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Human–computer interaction ( HCI ) studies the design and use of computer technology, focused on the interfaces between people (users) and computers. Researchers in the field of HCI observe the ways in which humans interact with computers and design technologies that let humans interact with computers in novel ways. As a field of research, human-computer interaction is situated at the intersection of computer science, behavioural sciences, design, media studies, and several other fields of study. The term was popularized by Stuart K. Card, Allen Newell, and Thomas P. Moran in their seminal 1983 book, The Psychology of Human–Computer Interaction , although the authors first used the term in 1980 and the first known use was in 1975. The term connotes that, unlike other tools with only limited uses (such as a wooden mallet, useful for hitting things, but not much else), a computer has many uses and this takes place as an open-ended dialog between the user and the computer. The notion of...

Humans interact with computers in many ways; the interface between humans and computers is crucial to facilitate this interaction. Desktop applications, internet browsers, handheld computers, ERP, and computer kiosks make use of the prevalent graphical user interfaces (GUI) of today. Voice user interfaces (VUI) are used for speech recognition and synthesizing systems, and the emerging multi-modal and Graphical user interfaces (GUI) allow humans to engage with embodied character agents in a way that cannot be achieved with other interface paradigms. The growth in human–computer interaction field has been in quality of interaction, and in different branching in its history. Instead of designing regular interfaces, the different research branches have had a different focus on the concepts of multimodality rather than unimodality, intelligent adaptive interfaces rather than command/action based ones, and finally active rather than passive interfaces. citation needed The Association for Co...

Human–computer interaction studies the ways in which humans make—or do not make—use of computational artifacts, systems and infrastructures. Much of the research in the field seeks to improve human–computer interaction by improving the usability of computer interfaces. How usability is to be precisely understood, how it relates to other social and cultural values and when it is, and when it may not be a desirable property of computer interfaces is increasingly debated. Much of the research in the field of human–computer interaction takes an interest in: Methods for designing new computer interfaces, thereby optimizing a design for a desired property such as learnability, findability, efficiency of use. Methods for implementing interfaces, e.g., by means of software libraries. Methods for evaluating and comparing interfaces with respect to their usability and other desirable properties. Methods for studying human-computer use and its sociocultural implications more broadly. Metho...

This section does not cite any sources . Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( February 2013 ) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) HCI differs from human factors and ergonomics as HCI focuses more on users working specifically with computers, rather than other kinds of machines or designed artifacts. There is also a focus in HCI on how to implement the computer software and hardware mechanisms to support human–computer interaction. Thus, human factors is a broader term. HCI could be described as the human factors of computers – although some experts try to differentiate these areas. HCI also differs from human factors in that there is less of a focus on repetitive work-oriented tasks and procedures, and much less emphasis on physical stress and the physical form or industrial design of the user interface, such as keyboards and mouse devices. Three areas of study have substantial...

Principles edit The following experimental design principles are considered, when evaluating a current user interface, or designing a new user interface: Early focus is placed on user(s) and task(s): How many users are needed to perform the task(s) is established and who the appropriate users should be is determined (someone who has never used the interface, and will not use the interface in the future, is most likely not a valid user). In addition, the task(s) the users will be performing and how often the task(s) need to be performed is defined. Empirical measurement: the interface is tested with real users who come in contact with the interface on a daily basis. The results can vary with the performance level of the user and the typical human–computer interaction may not always be represented. Quantitative usability specifics, such as the number of users performing the task(s), the time to complete the task(s), and the number of errors made during the task(s) are determined. Itera...

Displays are human-made artifacts designed to support the perception of relevant system variables and to facilitate further processing of that information. Before a display is designed, the task that the display is intended to support must be defined (e.g. navigating, controlling, decision making, learning, entertaining, etc.). A user or operator must be able to process whatever information that a system generates and displays; therefore, the information must be displayed according to principles in a manner that will support perception, situation awareness, and understanding. Thirteen principles of display design edit Christopher Wickens et al. defined 13 principles of display design in their book An Introduction to Human Factors Engineering . These principles of human perception and information processing can be utilized to create an effective display design. A reduction in errors, a reduction in required training time, an increase in efficiency, and an increase in user satisfaction a...

The human–computer interface can be described as the point of communication between the human user and the computer. The flow of information between the human and computer is defined as the loop of interaction . The loop of interaction has several aspects to it, including: Visual Based :The visual based human computer interaction is probably the most widespread area in Human Computer Interaction (HCI) research. Audio Based : The audio based interaction between a computer and a human is another important area of in HCI systems. This area deals with information acquired by different audio signals. Task environment : The conditions and goals set upon the user. Machine environment : The environment that the computer is connected to, e.g. a laptop in a college student's dorm room. Areas of the interface : Non-overlapping areas involve processes of the human and computer not pertaining to their interaction. Meanwhile, the overlapping areas only concern themselves with the processes p...

This section does not cite any sources . Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( October 2010 ) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Topics in human-computer interaction include the following : User customization edit End-user development studies have shown how ordinary users could routinely tailor applications to their own needs and to invent new applications based on their understanding of their own domains. With their deeper knowledge, users could increasingly be important sources of new applications at the expense of generic programmers with systems expertise but low domain expertise. Embedded computation edit Computation is passing beyond computers into every object for which uses can be found. Embedded systems make the environment alive with little computations and automated processes, from computerized cooking appliances to lighting and plumbing fixtures to window blinds to ...

Traditionally, computer use was modeled as a human–computer dyad in which the two were connected by a narrow explicit communication channel, such as text-based terminals. Much work has been done to make the interaction between a computing system and a human more reflective of the multidimensional nature of everyday communication. Because of potential issues, human–computer interaction shifted focus beyond the interface to respond to observations as articulated by D. Engelbart: "If ease of use was the only valid criterion, people would stick to tricycles and never try bicycles." The means by which humans interact with computers continues to evolve rapidly. Human–computer interaction is affected by developments in computing. These forces include: Decreasing hardware costs leading to larger memory and faster systems Miniaturization of hardware leading to portability Reduction in power requirements leading to portability New display technologies leading to the packaging of com...

One of the main conferences for new research in human–computer interaction is the annually held Association for Computing Machinery's (ACM) Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems , usually referred to by its short name CHI (pronounced kai , or khai ). CHI is organized by ACM Special Interest Group on Computer–Human Interaction (SIGCHI). CHI is a large conference, with thousands of attendants, and is quite broad in scope. It is attended by academics, practitioners and industry people, with company sponsors such as Google, Microsoft, and PayPal. There are also dozens of other smaller, regional or specialized HCI-related conferences held around the world each year, including: