| Global human-computer systems: cultural determinants of usability | | BIB | Full-Text | 1-5 | |
| Andy Smith; Fahri Yetim | |||
| The impact of religious affiliation on trust in the context of electronic commerce | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 7-27 | |
| Haytham Siala; Robert M. O'Keefe; Kate S. Hone | |||
| There is currently a growing literature on the role that trust plays in
encouraging consumers to engage in e-commerce transactions. Various models have
been proposed which aim to identify both the antecedents and outcomes of trust
displayed towards e-commerce web sites. Increased trust is generally shown to
increase positive user attitude, which in turn is linked to increased
willingness to buy. Studies have shown the antecedents of trust include
variables such as the perceived reputation and size of the vendor organisation.
The current paper explores the role of cultural variables as antecedents of
trust with the main emphasis being on religious affiliation. Participants
recruited from Christian, Muslim and other faiths were asked to interact with
online bookstores identified as Christian, Muslim or Neutral. Trust and
attitudes towards the web sites were measured and this data was used to test
the hypothesis that same-religion sites would be trusted and liked more than
other religion or neutral sites. This hypothesis was partially supported, but
only for the Muslim participants. It was found that the Muslim group expressed
significantly more trust in the Muslim site compared to the Christian site.
They also expressed significantly more positive attitudes towards the Muslim
online bookstore than the other two sites. The implications of these results
for theories of web based trust and attitude are discussed along with the
practical implications of the findings. Keywords: Trust; Electronic commerce; Culture; Religion | |||
| Introducing ATMs in India: a contextual inquiry | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 29-44 | |
| Antonella De Angeli; Uday Athavankar; Anirudha Joshi; Lynne Coventry; Graham I. Johnson | |||
| This paper presents a method and results of an ethnographic study aimed at
building an understanding of Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) adoption in Mumbai,
India. The study combined field observations and semi-structured interviews
(N=43) of early ATM adopters, bank customers who do not use ATMs, and people
who used the ATM for the first time as part of our research. Data were analysed
to identify specific cultural traits that may affect the adoption of ATMs in
urban India. Results demonstrated the unique role of the cultural context in
affecting users' expectations and behavioural possibilities, thus determining
people's response to the machine. This led to the conclusion that an
understanding of cultural biases and metaphors can facilitate technology
diffusion and acceptance informing design localisation and supporting the
development of strategies to motivate and train users. Keywords: Automatic teller machines adoption; Design localisation; Hofstede's culture
dimensions; Emerging market; Ethnography; Cross-cultural user research | |||
| Chinese culture and e-commerce: an exploratory study | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 45-62 | |
| Alev M. Efendioglu; Vincent F. Yip | |||
| Differing characteristics of local environments, both infrastructural and
socio-economic, have created a significant level of variation in the acceptance
and growth of e-commerce in different regions of the world. This paper focuses
on the impact of these infrastructural and socio-economic factors on e-commerce
development in China. The findings provide insights into the role of culture in
e-commerce, and the factors that may impact a broader acceptance and
development of e-commerce in China. In this paper, we present and discuss our
findings, and identify changes that will be required for broader acceptance and
diffusion of e-commerce in China. Cultural issues such as "socializing effect
of commerce", "transactional and institutional trust", and "attitudes toward
debt" were determined to be the major impediments to e-commerce in China.
However, our research also shows that, even though their means for payment are
different, the most enlightened, able, and sophisticated consumers in China
participate in e-commerce in the same frequencies as the mainstream e-commerce
consumers in the US. Keywords: Electronic commerce; China; Culture; Technology diffusion; Trust; Developing
countries; Digital economy | |||
| A process model for developing usable cross-cultural websites | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 63-91 | |
| Andy Smith; Lynne Dunckley; Tim French; Shailey Minocha; Yu Chang | |||
| In this paper we present a process model for developing usable
cross-cultural websites. Compatible with ISO 13407, the process model documents
an abstraction of the design process focusing on cultural issues in
development. It provides a framework in which a variety of user-based and
expert-based techniques for analysis and design are placed within the
life-cycle of website development. In developing the model, we relate practical
approaches to design with theories and models of culture and discuss the
relevance of such theories to the practical design process. In particular we
focus on four key concerns: how an audit of local website attractors can inform
the design process; the concept of a cultural fingerprint to contrast websites
with the cultural needs of local users; the problems associated with user
evaluation; and cross-cultural team development. We then show their relation to
our process model. We conclude by summarising our contribution to date within
the field. Keywords: Cross-cultural usability; Websites; Globalisation; Cultural fingerprint;
Attractors; User evaluation | |||
| Integrated digital communities: combining web-based interaction with text messaging to develop a system for encouraging group communication and competition | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 93-113 | |
| E. Sillence; C. Baber | |||
| Digital communities are often portrayed as operating entirely within the
confines of a single technological domain, e.g. a group of people in a
web-based chatroom. In this study an integrated approach to digital communities
is explored. It is proposed that members of communities employ a range of
digital technologies to support their activities and sense of community. This
paper describes a study that develops a community using combined text messaging
or Short Messaging Service (SMS) with web-based interaction. An application
based on this specification is built in order to develop and support a digital
community based around the 2002 World Cup. Participants interacted with the
system during the soccer tournament, chatting with other members and taking
part in competitions. They successfully integrated SMS with the website.
Participants reported feeling like a cohesive group and showed increased
interest in soccer and the World Cup. Keywords: Digital communities; Media integration; Online groups; Message boards; Text
messaging | |||
| Personalised adult e-training on computer use based on multiple attribute decision making | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 115-132 | |
| Katerina Kabassi; Maria Virvou | |||
| This paper examines the utility of a multiple attribute decision making
method, the Simple Additive Weighting (SAW), for the purposes of an Intelligent
Learning Environment (ILE) that provides adults with personalised e-learning.
The ILE is called Web Intelligent Trainer and is meant to help novice users
learn how to manipulate the file store of their personal computer. The
generation of advice makes use of adaptive hypermedia techniques and is adapted
to each individual learner's needs, depending on their knowledge level, age,
habits and difficulties. SAW has been applied in the ILE and has been evaluated
with respect to the performance of the ILE. As a result, SAW seems particularly
appropriate for the ILE. Keywords: Adult e-learning; Human-computer interface; Intelligent tutoring systems;
Information technology skills | |||
| Coupling structural and functional models for interaction design | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 133-161 | |
| Dong-Seok Lee; Wan Chul Yoon | |||
| Model-based interaction design is a promising approach to the problem of
building sophisticated interactive systems. Although many models and
model-based design methods have been proposed, in practice their effectiveness
has tended to be limited to solving fragmented design problems. One factor that
has diminished the effectiveness of previous approaches has been their
inability to integrate the various models used for different aspects of the
overall design problem. This paper proposes a novel approach for combining a
structural model and a functional model for complicated interaction design.
