1. Class Meeting 5 February 10, 2009
CSC USI
Class Meeting 5
February 10, 2009

2. Opening Questions
Who among you has read at least three Harry Potter books?
Who among you is a Sudoku puzzle addict? Or solver?
What is a “natural algorithm”?
What is the pattern and hidden meaning in the research team names?

3. Research Project Short presentation
One spokesperson
Five minutes
Hypotheses, variables, initial experimental design
Questions and comments from the audience

4. Research Teams Aspen: Chris, Jon, Matt Bailey: Andrew, Katie, Joseph
Conifer: Lindsay, Nareg, Nawar
Durango: Alvin, Scott, Tony
Estes Park: Andrew, Anton, Keith

5. Research Project Issues
Add to bibliography – goal is at least 15 references
Design experiment
Create experimental tools
Complete IRB form
Start writing first two sections
Dates
IRB form finished no later than 2/24
Progress Report 1 due 3/10

6. Summary of Some Ideas User goals Mental models GUEPs
Cognitive dimensions

7. User Goals
Based on last week’s discussion and other sources, here’s a list of user goals.
Users want systems that:
Are powerful, meaning fast and efficient
Have proper functionality

8. User Goals (2) Minimize the possibility for (tragic) errors
Allow easy recovery from misdirected actions
Are easily learned and easily relearned
Fit a cognitive model based on past experience

9. User Goals (3) Are easy to maintain, including set up Are flexible
Stimulate creative problem solving
Are personally satisfying

10. Mental Models As theories: Constructed by humans
Based on their world experience
What they believe to be true about particular domains, devices, or systems

11. Mental Models As problems spaces
Mental structures (ideas, concepts, virtual worlds)
Contain possible states
Searchable so that users can plan their behaviors (paths from one state to the next converging on a solution)

12. Relating GUEPs and CDs
Match the 14 cognitive dimensions to the 9 GUEPs looking for overlapping and orthogonal ideas.
Summarize the results by creating a 14 by 9 array whose cell entries describe the relationship between the ith CD and the jth GUEP

13. A Lengthy Example iPods at the ready
What is your mental model of an iPod?
What do you believe to be true about an iPod?
How would you describe the problem space associated with an iPod?

14. iPod (2) What tasks do you want to accomplish with an iPod?
Described in high level terms
In a different context, “I want fresh tomatoes from my garden on my salad.”

15. iPod (3) What operators are available? Physical keys or widgets
Virtual widgets on the interface

16. iPod (4) What notation do we use for widget interaction?
Do we need to expand Card & Moran or Raskin & Beck?

17. iPod (3) Preparing for task analysis Tasks vs. goals
Hierarchical task analysis vs. GOMS
ConcurTaskTrees

18. ConcurTaskTrees Task Types
Action
Example
User
No system interaction
Read a message
Abstraction
Complex
User session
Application
No user interaction
Perform a database query
Interaction
User and system together
Click a button

19. ConcurTaskTrees Operators
Connection
[ T1 ]
Optional
[ ]
T1 *
Iterative *
Syntax
Description
Icon
Unary Operators
Temporal Operators
Icon
Description
Syntax []
Choice
T1 [] T2
|=|
Order Independency
T1 |=| T2
|||
Concurrent
T1 ||| T2
|[ ]|
Concurrent with information exchange
T1 |[ ]| T2
[>
Disabling
T1 [> T2
|>
Suspend/Resume
T1 |> T2
>>
Enabling
T1 >> T2
[] >>
Enabling with information exchange
T1 [] >> T2

20. Synthesizing Edge and Blackwell
Referring to your concept map:
What is its structure?
What is its shape?
What is its top-level concept?

21. Leave Behind
Concept map of the Edge and Blackwell paper

22. Next Time
Continue work on research project, completing experimental material and IRB form
Catch up on reading
Button Exercise (see below)

23. Button Exercise
For your assigned two buttons on Windows Explorer, determine for each
Its syntax (hover, click, drag, etc.)
Its semantics (what happens for each kind of syntax)
Which cognitive dimensions and which GUEPs its behavior exemplifies.
Hand in your written report next time.

24. Button Assignment Back Forward Search Folders Views Go Name Size Type
Date modified
X (right of Folders)
↓ (next to dialog box)
View
File
Tools

25. Research Team Meetings