UNIT 13 – HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION
UNIT OUTCOME:
1. Know about the impact of HCI on society, economy and culture
2. Understand the fundamental principles of interface design
3. Be able to design and produce simple interactive computer input and output
based on HCI principles
4. Be able to compare and contrast, using HCI principles, the effectiveness of
different designs of input and output.
You run an IT company called ‘Starts Ltd’ that creates customised applications for businesses. Main part of ‘Starts Ltd’ is specialising in interface designs for software applications. You have recently recruited a junior staff within the company. In order for the new recruit to understand the importance of interface design, you have asked him to research and write a report. The report details are as follows:
TASK A:
1) As an IT consultant you are looking into the recent developments within HCI. The junior staff is to write a report describing one impact of HCI in recent years on each of society, economy and culture. (P1)
2) Furthermore explain how modern advances in HCI design, have contributed to the impact of computers on society, economy and culture. (M1)
3) Additionally evaluate the HCI developments over recent years, relating them to the impact on society, economy and culture, and predicting one potential future development and what impact that may have. (D1)
TASK B:
Part of the training program you give to your junior staff is to educate them about the fundamentals of HCI.
4) Create a report that will mention two fundamental principles of HCI (P2)
TASK C:
A successfully running clothes shop called CWC that specialises in selling T-Shirts, has decided to widen their market share by investing in interactive kiosks within their store. These kiosks will provide information about their products to their customers where they can also order or buy the product as well.
Furthermore they would like to expand their customer base by targeting visually impaired people of colour blindness.
CWC has approached you to help them build the interface part of the software. CWC has drafted you on paper (as below) an idea of how they would like their program to be displayed.
Through investigation you have found out that the ‘Interactive Kiosks’ have the following input devices:
· Keyboard
· Mouse
· Touch screen monitor
Also you have found that the interactive kiosks have the following output devices:
· Speakers
· Monitor
· Printer
5) Referring to the above picture, and the devices that you have found whilst investigating create a design or plan out a design of how you would implement a interface screen for the program. The design should clearly label how the input and output devices will be used within the proposed interface. (P3,P4)
They would now like to know how visually impaired people of colour blindness can use the system as well. CWC has approached you to give them advice and implement a system interface so that the visually impaired people can also use the kiosks. Research on the interface factors that will help them view or use the interface. Again facilitate your design on how it would cater visually impaired people of colour blindness (P3,P4,M2)
TASK D:
6) After the design process, create 3 input and 3 output HCI that are suitable for the general public as well as catering for the visually impaired people (Colour Blindness). Construct the interface design using Visual Studio (C++ or VB). (P3, P4)
7) Briefly describe how each of the input and output HCI you have created meet the requirements that you have come with. (P5)
TASK E:
8) From your design that you create for the specialist needs indicate how you have met some of the fundamental principles of HCI and how the needs of the colour blinded people are met. Answer this question using a tabular form. (M2)
9) Finally describe how effectiveness of HCI may be measured. Apply these types of measurement to the design that you created. (M3)
10) Compare your design with any similar commercial product that is suitable for visually impaired people of colour blindness. Indicate the good and less good features of both and see how improvements can be made. (D2)