Formal correspondence between the models is defined and a conversion process to
transform from one model to the other and vice versa is introduced. The
functional model, OCD, is an efficient technique for representing task
procedures, while the structural model, statechart, is well suited to
representing system behavior. The usability needs and system requirements are
introduced into the design process through either representation. Then, the
constraints formed by a decision in a model can be seen by the designer in the
other model through transformation. The possibility of automatic conversion
between the models warrants the consistence between the models through the
design process even when the models should continually evolve. Keywords: Model-based interaction design; Coupling models; Operation and control
diagram; Statecharts | |||
| Developing web annotation tools for learners and instructors | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 163-181 | |
| Pei-Luen Patrick Rau; Sho-Hsen Chen; Yun-Ting Chin | |||
| This research develops Web annotation tools (WATs), allowing users to
annotate on hypertexts, to build up knowledge structure, to browse instructions
provided electronically by the system administrator or the instructor, to share
annotations with the other learner, and to instruct other learners. The WATs is
a distributed World Wide Web application based on HTTP access and allows
annotations on HTML documents. The major functions of WATs include highlighting
texts, inserting and editing annotations, organizing and presenting annotations
hierarchically, as well as sharing annotations. There are two modes for WATs,
individual and sharing modes. For the individual mode, the five interactive
components are Main Tool Bar, Hypertext, Annotation Editor, Hierarchy Viewer,
and Instruction Viewer. The sharing mode supports asynchronous and synchronous
sharing of annotations and discussion for peer-to-peer and
instructor-to-student collaborative learning. Keywords: Annotation technology; World Wide Web; Learning technology | |||
| Evaluation of multimedia applications using inspection methods: the Cognitive Walkthrough case | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 183-215 | |
| Julien Huart; Christophe Kolski; Mouldi Sagar | |||
| Many evaluation methods are to be found in research literature: they can be
formal, automatic, empirical or informal. The informal methods include the
so-called inspection methods, which provide a good compromise between the cost
and implementation time on the one hand, and the results they make it possible
to obtain on the other. Amongst these methods, Cognitive Walkthrough enables
the detection of a certain number of usability defects and the estimation of
the degree of seriousness of the defect. In this article, we concentrate on
Cognitive Walkthrough. We are particularly interested in it because, as far as
we know, it is the only method based on theory (the theory of learning through
exploration, itself inspired by Norman's Action Theory). However, although its
usefulness as regards software ergonomics has been recognised, its efficiency
in the case of multimedia applications is still far from being proved and very
few research projects have been published on the matter. In fact, multimedia
documents have characteristics which differ from those of traditional
human-machine systems. This article presents a study on the use of Cognitive
Walkthrough for the evaluation of several multimedia applications intended for
the general public; it reveals the difficulties met by users and the areas in
which the method needs to be adapted. Keywords: Evaluation; Cognitive Walkthrough; Multimedia application | |||
| Task demands and memory in web interaction: a levels of processing approach | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 217-241 | |
| Antti Oulasvirta | |||
| The Levels of Processing principle holds that the strength of the encoded
memory trace depends on the mental operations carried out during goal-pursuit.
Therefore, memory should be better for web elements that are more deeply
processed. Participants (N=24) accomplished several information finding tasks
with printed web pages in two conditions: navigation-orientation and
content-orientation. The results support the prediction and show marked
differences between the two tasks in how the locations and features of
task-relevant and -irrelevant elements are remembered. In explaining the
results, the levels of processing principle is bound to a wider model of
perception, attention, and memory in web interaction. It is argued that the
memory test tapped explicit memories that are not recruited in the rapid
on-line control of attention but rather in higher-level operations such as
planning and error recovery in interaction. Implications are proposed for the
design of memorable user interfaces, adaptive hypertext, and notifications. Keywords: Memory; Hypertext; Levels of processing; Navigation; Content | |||
| Unified user interface design: designing universally accessible interactions | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 243-270 | |
| Anthony Savidis; Constantine Stephanidis | |||
| Designing universally accessible user interfaces means designing for
diversity in end-users and contexts of use, and implies making alternative
design decisions, at various levels of the interaction design, inherently
leading to diversity in the final design outcomes. Towards this end, a design
method leading to the construction of a single interface design instance is
inappropriate, as it cannot accommodate for diversity of the resulting dialogue
artifacts. Therefore, there is a need for a systematic process in which
alternative design decisions for different design parameters may be supported.
The outcome of such a design process realizes a design space populated with
appropriate designed dialogue patterns, along with their associated design
parameters (e.g. user- and usage-context-attribute values). This paper
discusses the Unified Interface Design Method, a process-oriented design method
enabling the organization of diversity-based design decisions around a single
hierarchical structure, and encompassing a variety of techniques such as task
analysis, abstract design, design polymorphism and design rationale. Keywords: Dialogue design; Polymorphic task analysis; Design rationale; Interface
adaptation; Unified user interfaces | |||
| Tailoring reveals information requirements: the case of anaesthesia alarms | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 271-293 | |
| Marcus Watson; Penelope Sanderson; W. John Russell | |||
| We discuss the phenomenon of system tailoring in the context of data from an
observational study of anaesthesia. We found that anaesthetists tailor their
monitoring equipment so that the auditory alarms are more informative. However,
the occurrence of tailoring by anaesthetists in the operating theatre was
infrequent, even though the flexibility to tailor exists on many of the patient
monitoring systems used in the study. We present an influence diagram to
explain how alarm tailoring can increase situation awareness in the operating
theatre but why factors inhibiting tailoring prevent widespread use. Extending
the influence diagram, we discuss ways that more informative displays could
achieve the results sought by anaesthetists when they tailor their alarm
systems. In particular, we argue that we should improve our designs rather than
simply provide more flexible tailoring systems, because users often find
tailoring a complex task. We conclude that properly designed auditory displays
may benefit anaesthetists in achieving greater patient situation awareness and
that designers should consider carefully how factors promoting and inhibiting
tailoring will affect the end-users' likelihood of conducting tailoring. Keywords: Alarms; Tailoring; Interface design; Situation awareness; Auditory display;
Sonification | |||
| The effects of affective interventions in human-computer interaction | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 295-309 | |
| Timo Partala; Veikko Surakka | |||
| The present study investigated the psychophysiological effects of positive
and negative affective interventions in human-computer interaction during and
after the interventions. Eighteen subjects were exposed to pre-programmed mouse
delays in an interactive problem-solving task. Following the mouse delays three
types of conditions were used: positive or negative interventions given via
speech synthesizer, and no intervention. Facial electromyographic responses
were recorded from the zygomaticus major and corrugator supercilii muscle
sites. These muscles control smiling and frowning, respectively. Smiling
activity was significantly higher during the positive than the other
conditions. It was also significantly higher after the positive interventions
than the no intervention condition. The frowning activity attenuated
significantly more after the positive interventions than the no intervention
condition. Following the positive interventions the users' problem solving
performance was significantly better than after no intervention. In all, the
results suggest that both types of affective intervention had beneficial
effects over ignoring the user. The results suggest further that positive
intervention may be especially useful. Keywords: Human emotions; Human-computer interaction; Psychophysiology; Affective
intervention; Speech synthesis; Facial expression | |||
| Preferences of young children regarding interface layouts in child community web sites | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 311-330 | |
| Chien-Hsu Chen; Fong-Gong Wu; Pei-Luen Patrick Rau; Yu-Hsiu Hung | |||
| This study investigates the child preferences regarding interface layouts in
child community web sites. The objective of studying this area is to identify
ways of making web sites more usable for children. Two experiments are
conducted: interface layout experiment and layout evaluation. In the interface
layout experiment, researchers recruited eight fifth-grade students with
approximately one-year of Internet experience to arrange interface components
and make research interfaces. During the layout evaluation, 16 students with
some computer background are divided into two groups and asked to manipulate
research interfaces and experimental interfaces, a sample of child community
websites on Yahoo. Every movement of the tested students is recorded and the
experiment is followed by retrospective interviews with the students. Four
criteria of manipulative performance, degree of manipulation, recognition,
remembrance and satisfaction, are then shown and discussed. The findings of the
layout evaluation indicate that the research interfaces are superior to the
experimental interfaces. In addition, this study proposes some interface layout
guidelines for child community websites. Keywords: Children; Interface layout; Web design; Preference; Child community web
site; Usability | |||
| Interaction patterns for future interactive systems components | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 331-350 | |
| MariaIsabel Sanchez-Segura; Angelica de Antonio; Antonio de Amescua | |||
| The development of future interactive systems (FIS) is in its infancy, so
detailed guides describing the process to design them hardly exist. This may be
due to the fact that their development is quite recent and what their
components are and how they must be combined to develop a FIS are not yet clear
or widely accepted.
