From: Toni Emerson Subject: Shneiderman Sparks of Innovation in Human-Computer Interaction Editor: Ben Shneiderman, University of Maryland An Excerpt Overview: fuel for a new discipline, Ben Shneiderman Increasingly, researchers and designers are conducting experiments on the profound effects that design improvements can have on users: reduced learning times, faster performance on tasks, lower rate of errors, higher subjective satisfaction, and better human retention over time. Theories, taxonomies, and models at differing levels of abstraction are competing for attention. Empirical research has produced breakthroughs in the design of menu selection, form fill-in, pointing devices, and direct manipulation interactions. Knowledgeable managers are recognizing that excellent user interfaces produce dramatic marketing advantages because they can greatly increase productivity, substantially reduce fatigue and errors, and enable users to be more creative in solving problems. When the user interface is well-designed, users should not only be performing well, but should also experience a sense of accomplishment and a positive regard for the designer of the interface. Usability testing, guidelines documents, and user interface management software tools (UIMS) are the three pillars of successful user interface development. Repeated testing in a usability lab with small numbers (3-12) of typical users performing typical tasks has proven to be very successful in inspiring improved designs and finding flaws. Hundreds of labs have been created in development organizations and a society of usability professionals has sprouted. Guidelines documents are successful in promoting consistency, defining organizational identity, and speeding development. Of course methods for enforcement, enhancement, and exemption must be part of the process. UIMSs dramatically speed development and allow easy modification, thereby supporting the pursuit of quality. Academic research in human-computer interaction combines the experimental methods and intellectual framework of cognitive psychology with powerful tools from computer science. HCI benefits from related fields such as education where computers are increasingly used in programs ranging from elementary school through professional skills development. The theory and measurement techniques of educational psychology are applicable to studying the learning process in novice computer users. Business system design and management decision making are endeavors which are being increasingly shaped by the nature of the computer facilities. Library and information services are also dramatically influenced by the availability of computer-based systems. At the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory, our goal is to do research on the theory and design of interactive systems that enable users to perform tasks rapidly, learn skills easily, and communicate in an atmosphere of competence, satisfaction, and confidence. We want to replace arguments about user friendly systems with a more scientific approach. We emphasize controlled experiments which yield more objective and reliable results, but also find informal usability studies are helpful in understanding design problems. We specify user communities carefully and identify tasks as thoroughly as possible. Then we turn to measurable criteria such as, time to learn specific functions, speed of task performance, rate of human errors, subjective user satisfaction, human retention of functions over time.... Contents Preface Overview: fuel for a new discipline Introduction: supporting the process of innovation 1. Direct manipulation 1.1 Direct manipulation: a step beyond programming languages, Ben Shneiderman 1.2 A study of file manipulation by novices using commands vs. direct manipulation, Sepeedeh Margono, Ben Shneiderman 1.3 Remote direct manipulation: a case study of a telemedicine workstation, Richard Keil-Slawik, Catherine Plaisant, Ben Shneiderman 2. Menu selection 2.1 Embedded menus: selecting items in context, Larry Koved, Ben Shneiderman 2.2 An empirical comparison of pie vs. linear menus, Jack Callahan Don Hopkins, Mark Weiser, Ben Shneiderman 2.3 Time stress effects on two menu selection systems, Daniel F. Wallace, Nancy S. Anderson, Ben Shneiderman 3. Hypertext 3.1 Finding facts vs. browsing knowledge in hypertext systems, Gary Marchionini, Ben Shneiderman 3.2 Restructuring knowledge for an electronic encyclopedia, Charles B. Kreitzberg, Ben Shneiderman 3.3 The Electronic Teaching Theater: interactive hypermedia & mental models of the classroom, Kent L. Norman 4. Touchscreens 4.1 Improving the accuracy of touchscreens: an experimental evaluation of three strategies, Richard L. Potter, Linda J. Weldon, Ben Shneiderman 4.2 High precision touchscreens: design strategies and comparisons with a mouse, Andrew Sears, Ben Shneiderman 4.3 Touchscreens now offer compelling uses, Ben Shneiderman 4.4 Touchscreen interfaces for alphanumeric data entry, Catherine Plaisant, Andrew Sears 4.5 Scheduling home control devices: a case study of the transition from the research project to a product, Catherine Plaisant, Ben Shneiderman, Jim Battaglia 5. Public access 5.1 Guide to Opportunities in Volunteer Archaeology: case study on the use of a hypertext system , in a museum exhibit, Catherine Plaisant 5.2 Evaluating three museum installations of a hypertext system Ben Shneiderman, Dorothy Brethauer, Catherine Plaisant, Richard Potter 5.3 ACCESS at the Library of Congress, Gary Marchionini, Maryle Ashley, Lois Korzendorfer 5.4 User interface consistency: an evaluation of original and revised interfaces for a videodisk library, Richard Chimera, Ben Shneiderman 6. Information visualization: dynamic queries, treemaps, and the filter/flow metaphor 6.1 Dynamic Queries for information exploration: an implementation and evaluation, Christopher Ahlberg, Christopher Williamson, Ben Shneiderman 6.2 The Dynamic HomeFinder: evaluating Dynamic Queries in a real-estate information exploration system, Christopher Williamson, Ben Shneiderman 6.3 Treemaps: a space-filling approach to the visualization of hierarchical information structures, Brian Johnson, Ben Shneiderman 7. Essays and explorations 7.1 A nonanthropomorphic style guide: overcoming the Humpty Dumpty syndrome, Ben Shneiderman 7.2 Human values and the future of technology: a declaration of responsibility, Ben Shneiderman 7.3 Engagement and construction: educational strategies for the post-TV era, Ben Shneiderman 7.4 Protecting rights in user interface designs, Ben Shneiderman 7.5 Declaration in Apple vs. Microsoft/Hewlett-Packard, Ben Shneiderman Appendix-HCIL publications Appendix-videos Name index Subject index Published 1993; 400 pages Cloth: 1-56750-078-1 / $54.95; Paper: 1-56750-079-X / $24.95 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sparks of Innovation in Human-Computer Interaction Editor: Ben Shneiderman, University of Maryland Published 1993; 400 pages Please send me _____ copy(ies) of ___ Cloth edition (1-56750-078-1) @ $54.95 each. ___ Paper edition (1-56750-079-X) @ $24.95 each. Method of Payment: __ Check Enclosed __ VISA __ MasterCard Exp. 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