Human Computer Interaction (SE431)

Lecture 2.
Introduction to 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:

x Describe the significance of HCI, particularly adverse impact of computer

technology on humans and reasons for these adverse effects

x Describe the nature of humans and computers

x Understand the Paradox of the computing phenomena

x 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 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.
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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]

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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 emotionally.
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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.

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
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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 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.

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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.

“Acceptable levels of quality for software engineers are far lower than are those for
traditional engineering disciplines”

“Software-based products not INHERENTLY hard to use Wrong process is used to

develop 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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