Our approach towards a thorough understanding of FIS was to analyse the different types of FIS and to extract general characteristics, which can be considered generic, in order to describe what a FIS consists of and how it works. In this paper, we present a classification of the components of a generic FIS and propose interactive behaviour patterns, which can be used to design the FIS components more easily. These patterns are part of the SENDA framework, which was defined to facilitate the rigorous development of a specific kind of FIS, which is Virtual Environments (VEs). The results obtained from the application of the proposed patterns to VEs development are also presented. Keywords: Author Keywords: Virtual environments; Interaction methods; Virtual
environment components; Virtual environment mechanisms | |||
| Critical factors for the aesthetic fidelity of web pages: empirical studies with professional web designers and users | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 351-376 | |
| Su-e Park; Dongsung Choi; Jinwoo Kim | |||
| Recent advances of the broadband Internet and multimedia contents let web
users demand from web pages not only cognitive usability but also appropriate
feelings. At the same time, web designers also want to use web pages not just
for conveying information but also for affecting users' impressions. However,
despite users' needs and designers' desires, users do not always experience the
same kinds of impressions that designers intended to convey through their web
pages.
The main goal of this paper is to identify critical factors that are closely related to the aesthetic fidelity of web pages, which is defined as the degree to which users feel the target impressions intended by designers. In order to achieve our goal, we have conducted three consecutive studies: an exploratory study with web users, a longitudinal experiment with professional web designers, and finally an online survey with web users. The results from the three studies indicated that the variability of user perception and appropriateness of visual elements were closely related to the aesthetic fidelity of web pages, whereas reliability of aesthetic dimensions was not. This paper ends with the limitations and implications of the study results. Keywords: Aesthetic fidelity; Secondary emotion; Visual design; Aesthetic dimensions | |||
| What active users and designers contribute in the design process | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 377-401 | |
| E. Olsson | |||
| With the hope of creating usable systems, we declare repeatedly that users
should be involved in the design and development of computer systems, without
questioning the reasons and motives behind this declaration. What, in fact, can
users contribute to design and how can we best include their contributions in
the development process in order to produce usable computer systems?
This paper presents a study of the hands-on work of one group of designers and one group of user representatives (in this case marine captains) on a given design task. The groups met on separate occasions. The aim of the study was to present a qualitative analysis of the potential contributions to design by user representatives compared with interaction designers. The results are discussed in terms of methods and techniques that sanction the use of a particular domain-specific vocabulary, giving advantages to those who have a good command of that vocabulary. In addition, the study discusses how users' narratives may reveal qualitative domain knowledge that could function as the glue that keeps users and designers together in the design process. Keywords: User involvement; User participation; User-centered design; Participatory
design; Design decisions; Domain knowledge | |||
| Universal usability revisited | | BIB | Full-Text | 403-410 | |
| Mary Zajicek; Alistair Edwards | |||
| Successful and available: interface design exemplars for older users | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 411-430 | |
| Mary Zajicek | |||
| An increasing number of older people will need to use computers and computer
related systems in the future to avoid social exclusion and enable them to live
more independently. For example, we can envisage the web becoming the first
source of information on bus timetables or council collections, and even doctor
or hospital appointments being handled by a Web applications. There will
therefore be many interface designers searching for pointers to good design for
older people, a user group which is significantly different from the mainstream
user groups as a result of age associated changes. There is currently no
detailed body of knowledge from which interface designers can learn how to
design for this user group. This paper suggests a framework for encapsulating
good interface design for older people that is based on rigorous experimental
work and sets out the findings in the form of patterns, a representation
previously used in the domain of software engineering and architecture. Keywords: Speech output; Older people; Interface design patterns; Interface design
methodology; Research output | |||
| Capturing tacit knowledge from young girls | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 431-449 | |
| Minna Isomursu; Pekka Isomursu; Kaisa Still | |||
| Young girls are a user group often neglected in the design of technical
devices. In this paper, we describe a method for involving pre-teen and teen
girls in a concept design process. With this target group we have experienced
serious challenges in applying traditional participatory design methods, such
as observations or interviews. As a solution, we have adopted a web-based
storytelling environment where our target group is encouraged to create usage
scenarios of a mobile terminal that would support their activities in a virtual
community. Our results show that this approach is a very natural and fruitful
method of involving this target group in the design process. Keywords: Product concept design; Usage scenarios; Virtual communities; Design for
children; Participatory design | |||
| A system for automatic structure discovery and reasoning-based navigation of the web | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 451-475 | |
| E. Pontelli; T. C. Son; K. Kottapally; C. Ngo; R. Reddy; D. Gillan | |||
| In this paper, we highlight the main research directions currently pursued
by the investigators for the development of new tools to improve Web
accessibility for users with visual disabilities. The overall principle is to
create intelligent software agents used to assist visually impaired individuals
in accessing complex on-line data organizations (e.g. tables, frame structures)
in a meaningful way. Accessibility agents make use of knowledge representation
structures (automatically or manually derived) to assist users in developing
navigation plans; these are employed to locate given pieces of information or
to answer user's desired goals. Keywords: Web accessibility; Agents; Table navigation | |||
| Abstract representations as a basis for usable user interfaces | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 477-506 | |
| Shari Trewin; Gottfried Zimmermann; Gregg Vanderheiden | |||
| This article examines four existing or proposed standards for abstract
description of user interfaces: UIML, XIML, XForms and URC. These are assessed
with respect to a "universal remote console" scenario, in which abstract user
interface descriptions enable any user to access and control any compliant
device or service in the local environment, using any personal device.
