DEFINITION OF HCI, REASONS OF NON-BRIGHT ASPECTS, SOFTWARE APARTHEID

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Human Computer Interaction (CS408)

Lecture

Lecture 2. Introduction

Human-

Computer Interaction Part II

Learning Goals

As the aim of this lecture is to introduce you the study of Human Computer

Interaction, so that after studying this you will be able to:

Describe the significance of HCI, particularly adverse impact of computer

technology on humans and reasons for these adverse effects

Describe the nature of humans and computers

Understand the Paradox of the computing phenomena

Differentiate between focus of SE and HCI

2.1 Definition of HCI

"Human-Computer Interaction is a discipline concerned with the design, evaluation

and implementation of interactive computing systems for human use and with the

study of major phenomena surrounding them"

-ACM/IEEE

2.2 Reasons of non-bright Aspects

Airplane + Computer

In last lecture we were discussing the incident of airplane. Today we will look at the

reason of such a fatal incident.

The National Transportation Safety Board investigated, and ---as usual---declared the

problem human error. The navigational aid the pilots were following was valid but not

Human Computer Interaction (CS408)

for the landing procedure at Cali. In the literal definition of the phrase, this was

indeed human error, because the pilot selected the wrong fix. However, in the larger

picture, it was not the pilot's fault at all.

The front panel of the airplane's navigation computer showed the currently selected

navigation fix and a course deviation indicator. When the plane is on course, the

needle is centered, but the needle gives no indication whatsoever about the

correctness of the selected radio beacon. The gauge looks pretty much the same just

before landing as it does just before crashing. The computer told the pilot he was

tracking precisely to the beacon he had selected. Unfortunately, it neglected to tell

him the beacon the selected was a fatal choice.

The flight computer on Flight 965 could easily have told the pilots that ROMEO was

not an appropriate fix for their approach to Cali. Even a simple hint that it was

"unusual" or "unfamiliar" could have saved the airplane. Instead, it seemed as though

the computer was utterly unconcerned with the actual flight and its passengers. It

cared only about its own internal computations

Joke in Computer Industry

There is a widely told joke in the computer industry that goes like this: A man is

flying in a small airplane and is lost in the clouds. He descends until he spots an office

building and yells to a man in an open window, "Where am I?" The man replies,

"You are in an airplane about 100 feet above the ground." The pilot immediately

turns to the proper course, spots the airport and lands. His astonished passenger asks

how the pilot figured out which way to go. The pilot replies, "The answer the man

gave me was completely correct and factual, yet it was no help whatsoever, so I knew

immediately he was a software engineer who worked for Microsoft and I know where

Microsoft's building is in relation to the airport."

When seen in the light of the tragedy of Flight 965, the humor of the joke is macabre,

yet professionals in the digital world tell it gleefully and frequently because it

highlights a fundamental truth about computers:

They may tell us facts but they don't inform us.

They may guide us with precision but they don't guide us where we want to go. The

flight computer on Flight 965 could easily have told the pilots that ROMEO was not

an appropriate fix for their approach to Cali. Even a simple hint that it was "unusual"

or "unfamiliar" could have saved the airplane. Instead, it seemed as though the

computer was utterly unconcerned with the actual flight and its passengers. It cared

only about its own internal computations

Communication can be precise and exacting while still being tragically wrong. This

happens all too frequently when we communicate with computers, and computers are

invading every aspect of our modern lives. From the planes we fly to just about every

consumer product and service, computers are ubiquitous, and so is their

characteristically poor way of communicating and behaving.[1]

Human Computer Interaction (CS408)

I-Drive Car Device

It takes automotive computer power to a whole new level. Computer systems provide

the car with BMW's most powerful engine, a silky smooth ride and what is supposed

to be the simplest in-dash control system available. But what is created for the sake of

simplicity can often time creates the most confusion.

Many controls are operated with a single large, multifunction knob located in the

console between the front seats. The control consists of a combination rotary and push

button for selecting functions. Confirmation of the selected mode is displayed on a

dash-mounted screen.

Users can change functions -- from communications to climate control, navigation or

entertainment -- by pushing the console knob forward or back, or side-to-side. By

twisting the knob, they can scroll through menus. And by clicking a button located in

the middle of the knob, they can select functions.

"iDrive" takes into account the fact that comfort, communication and driver assistance

functions are only rarely adjusted while driving. The operating unit in the center

console gives the driver direct access to many other driving functions and information

and communication options. Several hundred functions can be controlled with this

device.

A computer-type monitor is positioned directly within the driver's line of vision to the

road ahead. The large monitor in the center of the dashboard displays all the

information the driver needs, apart from the speedometer and tachometer, which are

conventional analog instruments.

