; also failed.  I absolutely hated the helpless
feeling of failure to do something as basic as turn on the machine.
Having had the HCI class, however, I recognized that failure
more-appropriately lies with the Apple designer who (apparently)
thought buttons are ugly, so should be hidden on the back of the
monitor.  Not only should they be hidden from view, but that they
should also have nearly zero tactile indication of their presence - so
after being told the power button is on the back I still couldn't find
it by sliding my hand around the edges or feeling for it where the
power button is on my LCD TV.  Despite the other ways Apple can
legitimately claim their products are "easy to use" my expectation for
easy was not met by the obfuscation of the simplest "On" feature.

HCI is really interesting.  Please do share here anything you/your
students discover.




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