Achieving usable interfaces in this scenario requires an abstract language that
(a) separates data from presentation; (b) explicitly declares interface
elements, their state, dependencies, and semantics; (c) incorporates
alternative resources in a flexible way; and (d) supports remote control and
different interaction styles. Of the technologies examined, XForms and URC
provide the best match to the requirements. While XForms requires an
appropriate context of use to provide full access, the URC standard will
include specification of the context in which the language is to be used. Two
specific research challenges are identified: semantic tagging and the
development of effective authoring processes. Keywords: Abstract user interface; Device-independence; Modality-independence;
Universal remote console; XForms; UIML; XIML | |||
| Applying heuristics to accessibility inspections | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 507-521 | |
| Claire Paddison; Paul Englefield | |||
| Accessibility heuristics have been developed to complement accessibility
guidelines. The use of Web accessibility heuristics in heuristic evaluations
considers a greater range of special needs, such as visual impairments to
cognitive disabilities. Key advantages of heuristics are conciseness,
memorability, meaningfulness and insight. The heuristics allow evaluators to
understand effectively which areas of a site have accessibility issues and
provide useful insight into how to create a solution. However, the heuristics
will not tell evaluators whether a Web site conforms to legislation. Studies
have confirmed the view that while heuristics do not substitute for expertise,
they do act to cue the deeper body of knowledge defined by the guidelines. It
is essential that evaluators receive accessibility education before completing
a heuristic evaluation using the accessibility heuristics. Keywords: Accessibility; Heuristic evaluation; Accessibility heuristics; IBM heuristic
evaluation database | |||
| Justification of the need for an ontology for accessibility requirements (Theoretic framework) | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 523-555 | |
| K. R. Masuwa-Morgan; P. Burrell | |||
| The aim of this paper is to make a case generally for an ontology for
accessibility requirements specification. Requirements specification is
generally intended to provide clear, testable descriptions of what a system
should do. What an ontology would do is to act like a requirements bank that
provides methodology independent accessibility requirements that could then be
used to extrapolate, on demand, conceptual models for a variety of
implementations driven by a variety of methodologies. The effect of this would
be to minimise requirements specification, ensure declarativity,
standardisation, interoperability and reusability, whilst at the same time
lending greater migratability from specification to design.
There has been much worldwide action in developing guidelines, tools and methods in an attempt to ensure that technologies and information systems are accessible. There is, however, a growing need to partner these initiatives more closely with software engineering traditions. An ontology for accessibility requirements would provide formal semantic specifications beyond the syntactic provisions rendered by commonly used formal specification languages. Keywords: Accessibility; Requirements specification; Ontology; Methodology | |||
| Understanding visual influence in graph design through temporal and spatial eye movement characteristics | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 557-578 | |
| J. A. Renshaw; J. E. Finlay; D. Tyfa; R. D. Ward | |||
| We describe an experiment in which the eye movements of participants,
carrying out tasks using two contrasting graph designs, were recorded by means
of a remote eye tracking device. A variety of eye movement properties were
measured and analysed both temporally and spatially. Both graph designs were
based on specific psychological theories and established graph design
guidelines. One incorporated attributes thought likely to enhance usability,
the other included attributes likely to have the opposite effect. The results
demonstrate that the design and location of a graph's legend and its spatial
relationship to the data area are extremely important in determining a graph's
usability. The incorporation of these and other design features may promote or
detract from perceptual proximity and therefore influence a display's
usability. The paper demonstrates that this influence is reflected in eye
movement patterns, which can be readily monitored by means of a remote eye
tracking system, and that a relatively simple temporal analysis of the results
can give important insights as to how the usability of visual displays has been
influenced. Keywords: Eye tracking; Graphs; Usability; Perception | |||
| A framework for analyzing and understanding online communities | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 579-610 | |
| Clarisse Sieckenius de Souza; Jenny Preece | |||
| Social interactions in online communities are varied and often complex, as
are the communities themselves. The characteristics of the people, the range of
purposes they pursue, the type of governance policies they develop, and the
design of the software supporting a community, vary from community to
community. These characteristics determine a community's sociability. Thus, the
availability of powerful analytic tools to help designers understand existing
technology-supported social activity online can broaden the spectrum of design
knowledge and promote new insights for designing computer applications of this
sort. In this paper, we present one such analytic tool -- a theoretically-based
online community framework (OCF). In order to demonstrate the efficacy of the
framework we elaborate on its communication constituent using semiotic theory
to help us. This constituent is particularly important in the OCF because it
addresses computer-mediated communication between community members, and also
communication from interactive software designers to users via the software
they design. This latter kind of communication can shape the community's
experience to a considerable extent, as our analysis shows. The paper ends with
an agenda for future research. Keywords: Framework; Online community; Semiotic engineering; Sociability; Usability | |||
| Human-computer interaction in Latin America | | BIB | Full-Text | 611-614 | |
| C. de Souza; S. Barbosa | |||
| A dialogue-based approach for evaluating educational software | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 615-633 | |
| Luciano Meira; Flavia Peres | |||
| This article offers a perspective on evaluating educational software based
on users' dialogue as they engage in interaction with a particular program,
rather than on features of the software per se. Building on analytical
constructs and techniques of Conversation Analysis, we suggest an evaluative
approach that identifies gaps or breakdowns in users' dialogues and maps the
mismatches between users' actions and software behavior. The article presents
two case studies to illustrate this dialogue-based approach, and discusses ways
of integrating this perspective with more traditional guidelines for software
evaluation based on features such as interface design and feedback types. Keywords: Educational software; Software evaluation; Interface design; Conversation
Analysis | |||
| Compulsory institutionalization: investigating the paradox of computer-supported informal social processes | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 635-656 | |
| Clarisse Sieckenius de Souza; Ana Maria Nicolaci-da-Costa; Elton Jose da Silva; Raquel Oliveira Prates | |||
| The nature and depth of technological interference on social activities
online are not fully understood. We discuss one such type of interference --
compulsory institutionalization, the process by which non-institutionalized
face-to-face informal groups, who typically adopt implicit norms tacitly
accepted by members, must create a set of explicit group structuring rules with
very specific computer-encoded meanings and abide by them when they migrate to
online group environments. In societies where rules can be bypassed in view of
more highly valued social norms, like the Brazilian society, compulsory
institutionalization may undermine experiences that are highly valued to
face-to-face groups. In this article, we contrast the findings of our study
with a Brazilian group of potential groupware users and those of our semiotic
inspection of YahooGroups, SmartGroups and MSN Groups. We show how the systems
may frustrate the group's expectations and limit their interaction online.
Reflecting on the causes and consequences of compulsory institutionalization,
we conclude that the social-technical gap in group technologies may not be
possible to bridge completely, and that the fulcrum of scientific research in
this area may include some new aspects. Keywords: Groupware; Online communities; The social-technical gap; Semiotic
engineering; Culture; Latin American societies | |||
| Study and analysis of workspace awareness in CDebate: a groupware application for collaborative debates | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 657-681 | |
| Manuel Romero-Salcedo; Cesar A. Osuna-Gomez; Leonid Sheremetov; Luis Villa; Carlos Morales; Luis Rocha; Manuel Chi | |||
| In this paper, we study the workspace awareness in a groupware application
allowing the development of an information task through collaborative debates.
