Book Image

Learn Human-Computer Interaction

By : Christopher Reid Becker
Book Image

Learn Human-Computer Interaction

By: Christopher Reid Becker

Overview of this book

Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) is a field of study that researches, designs, and develops software solutions that solve human problems. This book will help you understand various aspects of the software development phase, from planning and data gathering through to the design and development of software solutions. The book guides you through implementing methodologies that will help you build robust software. You will perform data gathering, evaluate user data, and execute data analysis and interpretation techniques. You’ll also understand why human-centered methodologies are successful in software development, and learn how to build effective software solutions through practical research processes. The book will even show you how to translate your human understanding into software solutions through validation methods and rapid prototyping leading to usability testing. Later, you will understand how to use effective storytelling to convey the key aspects of your software to users. Throughout the book, you will learn the key concepts with the help of historical figures, best practices, and references to common challenges faced in the software industry. By the end of this book, you will be well-versed with HCI strategies and methodologies to design effective user interfaces.
Table of Contents (17 chapters)
1
Section 1 - Learn Human-Computer Interaction
5
Section 2 - How to Build Human-Centered Software
11
Section 3 - When to Improve Software Systems

Validating with users

The reality is that an idea isn't worth anything, it is just a thought, but once that idea is executed and made tangible, that is where the rubber hits the road. Software is no different, just a set of ideas executed for a computer and a user. The key is knowing which ideas are worth executing. Since software has a massive range of possibilities and is the culmination of hundreds of ideas, the best way to understand whether those ideas are working is to validate them through user testing. Start by validating ideas quick and fast through prototypes, as we discussed previously.

Hopefully, your hundreds of ideas are not hundreds of features but rather a bunch ideas that go into executing a few features meaningfully for your user. Prototyping, as we just discussed, is about making ideas tangible, but without testing the execution of a prototype, it is pointless. To build a prototype is to create a model to test your software idea. Testing is immensely helpful to...