The driver slides the dial to choose between multiple control menus displayed on an in-dash

LCD screen. The driver rotates the dial to move through lists and pushes the dial axially to

select a list item.

After reading that I didn't feel like I had any sort of idea what 'axially' meant, but I

suppose this video helps. What concerns me about this is the interaction with this little

device requires the driver, hurtling down the road, to look at a screen. They say there

is force feedback that indicates the menu, but that's only half the equation, because

there are things in the menus. So, I'm guessing the driver needs to memorize the

menus, which are sure to be short, so think about the mental modeling here.

To really keep your eyes on the road, you have to be able to do everything by feel and

pattern. Is this easier than hot-cold air sliders, vent selection buttons and radio dials?

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It takes 15 minutes to change a Radio Channel. The fundamental flaw: you absolutely

have to take your eyes off the road to change settings. Result is constant Calls to Help

Desk

Feature Shock

Every digital device has more features than its manual counterpart, but manual

devices easier to use. Hi-tech companies add more features to improve product.

Product becomes complicated

Bad process can't improve product

Computer + Bank

A computer! Whenever I withdraw cash from an automatic teller machine (ATM), I

encounter the same sullen and difficult behavior so universal with computers. If I

make the slightest mistake, it rejects the entire transaction and kicks me out of the

process. I have to pull my card out, reinsert it, reenter my PIN code, and then re-assert

my request. Typically, it wasn't my mistake, either, but the ATM computer finesses

me into a misstep. It always asks me whether I want to withdraw money from my

checking, saving, or money market account, even though I have only checking

account. Subsequently, I always forget which type it is, and the question confuses me.

About once a month I inadvertently select "savings", and the infernal machine

summarily boots me out of the entire transaction to start over the beginning. To reject

"savings", the machine has to know that I don't have a saving account, yet it still

offers it to me as a choice. The only difference between me selecting "saving" and the

pilot of Flight 965 selecting "ROMEO" is the magnitude of the penalty.

The ATM has rules that must be followed, and I am quite willing to follow them, but

it is unreasonably computer-like to fail to inform me of them, giving me contradictory

indications, and then summarily punish me for innocently transgressing them. This

behavior---so typical of computers---is not intrinsic to them. Actually nothing is

intrinsic to computers: they merely act on behalf of their software, the program. And

programs are as malleable as human speech. A person can speak rudely of politely,

helpfully or sullenly. It is as simple for a computer to behave with respect and

courtesy as it is for a human to speak that way. All it takes is for someone to describe

how. Unfortunately, programmers aren't very good at teaching that to computers.

In order to solve some of these problems, here comes the relatively new and emerging

field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI).[1]

2.3 Human verses Computer

Human species

Human beings are the most interesting and fascinating specie on planet. They are the

most complex living being on the earth. It has very much diversity in its nature. It is

intelligent in its deeds. Human beings think and decide according to their own will.

Yes, they are free in nature. They like freedom. They think on a problem dynamically

and they can find many solutions that may not exist before. They can invent. They are

not only rational but they also have emotions. They also think emotionally. They act

Human Computer Interaction (CS408)

emotionally. And fortunately or unfortunately they make mistakes. They make

mistakes which some time become fatal for them and some time they become blessing

for them.

Computer species

On contrast, computers are the invention of human being. They are also complex but

they are also pretty dumb. It can also think but it can't think on its own will, it thinks

how it has been directed to think. No doubt its speed is marvelous. It does not tire. It

is emotionless. It has no feelings, no desires. It works how it has been commanded to

work. And they do not make mistakes.

Before penetration of computers in our daily life, human beings were performing their

tasks at their on responsibility. In a business domain human beings were dealing and

interacting with each other's. For example a store manager was dealing with all the

workers performing their different duties in the store. Some one was registering the

new arrivals of products, some one was numbering the products and many more...and

store manager has to interact with all these human beings. If some one was a

salesperson, he used to interact with different clients and used to deal with them

according to their mood and desire. He could judge their mood with their tone, their

attitude and with their body language. He could provide answers relevant to their

questions.

But now in this age of information technology we are expecting computers to mimic

human behavior e.g. ECommerce systems, now there is no need for a salesperson.

Web sites are behaving as a salesperson or as a shopping mal. That is now; a dumb,

unintelligent and inanimate object will perform the complex task which was

performed by some human being.

2.4 Software Apartheid

Apartheid

Racial segregation; specifically: a policy of segregation and political and economic

discrimination against non-European groups in the Republic of South Africa.