The application, called CDebate, is based on the APRI
(Action-Perception-Reflection-Intention) model, which establishes a cognitive
and motor states organization that occurs when humans are interacting with one
another in a constructivist and collaborative learning situation. In CDebate,
the interactions among students occur through a graphical language that
reflects the mental operations appropriate for a debate. As an evaluation
method, a conceptual framework, which provides a set of elements that give
information about the up-to-the-moment knowledge about participants' location
and actions, is used. The results of this study allow us to confirm that group
awareness information, supported through a graphical language and a window
showing the participants' presence (informal awareness), were sufficient for
success in the collaborative learning situation. This experience could be
useful for interface designers of groupware applications, in particular for
collaborative debate interfaces. Keywords: CSCL; Group awareness; Workspace awareness; Groupware interface;
Collaborative debate; APRI | |||
| Doing to Be: Multiple Routes to Affective Interaction | | BIB | Full-Text | 683-691 | |
| Gilbert Cockton | |||
| The bug in the salad: the uses of emotions in computer interfaces | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 693-696 | |
| Keith Oatley | |||
| The investigation of emotional aspects of users' interactions with systems
is an important matter for human-computer interaction. The finding that users
are prepared to work longer on systems that offer some acknowledgement of the
frustration that occurs in using systems is an interesting pointer. The next
step beyond acknowledgement will be for systems to join with users in working
to repair the bugs in interaction that have been so frustrating. Keywords: Emotion; Frustration; Social support; Debugging; Interaction; Repair | |||
| From doing to being: getting closer to the user experience | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 697-705 | |
| Gillian M. Wilson; M. Angela Sasse | |||
| The research by Scheirer et al. (2002) is pivotal in promoting the use of
psychophysiological measures in HCI. We argue that rather than inferring users'
emotional states from the data, which is difficult to do reliably, the signals
can be used as an indicator of user cost by monitoring changes in users'
physiological responses. We applied this approach by monitoring Skin
Conductance, Heart Rate and Blood Volume Pulse (as well as task performance and
user satisfaction) to investigate the impact of media quality degradations on
users. Five studies were conducted utilising this approach. Results show that
psychophysiological data show responses to audio and video degradations: users
respond to specific degradations with increased levels of arousal. In addition,
psychophysiological responses do not always correlate with each other and
subjective and physiological measures do not always concur, which means that
psychophysiological data may detect responses that users are either not aware
of or cannot recall at post-session subjective assessment. We thus conclude
that psychophysiological measures have a valuable role to play in media quality
evaluation. Keywords: Computing; Psychophysiology; Facial expression | |||
| Affective computing: problems, reactions and intentions | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 707-713 | |
| R. D. Ward; P. H. Marsden | |||
| Although we share the optimistic vision of affective computing presented in
Interacting with Computers 14(2), we question the extent to which affective
sensing can support the kinds of applications proposed in the literature. These
applications depend upon the detection of affective reactions to HCI situations
and events, but it has yet to be shown that such reactions can reliably be
detected in subtle and natural situations. We also point out that, in
human-human interaction, intentional commmunicative affect is both easier to
recognise and more important than reactive affect. We suggest exploration of
this idea may lead to more fruitful applications of affective computing. Keywords: Computing; Psychophysiology; Facial expression | |||
| Affective computing in the era of contemporary neurophysiology and health informatics | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 715-721 | |
| Panagiotis D. Bamidis; Christos Papadelis; Chrysoula Kourtidou-Papadeli; Costas Pappas; Ana B. Vivas | |||
| This commentary is a response to Interacting with Computers (Vol 14)
[Interacting Comput. 14 (2002) 119], [Interacting with Comput. 14 (2002) 141],
[Interacting Comput. 14 (2002) 93]. Its aim is to discuss the role that
neurophysiological measurements, such as EEG and MEG, may play in affective
computing. The discussion is drawn upon the light of current experience and
practice, as well as, advances envisaged in the fields of health informatics,
telecommunications and biomedical engineering. It is explained why HCI research
into interface evaluation and affective computing may be greatly enhanced by
exploiting the underlying information of neurophysiological recordings. Keywords: Neurophysiology; Magnetoencephalography (MEG); Electroencephalography (EEG);
Neuroimaging; Brain; Physiological measures; Microdevices; E-health | |||
| Adventurers versus nit-pickers on affective computing | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 723-728 | |
| Gitte Lindgaard | |||
| In reviewing the three articles presented by the MIT group on some aspects
of affective computing I voice some of my concerns with the view that we can
and should design computers to respond to our changing moods and whims, and my
strong skepticism towards claims that such responsiveness should make us
happier human beings in the long run. I first explain and justify my position,
then briefly address the notion of affect, and finally, present some thoughts
on trust. Keywords: Affect; Emotion; Sentiment; Anthropomorphism; Trust | |||
| Designing to persuade: the use of emotion in networked media | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 729-738 | |
| Ann Light | |||
| This commentary looks first at the paradigm shift taking place in analysis
of people's interactions with digital products and services -- from evaluating
performance to researching experience -- in line with trends towards the
connectivity, mobility and domestication of devices. It then asks what impact
this shift has on our understanding of emotion and technology use; exploring
the rise of "generative" situations, in particular when the producer of a
networked service has different intentions from the user's and the stimulation
of affect may be considered desirable. The author's work analysing the
emotional impact of the design of networked media is outlined. The paper
concludes with some thoughts on the ethics of manipulation. Keywords: Networked media; Intention; Experience; Persuasion; Emotion; Website; Ethics | |||
| Pressing the right buttons: taking the viewer there | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 739-749 | |
| Cath Dillon; Jonathan Freeman; Edmund Keogh | |||
| Theory and research presented in a special issue of Interacting with
Computers (Vol. 14) on affective-computing is concerned with the way in which
computer interfaces could be better designed to meet emotional needs. This
commentary on the special issue suggests that traditional media, such as film
and television, may also meet some emotional needs and further proposes that
the concept of presence (the subjective sense of "being there" in a mediated
environment) has some explanatory power when considering emotional responses to
media. In particular, it is argued that advanced broadcast systems (e.g.
interactive and immersive television) may provide increased opportunities for
affective-computing and experiences of presence in the home. Applications of
research in both fields could be used to improve and extend the use of advanced
broadcast systems and other media in that techniques used to enhance presence
and improve human-computer interactions may be used to address emotional needs
in novel ways using familiar media. Keywords: Presence; Emotion; Affective-computing; Immersive television; Interactive
television; Media schemata | |||
| Tools over solutions? comments on Interacting with Computers special issue on affective computing | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 751-757 | |
| Noam Tractinsky | |||
| The emotional system is highly sensitive to individual, cultural and
contextual differences. This creates difficulties in studying and designing
affect in HCI. It is hard to see how grand visions of affective HCI survive the
harsh complexity and intricacy of human emotions. Perhaps a more realistic
approach to accommodating users' affective needs is to design interactive
technologies that would help users help themselves. Users can stay in full
control, being allowed to personalize and tailor applications in a way that
satisfies, mitigates, or enhances various emotional states or needs. Keywords: Affective computing; Aesthetics; Personalization; Skins | |||
| Multiple paradigms in affective computing | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 759-768 | |
| Michael Muller | |||
| This brief essay considers the three papers of the special issue of
Interacting with Computers by Picard and colleagues, from several perspectives.
