CSC USI Class Meeting 6 October 5, 2010

Outline for Evening One-minute assessment Research project issues Table creation revisited Augmenting GUEPs and CDs Course themes reprise Edge and Blackwell – Careful reading – Major concepts

One Minute Assessment Do not put your name on the paper On one side of the paper, list The two most important concepts that you have learned so far. On the other side of the paper, list The thing (or things) that you are most confused about.

Research Project Issues My question: Suppose your hypothesis says that design A is faster than design B. You gather timing data from a number of subjects (say N=23) You compute the average total task time (summed over a number of tasks) – Design A: seconds – Design B: seconds Do the data support your hypothesis? [Note data is plural.] What is the negation of the previous statement? If your results need a statistician, then you should design a better experiment. -- Baron Ernest Rutherford

Research Project Issues Your questions:

Table Creation Interesting semantic question arose – Relevant to Consistency GUEP – Related questions in spreadsheet and word processing systems In a spreadsheet, which cell becomes active when the user taps – Tab – Enter – another navigation key

Table Creation (2) In a word processing system, when entering data into a table, which cell becomes active when the user taps – Tab – Enter – Another navigation key How might one model these situations?

Augmenting GUEPs and CDs Our goals: Rephrase GUEPs and CDs, if necessary Develop examples of interface items described by GUEPs and CDs Relate the approaches embodied in GUEPs and CDs See the handout for a summary of GUEPs and CDs

Themes Models, theories, frameworks Form a foundation for understanding What users want (What do they want?) Which is interpreted by the Design principle hierarchy – GUEPs (Generative User Engineering Principles) GUEPs – General design principles – Implementable design guidelines

Themes (2) Users are directed in their approach to a system by Mental models – Problem space version: Set of states and paths from one state to the next leading to a solution – Theory version: What users believe to be true about particular domains, devices, or systems And The cognitive dimensions (CDs) of understanding (which describe ways of thinking).CDs – Related to GUEPs as described by the 14 by 9 matrix.

Themes (3) We have devised a path from abstraction to implementation based on: Cognitive dimensions GUEPs Design principles Task analysis

Tangible User Interfaces What are they? – Definition – Examples – John Underkoffler on the g-speak spatial operating environment John Underkoffler on the g-speak spatial operating environment

Silly Aside Exercise: For the 26 3-character strings, [A-Z]UI, give the definition or description of the user interface described by the acronym. For example, GUI stands for Graphical User Interface and describes any interface using icons or other graphical elements to access data or operations.

TUI (2) What is the power of a WIMP interface? – Is the analysis (done by Edge and Blackwell) of its actions correct?

TUI (3) What is the power of a TUI? – What does “power” mean in this context?

TUI (4) Top level concepts Physical layer; physical tokens – Aligning tokens; lines of tokens – Stacking tokens Virtual layer – Synchronization with physical layer – Feedback: visual, auditory, tactile – Abstraction of time Virtual – Physical Level – Degree of embodiment – Degree of synchronization – Degree of coherence

TUI (5) Manipulable solid diagrams Tokens; token aggregation – Object order – Continuous values – Token association Superior to WIMP – uses DM more effectively – uses D of F with hands more efficiently

Example What do you want from a mapping system? Does this match with what the system provides? Explore – Mapquest Mapquest – Google Maps Google Maps – Yahoo Maps Yahoo Maps – Mappy.com Mappy.com – AAA.com AAA.com – Microsoft Streets and Trips

Example What do you want from a rapid transit routing system? Does this match with what the system provides? Explore – Atlanta MARTA Atlanta MARTA – Philadelphia SEPTA Philadelphia SEPTA – Washington DC Metro – San Francisco BART – Denver DART

Next Time Continue work on research project, completing experimental material and IRB form. Read Claburn, Waiting for Google’s gPhone. – Match his opinions against our list of user desires – Compare his ideas with GUEPs and CDs – List those ideas that have been implemented in the last 18 months. – Which features should we implement next?

Research Team Meetings