Department of Computer Science, Unit Catalogue 2009/10 |
CM20222: Interaction (a) |
 Credits:
| 12 |
| Level:
| Intermediate |
| Period: | Academic Year |
| Assessment:
| CW 50%, EX 50% |
| Supplementary Assessment: | CM20222A Mandatory Extra Work (where allowed by programme regulations) |
| Requisites:
| Before taking this unit you must take CM10193 and take CM10227 and take CM10228 and in taking this unit you cannot take CM20216 |
| Description: | Aims: To provide students with a foundation in human-computer interaction as an interdisciplinary field that focuses on the design and use of interactive systems. To introduce theories, principles and practices that underpin effective interaction design. To equip students with approaches to data gathering and analysis that are appropriate for assessing the value of an interactive system. Learning Outcomes: On completion of this unit students will be able to: 1. explain principles of interaction design with the use of relevant examples of good and bad practice; 2. account for historical developments in user-interface designs with reference to human reasoning and error recovery; 3. describe and discuss the relative merits and problems with alternative forms of evidence-gathering and analysis; 4. construct a task model using a recognized technique; 5. design an appropriate user-technology interaction to optimise usability and support for the users' tasks; 6. demonstrate understanding of principles of analytical and empirical evaluation through their application to the systematic evaluation of an interaction design. Skills: Use of IT (T/F, A), Problem Solving (T/F, A), Communication (A). Content: As CM20216, viz. the following. Human-computer interaction - general foundations of field, including: * fundamental drivers of historical developments in interactive systems, user interfaces and interactions * theoretical approaches to human perception, reasoning and problem solving as they relate to the design and use of interactive systems * models of interaction, inc. gulfs of execution and evaluation Contexts of interaction - introducing students to differences in level of demand placed on various aspects of human cognition and performance as a function of the type of interactive system they encounter Interaction design - approaches, processes and prototyping techniques Usability - introduction to the concept and principles Evidence in design and evaluation - data gathering and analysis inc. experimental method Collaborative systems - special considerations for designing interactive systems to be used by groups of collaborators. |