First, I question two aspects of the work: the Computers Are Social Actors
(CASA) approach, and the use of psychophysiological measurements of emotion
without a stated theory of emotion. Despite these criticisms, the contributions
of Picard and colleagues are valuable and powerfully challenging. I suggest
three convergent ways to pursue this important research program. Keywords: Affective computing; Frustration; Empathic interface; Theories of emotion;
Psychophysiology of emotion; Computers are social actors (CASA); Spiritual
life; Ethnography; Design explorations | |||
| Individual differences and task-based user interface evaluation: a case study of pending tasks in email | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 769-797 | |
| Jacek Gwizdka; Mark Chignell | |||
| This paper addresses issues raised by the ever-expanding role of email as a
multi-faceted application that combines communication, collaboration, and task
management. Individual differences analysis was used to contrast two email user
interfaces in terms of their demands on users. The results of this analysis
were then interpreted in terms of their implications for designing more
inclusive interfaces that meet the needs of users with widely ranging
abilities.
The specific target of this research is the development of a new type of email message representation that makes pending tasks more visible. We describe a study that compared a new way of representing tasks in an email inbox, with a more standard representation (the Microsoft Outlook inbox). The study consisted of an experiment that examined how people with different levels of three specific cognitive capabilities (flexibility of closure, visual memory, and working memory) perform when using these representations. We then identified combinations of representation and task that are disadvantageous for people with low levels of the measured capabilities. Keywords: Email interfaces; Task management; Individual differences; External
representations; User interface design | |||
| Four approaches to user modelling -- a qualitative research interview study of HCI professionals' practice | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 799-829 | |
| T. Clemmensen | |||
| In this paper, four types of experienced HCI Professionals are interviewed
about their different ways of describing users. By use of the qualitative
research interview technique of thematizing the dialogue as explicit, implicit
and constructive conversations about users, these differences are explored. The
research shows that the traditional usability engineering approach to user
description produce person descriptions that are filled with idiosyncratic
information about the individual in the particular test situation. Less
traditional approaches to user modelling give other kinds of schematic user
typification in terms of the users' roles, users' social events or users'
self-concepts. Despite the obvious fallacies in these approaches, typification
of users appears unproblematic for the experienced HCI professional, because in
practice user types are rich conceptual structures that support professional
user modelling. Accordingly, we suggest that it might not be that important to
discuss why user types exist, but rather to study their application and change
and under which conditions they become user stereotypes, and how we may
counteract the negative effects of user stereotypes on design. Keywords: User modelling; Qualitative research interview; HCI professional; Stereotype | |||
| Heuristic evaluation of virtual reality applications | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 831-849 | |
| Alistair Sutcliffe; Brian Gault | |||
| This paper presents a heuristic method for evaluating virtual environment
(VE) user interfaces. The method is based on Nielsen's [Usability Inspection
Methods, 1994] usability heuristics, extended by VE-specific principles
proposed by Sutcliffe and Kaur [Behaviour and Information Technology 19 (2000)
415-426]. Twelve heuristics are presented which address usability and presence
issues. An inspection-based evaluation method is described and illustrated with
three usability case study assessments, the last of which rates the
applicability and validity of the heuristics by several evaluators. Use of the
method uncovered several usability problems and trapped the most serious
errors. Finally, VE applications integrating measures of usability and presence
are discussed. Keywords: CAVE; Virtual environment; Heuristic evaluation; Usability | |||
| The emergence of physiological computing | | BIB | Full-Text | 851-855 | |
| Winslow Burleson | |||
| A research agenda for physiological computing | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 857-878 | |
| Jennifer Allanson; Stephen H. Fairclough | |||
| Physiological computing involves the direct interfacing of human physiology
and computer technology, i.e. brain-computer interaction (BCI). The goal of
physiological computing is to transform bioelectrical signals from the human
nervous system into real-time computer input in order to enhance and enrich the
interactive experience. Physiological computing has tremendous potential for
interactive innovation but research activities are often disparate and uneven,
and fail to reflect the multidisciplinary nature of the topic. This paper will
provide a primer on detectable human physiology as an input source, a summary
of relevant research and a research agenda to aid the future development of
interactive systems that utilise physiological information. Keywords: Physiological computing; Biofeedback; Brain-computer interaction (BCI);
Affective computing | |||
| An analysis of facial movement tracking in ordinary human-computer interaction | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 879-896 | |
| Robert Ward | |||
| Automatic tracking of facial movement is potentially important as a
non-invasive source of physiological data in Affective Computing applications.
Facial movement tracking software is becoming commercially available and
affordable. This paper explores the association between facial and
physiological responses to computer-based events, and the viability of facial
movement tracking in detecting and distinguishing qualitative differences in
users' facial movements under normal conditions of computer use.
Fifteen participants took a web-based quiz. The quiz contained two relatively ordinary HCI events as stimuli: an alert intended to evoke surprise, and questions with high affective content intended to evoke amusement. From previous findings, the alert was expected to be the stronger of the two stimuli. Participants' physiological arousal was recorded and their faces videoed. The videos for the periods around each event were analysed by commercially available facial movement tracking software. Human judges considered participants' faces to have responded to both stimuli, but more to the stronger of the two stimuli. Facial response did not always concur with physiological arousal. The tracker detected reactions to the stronger stimulus but had mixed success with the weaker stimulus. The tracker also generated different data profiles for two different facial expressions. These findings support the supposition that users' facial expressions can and do respond to ordinary computer-based events, and indicate that facial movement tracking is becoming a viable technique, and is available to non-computer vision specialists. Keywords: Facial expression; Affective computing; Usability; Facial modelling;
Anthropomorphic interfaces | |||
| On physiological computing with an application in interactive art | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 897-915 | |
| Ernest Edmonds; Dave Everitt; Michael Macaulay; Greg Turner | |||
| The paper presents a discussion on the logic of the necessity for
investigation into the area of physiological computing and reviews empirical
work by some of the authors. In particular, the paper discusses the reliability
of information that can be inferred from certain biological sensor data and
ways in which positive benefits can be ensured or measured relating to the use
of the feedback that can result from its use. One important and emerging
application area for physiological feedback in interactive computing is in
interactive art systems. In some respects, this application has been making
strong progress for the particular reason that the interactive experience
itself, rather than more abstract and problematic information handling, is at
the core. Another interesting aspect of the applications in art is that they
provide informal experimental investigations into these new forms of
human-computer interaction, and artists are already devising new applications
and interfaces for physiological information. The paper describes an art work
employing physiological feedback, including a discussion of how it was built
and of the participating audience reactions when exhibited. Keywords: Interactive art; Physiological computing; Human-computer interaction | |||
| A platform for wearable physiological computing | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 917-937 | |
| Astro Teller | |||
| As computers emerge, from the desktop and palm top, into everyday life, and
on to our bodies there are opportunities to aggregate and present data and to
realize and envision applications that have never before been possible.
