CS22310 - USER CENTRED DESIGN AND HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION

Module Identifier

CS22310

Module Title

USER CENTRED DESIGN AND HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION

Academic Year

2006/2007

Co-ordinator

Professor Christopher J Price

Semester

Semester 2

Other staff

Dr Mark J Neal, Dr Frederick W Long

Pre-Requisite

CS22120 or CS22420.

Course delivery

Lecture

20 Hours.

Seminars / Tutorials

Up to 12 x 1hr

Assessment

Assessment Type	Assessment Length/Details	Proportion
Semester Exam	1.5 Hours	50%
Semester Assessment	User Centred Design of Computer System. Approx 25 hours	50%
Supplementary Exam	1.5 Hours Will take the same form, under the terms of the Department's policy.

Further details

http://www.aber.ac.uk/compsci/ModuleInfo/CS22310

Learning outcomes

This module will enable the student to incorporate principles of user centred design into the development of applications built on modern windowing systems.

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

design and implement effective user interfaces, making appropriate use of development techniques.
apply task and user modelling techniques to the design and evaluation of an interactive system.
appreciate the limitations of human capacities, and identify how they affect design choices.

Aims

This course deals with the issue of how systems should be built in order to make them understandable by, and accessible to, users. Principles of good interface design are introduced and applied to the issue of human computer interaction. The course also considers methods and tools for achieving good computer interface design.

Content

1. Fundamental principles of good design - 3 Lectures

Functionality. Usability. Socio-technical system interaction. Task and dialogue levels.

2. Models for Human Computer Interaction - 3 Lectures

Mental models. Taskflow models. Dialogue interaction models. Interface metaphors.

3. Methods for Human Computer Interaction - 4 Lectures

Requirements specification. User interface design. Evaluation techniques. Standards for HCI and requirements.

4. Guidelines for screen interfaces - 4 Lectures

HCI characteristics, human cognitive abilities, attention, short-term memory, use of colour. Web acessibility issues.

5. Ethical issues - 3 Lectures

Difficult ethical issues. Examples from the Internet. Evaluating ethical issues and developing decision skills for difficult situations.

6. Current and future developments - 2 Lectures

Changing issues in user interface design, and new research developments.

Module Skills

Problem_solving	This is inherent to the topic.
Research skills	The students will need to search for and use relevant technical information while completing practical work.
Communication	Written skills will be needed to complete examination and coursework.
Improving own Learning and Performance	See 2 above .
Team work	No.
Information Technology	The whole module concerns this area.
Application of Number	No.
Personal Development and Career planning	Module looks at quite `new¿ areas of computing ¿ may lead to new options in career choice
Subject Specific Skills	Yes. See module title and content.

Reading Lists

Books
** Recommended Text
Ben Shneiderman (1998) Designing the User Interface 3rd Ed.. Addison Wesley 0201694972
** Consult For Futher Information
Donald A. Norman (1988) The Psychology of Everyday Things Harper Collins 0465067093
Jenny Preece (ed) (1992) A Guide to Usability: Human Factors in Computing Addison-Wesley 020162768X
William M. Newman and Michael G. Lamming (1995) Interactive System Design Addison Wesley 0201631628

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 5