Human Computer Interface design
Manohita Gurram
Nov 19 2002
Good interfaces should• be easy to learn,• minimize user frustration • maximize user productivity
A few basic rules for the system requirements are:
• Software must assist the user perform a task, not become a task in itself
• Software must not make the user feel stupid
• Software must not make the computer appear to be stupid
Some of the important factors to be considered in the interface design are
• Visual elements – colors, fonts, icons etc.
• Terminology• Controls• Error messages• Metaphors
Visual Elements
When properly applied, color can • enrich the user interface by improving the
aesthetic quality of the interface• guide the user's attention to points of
interest.
The improper use of color on the other hand, can seriously impair the user's ability to interact with the program.
Icons
Terminology
Program developers and users should share the same knowledge base. Programs should be designed according to the tasks of the users and each should know what the other was talking about.
The designers of Netscape Navigator however, forgot that most people using their product are not programmers
In any other application cut =>object is removed and a copy is placed in the clipboard for later use
In Microsoft Excel, "Cut" means "Leave it there until I Paste it somewhere else."
ControlsIn a graphical user interface, the controls
represent the means by which the user communicates with the application. The quality of the communication depends on two aspects of the controls:
• the appropriateness of the control for the task • the consistency of the rules under which the
control operates. Selecting the wrong tool for the job, or changing
the rules under which the tool operates, the designer will create problems for the users.
Error MessagesError messages are often invasive and rude,
halting the current activity, and demanding that you acknowledge them before you are allowed to continue.
Many error messages are ambiguous, failing to provide meaningful information, and at times are simply incorrect, potentially causing undue grief and expense to the innocent user.
This message was popped up when trying to delete files from a nearly-full hard drive in Windows 95
Netscape's Hidden Frames function generates hidden messages as well.
Metaphors
Metaphors are often employed in interface design to help users learn the application by facilitating the transfer of existing knowledge
Good Design Features
Tool tips1) Enable users to learn the interface more
rapidly by making the toolbar less intimidating2) allow the user to rapidly locate functions that
may otherwise have been buried within the menus
Given all the passwords each of us must keep track of these days, it's all too easy to forget the password for a particular account or program