Tracking the physiological state of individuals, at resolutions measured in
thousandths of a second instead of in visits per year, now makes it possible to
ascertain caloric intake and expenditure, patterns of sleep, contextual
activities such as working-out and driving, even parameters of mental state and
health. An award wining multi-channel wearable physiological sensor has enabled
the collection of data in natural settings from thousands of subjects engaged
in diverse activities. The resulting corpus of physiological data from 4 years
of aggregation has yielded over 30 million minutes of physiological data. Data
modeling efforts are resulting in applications that enable real-time
presentation of meaningful and actionable information to users and their
designated collaborators (physicians, family members, counselors, coaches,
etc.) The SenseWear system, its design and a summery of the experimental
results and ongoing research initiatives will be presented. This discussion
will show how the design and research efforts of ubiquitous, pervasive, and
collaborative computing are converging to manifest the future of computing as:
wearable, personal, and sympathetic. Keywords: Wearable; Platform; SenseWear system | |||
| Desktop virtual environments: a study of navigation and age | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 939-956 | |
| H. Sayers | |||
| Navigation in virtual environments on desktop systems is known to be
problematic. Research into the usability of the tools presented on
two-dimensional interfaces indicates that, for even relatively simple tasks,
users experience some degree of frustration. As the user community broadens
with an increasing range of applications and services making use of
three-dimensional presentation, the usability of these interfaces becomes ever
more important. In this paper, we describe the results of an experiment
performed to evaluate the usability of a number of visual navigation tools and
the effect for two age groups (18-45 and 46+). Results indicate that, for both
age groups, the visual presentation of navigational aids improves navigation
performance in terms of both time taken to complete tasks, and user
satisfaction with the system. In all experimental conditions younger
participants achieved better performance times, although the gap between the
groups decreased when a choice of navigation aids was presented. Keywords: Desktop virtual environments; Navigation; Age; Usability | |||
| Investigating actability dimensions: a language/action perspective on criteria for information systems evaluation | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 957-988 | |
| Par J. Agerfalk | |||
| From a language/action perspective (LAP), information systems are conceived
as tools for social action and communication. To date, LAP-based approaches
have tended towards the abstract, focusing primarily on business modelling and
different business interaction patterns. In this paper, nine dimensions of
information systems from a LAP point of view are developed. The dimensions are
founded on the notion that information systems used within a business context
have the ability to act and to support human action -- they possess actability.
The dimensions bring concrete design suggestions to systems development and
evaluation by emphasizing aspects such as anonymization of information origin,
appropriate visual presentation based on required action support, and the
design of systems in relation to communication patterns and business
responsibilities. Examples from a case study are discussed to show the
applicability of the actability dimensions. The relationship between the
suggested actability dimensions and commonly referred principles for assessing
usability is elaborated. Keywords: Actability; Usability; Social action; Design; Evaluation; Heuristics; Case
study | |||
| An experimental study on the role of software synthesized 3D sound in augmented reality environments | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 989-1016 | |
| Zhiying Zhou; Adrian David Cheok; Xubo Yang; Yan Qiu | |||
| Investigation of augmented reality (AR) environments has become a popular
research topic for engineers, computer and cognitive scientists. Although
application oriented studies focused on audio AR environments have been
published, little work has been done to vigorously study and evaluate the
important research questions of the effectiveness of 3D sound in the AR
context, and to what extent the addition of 3D sound would contribute to the AR
experience.
Thus, we have developed two AR environments and performed vigorous experiments with human subjects to study the effects of 3D sound in the AR context. The study concerns two scenarios. In the first scenario, one participant must use vision only and vision with 3D sound to judge the relative depth of augmented virtual objects. In the second scenario, two participants must co-operate to perform a joint task in a game-based AR environment. Hence, the goals of this study are (1) to access the impact of 3D sound on depth perception in a single-camera AR environment, (2) to study the impact of 3D sound on task performance and the feeling of "human presence and collaboration", (3) to better understand the role of 3D sound in human-computer and human-human interactions, (4) to investigate if gender can affect the impact of 3D sound in AR environments. The outcomes of this research can have a useful impact on the development of audio AR systems which provide more immersive, realistic and entertaining experiences by introducing 3D sound. Our results suggest that 3D sound in AR environment significantly improves the accuracy of depth judgment and improves task performance. Our results also suggest that 3D sound contributes significantly to the feeling of "human presence and collaboration" and helps the subjects to "identify spatial objects". Keywords: 3D sound; Augmented reality; Depth perception; Localization of sound; Task
performance; Collaboration; User studies | |||
| My password is here! An investigation into visuo-spatial authentication mechanisms | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1017-1041 | |
| Karen Renaud; Antonella De Angeli | |||
| Passwords are the almost universal authentication mechanism, even though
they are basically flawed and cause problems for users due to poor
memorability. Graphical methods of authentication have recently excited some
interest but little is known about their actual efficacy. There are basically
two types of graphical authentication mechanisms: recognition-based and
location-based -- also called visuo-spatial mechanisms. Whereas some kinds of
recognition-based graphical authentication mechanisms have been evaluated by
various researchers, there is still a need to investigate location-based
graphical authentication mechanisms in a more rigorous fashion to determine
whether they could be a viable alternative to traditional passwords for web
usage. This paper discusses graphical authentication mechanisms in general and
reports on the evaluation of one particular visuo-spatial mechanism, aimed at
augmenting the password paradigm by providing a way to record passwords
securely. Results and findings are presented, and conclusions drawn, some of
which can also be applied to other types of visuo-spatial mechanisms. We also
propose a set of metrics which can be used to measure the quality of web
authentication mechanisms and apply these to a range of existing authentication
mechanisms. Keywords: User authentication; Graphical mechanisms; Visuo-spatial memory; Evaluation;
Web authentication; Metrics | |||
| An experimental study on the role of 3D sound in augmented reality environment | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1043-1068 | |
| Zhiying Zhou; Adrian David Cheok; Xubo Yang; Yan Qiu | |||
| Investigation of augmented reality (AR) environments has become a popular
research topic for engineers, computer and cognitive scientists. Although
application oriented studies focused on audio AR environments have been
published, little work has been done to vigorously study and evaluate the
important research questions of the effectiveness of three-dimensional (3D)
sound in the AR context, and to what extent the addition of 3D sound would
contribute to the AR experience.