[Definition of apartheid]

Software Apartheid

Institutionalizing obnoxious behavior and obscure interactions of software-based

products. [Definition of software apartheid]

Programmers generally work in high-tech environments, surrounded by their technical

peers in enclaves like Silicon Valley. Software engineers constantly encounter their

peers when they shop, dine out, take their kids to school and relax, while their contact

with frustrated computer users is limited. What's more, the occasional unfocused

gripes of the users are offset by the frequent enthusiasm of the knowledgeable elite.

We forget how far removed our peers and we are from the frustration and inability of

the rest of the country (not to mention the world) to use interactive tools.

Human Computer Interaction (CS408)

We industry insiders toss around the term "computer literacy", assuming that in order

to use computers; people must acquire some fundamental level of training. We see

this as a simple demand that is not hard and is only right and proper. We imagine that

it is not much to ask of users that they grasp the rudiments of how the machines work

in order to enjoy their benefits. But it is too much to ask. Having a computer literate

customer base makes the development process much easier--of their can be no

doubt--but it hampers the growth and success of the industry and of society.

Apologists counter with the argument that you must have training and a license to

drive a car, but they overlook the fact that a mistake with software generally does not.

If cars were not so deadly, people would train themselves to derive the same way they

learn excel.

It has another, more insidious effect. It creates a demarcation line between the haves

and have-nots in society. If you must master a computer in order to succeed in

America's job Market beyond a burger-flipper's carriers, then the difficulty of

mastering interactive systems forces many people into menial jobs rather than

allowing them to matriculate into more productive, respected and better-paying jobs.

Users should not have to acquire computer literacy to use computer for common,

rudimentary task in everyday life. Users should not have to possess a digital

sensitivity to work their VCR, microwave oven, or to get e-mail. What's more, should

not have to acquire computer literacy to use computer for enterprise applications,

where the user is already trained in the application domain. An accountant for

example, who is trained in the general principles of accounting, should not have to

become computer literate to use a computer in her accounting practice. Her domain

knowledge should be enough to see her through.

As our economy shifts more and more onto information bases, we are inadvertently

creating a divided society. The upper class is composed of those who have mastered

the nuances of differentiating between "RAM" and "Hard Disk". The lower class is

that who treat the difference inconsequential. The irony is that the difference really is

inconsequential to any one except a few hard-core engineers. Yet virtually all-

contemporary software forces its users to confront a file system, where your success

fully dependent on knowing the difference between RAM and disk.

Thus the term "computer literacy" becomes a euphemism for social and economic

apartheid. Computer literacy is a key phrase that brutally bifurcates our society.

But about those people who are not inclined to pander to technocrats and who can not

or will not become computer literate? These people, many by choice, but most by

circumstances, are falling behind in the information revolution. Many high-tech

companies, for example, would not even consider for employment any applicant who

does not have an e-mail address. I'm sure that there are many otherwise qualified

candidates out there who cannot get the hired because they are not yet wired. Despite

the claims of the Apologists, using e-mail effectively is difficult and involves a

significant level of computer literacy. Therefore, it artificially segregates the work

force. It is the model equivalent of the banking technique of "red lining". In this

illegal procedure, all houses in a given neighborhood are declared unacceptable as

controller for a housing loan. Although the red lines on the map are ostensibly drawn

Human Computer Interaction (CS408)

around economic contours, they tend to follow racial lines all too closely bankers

protest that they are not racists, but the effect is the same.

When programmers speak of "computer literacy", they are drawing red lines around

ethnic groups, too, yet few have pointed this out. It is too hard to see what is really

happening because the issue is obscured by technical mythology. It is easy to see---

regardless of how true---that a banker can make a loan on one house as easily as on

another. However, it is not easy to see that a programmer can make interactive

products easy enough for people from lower socio-economic backgrounds to use.

engineers are far

lower than are those for traditional

"Acceptable levels of quality for software

engineering disciplines"

Wrong process is used to develop

"Software-based products not INHERENTLY hard to use

them" [1]

Software Engineering and HCI

There is a basic fundamental difference between the approaches taken by software

engineers and human-computer interaction specialists. Human-computer interface

specialists are user-centered and software engineers are system-centered.

Software engineering methodologies are good at modeling certain aspects of the

problem domain. Formal methods have been developed to represent data,

architectural, and procedural aspects of a software system. Software engineering

approaches deal with managerial and financial issues well. Software engineering

methodologies are useful for specifying and building the functional aspects of a

software system.

Human-computer interfaces emphasize developing a deep understanding of user

characteristics and a clear awareness of the tasks a user must perform. HCI specialists

test design ideas on real users and use formal evaluation techniques to replace

intuition in guiding design. This constant reality check improves the final product.

References

· [1] The Inmates are running the asylum by Alan Cooper.

· [2] Human Computer Interaction by Jenny Preece.

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