1. User/System Interface
Meeting 7
October 8, 2019

2. Outline for Evening
Goal: Setting up the learning situations for the rest of the semester so that each of you can think and create in your thinking space at your thinking time.
Research project
Table creation revisited
Interface design foundations
Examples
Interface design project
Research article presentation

3. 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 (summing over a number of tasks each subject performed).
Design A: seconds
Design B: seconds
Do the data support your hypothesis? (Note data is plural.)
What is the negation of the previous statement?

4. Research Project Issues
Your questions:

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

6. 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?

7. Augmenting GUEPs and CDs
Our goals:
Rephase 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

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

9. 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)
Related to GUEPs as described by the 14 by 9 matrix

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

11. Silly Aside
Exercise: For each of 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.

12. Examples
Now some examples of systems to which we can apply our interface development themes.
For each example,
Create a list of bad interface components or overly complicated tasks
Describe the difficulties in terms of
Failures to match design principles
Failures to build on cognitive dimensions

13. Mapping System What do you want from a mapping system?
Does this match what the system provides?
Explore:
Google Maps
Maps on iOS devices
Waze
What other mapping systems are in widespread use?

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

15. Appointment Calendar
What do you want from an appointment calendar system?
Does this match with what the system provides?
Explore:
Google Calendar
Outlook Calendar
iOS Calendar

16. The Smart Refrigerator Project (SRP)
Goal: Create a user interface design that is
As powerful as possible
As perfect as possible
As intuitive as possible
Process:
Class will be divided into five design teams (3 or 4 persons per team)
Brainstorm design and features in several rounds, tonight
Choose interface components for actual design process

17. SRP(2) Design Teams are: Team P: Anusha, Bhavan, Greeshma, Josh C.
Team Q: Chaitanya, Jos, Mounika, Nitin
Team R: Kowmudi, Moulika, Sheshank, Taylor
Team S: Josh B., Usha, Vamsi
Team T: Harsha, Jarred, Jess

18. SRP(3)
Move into groups, separating each group from all others as much as possible.
Take few minutes to get to know one another. The teams are purposely multicultural.
And take two more minutes to think historically about refrigeration
How did your grandparents keep food cold?
And your great-grandparents?

19. SRP(4)
We’ll approach understanding the design of the smart refrigerator in four ways:
By perception
By design philosophy
By task
By interface

20. SRP: Perception
What do you think of when someone starts talking about a smart refrigerator?
What is your mental model of the device?
Theories or beliefs about its operations
A “space” in which problems are solved through a sequence of steps
A representation of the device in a more familiar or “easier” setting
Created from an understanding of a textual description of the device

21. Perceptions; Mental Models
Screen on front
Sensors, including temperature control
Energy efficient
Respond to power failures
Manage contents
Order groceries
Check expiration dates
Watch for spoilage
Respond to food recalls
Flexible interior layout with content and temperature management by compartment
Continuous connection to internet and cloud

22. SRP: Design Philosophy
How does the perception of the smart refrigerator translate to an overall design?
An analogy:
A toaster should make toast
A toaster can be easily made to toast more than bread (bagels, English muffins, crullers, …)
Sometimes the item needing toasting is frozen
A toaster should operate wherever it can be plugged in

23. Design Philosophy Keep things cold Produce ice
Produce cold filtered water
Reasonably sized
Touch pad for control
Door closed monitoring via alarm or autoclose
Inside lights
Camera view of inside

24. SRP: Physical Interface
What should the physical design of the refrigerator and its physical widgets be?

25. Physical Interface Automatic reminders
Microphone / speakers for voice control
Touch pad and screen
Camera for inside view, hologram
Exterior water dispenser
Sections for food types, labeled
Icons with optional text entry
Locking mechanism

26. SRP: Task List
What tasks would you like to accomplish using your smart refrigerator?

27. SRP: Design Task
Each design team chooses X of the Y tasks in order of preference. Submit your choices by noon October 21.
Your team may propose one alternate task, not on the union list.
The instructor will assign tasks based on preference ordering
Important: Teams are designing the user interface for the functionality described, not the implementation of the functionality itself.
Design teams meet during class on October 29.
Interim design reports are due that evening, by 9:00 pm EDT.
Final design report and presentation is due November 12.

28. SRP: Design Task (2) Being as creative as possible
Develop a task analysis
Propose a design for the SR to accomplish the team’s assigned tasks
Implement a prototype of the design (implement can mean a paper model, screen shots, or a running program)
Analyze the prototype in light of the GUEPs and CDs
Use other ideas from the course as appropriate to justify your design
Submit a report with the results of your work

29. SRP: Design Task (3)
Results should be five designs that, when combined, describe a device that is close to a perfect smart refrigerator.

30. Article Presentation
Choose one of the topic areas listed on the next slide
Find an interesting recent paper in the area
Recent means published in a journal or conference proceedings within the last 4 years, so 2015 and later.
Prepare a 15 minute presentation of the paper
The background
The experiment, assuming there is one
The results
Your critique
The relationship of the paper to other papers or concepts

31. Article Presentations (2)
Subject areas:
Intelligent user interfaces (IUI) and especially the implementation and evaluation of features
Interface personalization and especially its value on small devices
Persuasive HCI and especially the acceptance of technology telling you what to do
Adaptive user interfaces

32. Course planning
10/21
Choice of research article for presentation with area due
10/22
Class: topics to be determined
Research Progress Report 1 due
10/29
Interface design team meetings
Preliminary design report due by end of class
Bibliography of supporting papers for research article presentation due

33. Course Planning (2) 11/5 11/12 11/19 11/26
Class: topics to be determined
11/12
Interface design presentations
11/19
Paper presentations
Research Progress Report 2 due
11/26
First draft of research report sections Introduction, Background, Experimental Design due

34. Course Planning (3) 12/3 12/10 12/17 Paper presentations
First draft of research report sections Results and Conclusions due
12/10
Research project presentations
Final version of research project report due
Take-home part of final exam distributed
12/17
In-class part of final exam
Poster abstract and design for research project due

35. Next Time Next time is October 22.
Continue work on the research project, completing experimental material and IRB application on Cayuse.
Prepare Progress Report 1, a document that outlines the progress you’ve made on the research project, the steps you plan to take in the next 3-4 weeks, the barriers that are impeding your progress and how you plan to remove these barriers.
Think creatively with your design team about smart refrigerators