CS310 - Human Computer Interaction

1. Week – Introduction to HCI

ASSIST. PROF. DR. ZEYNEP SAGIR
 Topics
• What is HCI?
• Why is HCI so important?
• The History of HCI
• Interconnected Concepts with HCI
• The Goal of HCI
• Design Problems and Results
• HCI is Multidisciplinary
What is HCI?
• Study of how people interact with computers while doing
tasks on a specific context.

People Computers
Why is HCI so important?
• Increasing population of ordinary users
• Dependence of organizations on information systems
• Productivity dilemma
• Decreasing hardware costs while increasing software and
human costs
• Critical application areas of technology
• Medicine, Security (army), banks
• people no longer willing to accept products with poor interfaces
History of HCI
interactions/january+february2006
History of HCI
• The Second World War triggered studying the interaction between
humans and machines, to produce more effective weapons systems

ENIAC (1943) – the

world's first computer.
• Filled a 20 by 40 foot
• 30 tons,
• more than 18,000
vacuum tubes.
• Simple arithmetic &
fixed calculations
 As we may think – MEMEX -
1945
• Vannevar Bush imagined Memex device
• Can store all
records/articles/communications
• Large memory
• Items retrieved by indexing, keywords,
cross references
• can annotate text with margin notes,
comments...
• Can make a trail of links through material
 Man Computer Symbiosis - 1960
• Licklider imagined “man-computer
symbiosis”
•Man-computer symbiosis is an expected
development in cooperative interaction
between men and electronic computers.
•The goal: natural language understanding
Interaction with a computer should be like
interacting with a colleague.
•The interaction between computers and
humans must be at a much higher level than
it is today.
Computer, Mouse and Interaction

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRYnloqYKGY
Interaction with punch cards–
1970s
 The Personal Computer
History of HCI

“Imagine having your own self-

contained knowledge
manipulator in a portable
package the size and shape of
an ordinary notebook. Suppose
it had enough capacity to store
for later retrieval thousands of
page-equivalents of reference
materials, poems, letters,
recipes, records, drawings,
animations, musical scores...”
Alan Kay with a prototype of
Dynabook
Software Psychology – 1980s
• Ben Shnedirman – one of
the most important
researcher in HCI
• For the first time, he used
the term “Software
Psyhology”
• Then, this topic became
popular
WWW – 90s
Interconnected concepts with HCI

Interactive systems
Ergonomics Human Factors
Devices
Performance, errors
User interfaces

HMI
Human-Machine
Interaction
HCI User-centered design
Human Computer
Interaction

15
First Touch Technology: Nintendo
Interconnected concepts with HCI

Interactive systems
Ergonomics Human Factors
Devices
Performance, errors
User interfaces

HMI
Human-Machine
Interaction
HCI User-centered design
Human Computer
Interaction

17
Ergonomics – Physical
characteristics of Interaction
Interconnected concepts with HCI

Interactive systems
Ergonomics Human Factors
Devices
Performance, errors
User interfaces

HMI
Human-Machine
Interaction
HCI User-centered design
Human Computer
Interaction

19
Interconnected concepts with HCI

Interactive systems
Ergonomics Human Factors
Devices
Performance, errors
User interfaces

HMI User-centered design

Human-Machine
Interaction
HCI
Human Computer
Interaction

21
The goal of HCI

Ingredients Goal

• The User(s) • The system must support the user’s

• The Computer(s) task, with a focus on its usability

• The Task(s) to be accomplished o Useful

o Usable
o Used

HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION 22

Q - Keyboard

Dvorak Keyboard
Interesting story of Q - Keyboard
DVORAK
• Common letters under dominant fingers
• Biased towards right hand
• Common combinations of letters alternate between
hands
• 10-15% improvement in speed
• But - large social base of Q typists produce market
pressures not to change
F - Keyboard
•Windows drop-
down menu
•Is it most optimal
design?
• Alternative designs
possible?
Shneiderman’s
research about
Pie Menu
A good design
Good or Bad 
Shopping web-site
Design Problems and Results
• Cutting board in the kitchen counter
• When not used, slide into counter
(Pict A)
• When used, slide out (Pict B)
• It is very convenient ????
• The utensils are in the drawer
below the cutting board (Pict C)
• What are possible design solutions
for that problem?
USA Elections in 2000
HCI is multidisciplinary
 Psychology and cognitive science
 User perceptual, cognitive and problem-solving skills
 Ergonomics
 User’s physical capabilities
 Sociology
 Understanding the wider context of the interaction
 Computer Science and Computer Engineering
 Building the necessary artifacts (HW, SW)
 Business
 Satisfying market needs
 Graphic design
 Produce an effective interface presentation
1. Assignment
• Find four examples of designs, two that you consider a bad design
and two that you consider a good design. Use your judgement and
what it was discussed in class so far, to perform your choices (e.g.,
the dimensions of usability discussed today)
• For each example, it will ask you:
• to describe the purpose of the interface;
• to explain why you think that the interface is good or bad, and
which elements you find particularly good/bad (if any);
• to put a picture of each design;
• to suggest a design solution
• 1 or 2 pages except pictures