Thus, we have developed two AR environments and performed vigorous experiments with human subjects to study the effects of 3D sound in the AR context. The study concerns two scenarios. In the first scenario, one participant must use vision only and vision with 3D sound to judge the relative depth of augmented virtual objects. In the second scenario, two participants must cooperate to perform a joint task in a game-based AR environment. Hence, the goals of this study are (1) to access the impact of 3D sound on depth perception in a single-camera AR environment, (2) to study the impact of 3D sound on task performance and the feeling of "human presence and collaboration", (3) to better understand the role of 3D sound in human-computer and human-human interactions, (4) to investigate if gender can affect the impact of 3D sound in AR environments. The outcomes of this research can have a useful impact on the development of audio AR systems, which provide more immersive, realistic and entertaining experiences by introducing 3D sound. Our results suggest that 3D sound in AR environment significantly improves the accuracy of depth judgment and improves task performance. Our results also suggest that 3D sound contributes significantly to the feeling of human presence and collaboration and helps the subjects to "identify spatial objects". Keywords: 3D sound; Augmented reality; User study | |||
| Audio channel constraints in video-mediated communication | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1069-1094 | |
| Alison Sanford; Anne H. Anderson; Jim Mullin | |||
| This study investigated the effects of two types of audio channels upon the
effectiveness of task-based interactions in a video-mediated context (VMC).
Forty undergraduates completed a collaborative task (The Map Task) using either
a full or half-duplex audio channel. Their performance was compared to
face-to-face interactions, taken from the Human Communication Research Centre
corpus of Map Task Dialogues. Effects of varying the audio channel were
explored by comparing task performance, patterns of speech, and establishment
of mutual understanding. Users of the full-duplex VMC made insufficient
allowance for the VMC context; they completed the task less accurately than
face-to-face participants, and interrupted each other more frequently than
other participants. Participants in the half-duplex VMC however performed as
well as face-to-face participants. They made sensible adaptations to the
constraints imposed by the half-duplex VMC context, producing longer dialogues,
with more explicit turn-taking management, and taking greater care in
establishing mutual knowledge. Keywords: Video-mediated communication; Audio channel configuration; Task performance;
Patterns of speech; Discourse analysis; Adaptations | |||
| Evaluating the user-centredness of development organisations: conclusions and implications from empirical usability capability maturity assessments | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1095-1132 | |
| Timo Jokela | |||
| Improving the position and effectiveness of user-centred design, UCD, in
software and product development is a challenge in many companies. One step
towards improvements is to carry out a usability capability maturity, UCM,
assessment to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a development
organisation in user-centred design. This article reports the lessons learnt
from 11 empirical UCM assessments of R&D groups of Nokia, a software house, an
SME, and a research institute in Finland. The first assessments were carried
out using a standard process assessment model (a pre-version of ISO 18529); the
last assessments were carried out using a new KESSU model that evolved during
the research. It was found that the assessment model, its interpretation, and
the viewpoints of the assessment team have a critical role in the success of
assessments. In addition, it was found that the customers have different
purposes for assessments and those purposes have an effect on how one should
conduct the assessment -- or whether to conduct it at all. Keywords: User-centred design; Human-centred design; Process assessment; Usability
maturity; Usability capability | |||
| Collaborating around vertical and horizontal large interactive displays: which way is best? | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1133-1152 | |
| Yvonne Rogers; Sian Lindley | |||
| Large interactive displays are increasingly being placed in work and public
settings. An assumption is that the shared surface they provide can facilitate
collaboration among co-located groups. An exploratory study was carried out to
investigate this claim, and, in particular, to examine the effects of the
physical orientation of a display on group working. Two conditions were
compared: vertical versus horizontal. A number of differences were found. In
the horizontal condition group members switched more between roles, explored
more ideas and had a greater awareness of what each other was doing. In the
vertical condition groups found it more difficult to collaborate around the
display. A follow-up study explored how participants, who had previous
experience of using both displays, determined how to work together when
provided with both kinds of display. The groups exhibited a more efficient and
coordinated way of working but less collaboration in terms of the sharing and
discussion of ideas. Keywords: Display technology; Collaborative co-located working; Large interactive
surfaces | |||
| Employing think-aloud protocols and constructive interaction to test the usability of online library catalogues: a methodological comparison | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1153-1170 | |
| M.J. Van den Haak; M.D.T de Jong; P.J. Schellens | |||
| This paper describes a comparative study of three usability test approaches:
concurrent think-aloud protocols, retrospective think-aloud protocols, and
constructive interaction. These three methods were compared by means of an
evaluation of an online library catalogue, which involved four points of
comparison: number and type of usability problems detected; relevance of the
problems detected; overall task performance; and participant experiences. The
results of the study showed that there were only few significant differences
between the usability test approaches, mainly with respect to manner of problem
detecting, task performance and participant experience. For the most part, the
usability methods proved very much comparable, revealing similar numbers and
types of problems that were equally relevant. Taking some practical aspects
into account, a case can be made for preferring the concurrent think-aloud
protocols over the other two methods. Keywords: Usability testing; Concurrent think-aloud protocols; Retrospective
think-aloud protocols; Constructive interaction; Co-discovery; Validity | |||
| Immediate usability: a case study of public access design for a community photo library | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1171-1193 | |
| Bill Kules; Hyunmo Kang; Catherine Plaisant; Anne Rose; Ben Shneiderman | |||
| This paper describes a novel instantiation of a digital photo library in a
public access system. It demonstrates how designers can utilize characteristics
of a target user community (social constraints, trust, and a lack of anonymity)
to provide capabilities, such as unrestricted annotation and uploading of
photos, which would be impractical in other types of public access systems. It
also presents a compact set of design principles and guidelines for ensuring
the immediate usability of public access information systems. These principles
and guidelines were derived from our experience developing PhotoFinder Kiosk, a
community photo library. Attendees of a major HCI conference (CHI 2001
Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems) successfully used the tool to
browse and annotate collections of photographs spanning 20 years of HCI-related
conferences, producing a richly annotated photo history of the field of
human-computer interaction. Observations and usage log data were used to
evaluate the tool and develop the guidelines. They provide specific guidance
for practitioners, as well as a useful framework for additional research in
public access interfaces. Keywords: Community photo library; Photo collection; Group annotation; Public access
system; Immediate usability; Direct annotation; Direct manipulation;
Drag-and-drop; Zero-trial learning; Walk-up-and-use; Casual use | |||
| Effective attention allocation behavior and its measurement: a preliminary study | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1195-1210 | |
| Y. Lin; W.J. Zhang; R.J. Koubek | |||
| In general, evaluation of human-machine interface design remains a
challenging task. Specifically, there remains a lack of method for tracking
effective human operator's attention. This paper presents a study aimed at
devising such a method. This method is based on a combination of operators' eye
movement and hand movement behaviors. The eye movement reflects the operators'
cognitive process and attention allocation, while the hand movement reflects
the operators' physical action, which is the result of a cognitive process.
Effectiveness of that piece of cognition (eye movement) can therefore be
evaluated based on the result of an action (hand movement). The said measure,
which may be called the hand-eye measure, is examined for its sensitivity to a
good or poor operation behavior and patterns that are further correlated to the
operator's behavior and performance. At present, the patterns across the whole
operation period are explored. A reference system is employed to validate the
hand-eye measure. Keywords: Human-machine interface evaluation; Human-computer interaction; Attention
allocation; Measurement; Eye movement; Hand movement | |||