Week 5 – Human Computer Interaction

A) select one example to outline the key concepts of human-computer interaction. Reflect upon the role of the “human”, the “computer” and the “interaction”.

The main concept for Human Computer Interaction is design. The interface of the machine must be simple and easy to use in order for it to be efficient and thus successful. You can “design better interfaces from the start by knowing human limitations and easing the load on the user” (Anon, 2017). A complex and hard to use interface merely leaves the user unable to grasp and understand how the machine can be of use, and how it functions.  Design is within the physical layout of the computer as well as its programming and its layout. For instance when it comes to a laptop, its design must be appealing to the user. If the keyboard keys for example were shuffled and changed around then it would be less efficient for its users, interaction is about efficiency, the more complex it is to interact with the less efficient it is.

The human has the job to learn the functions, the tools, and the layout of the computer in order for it to have a maximized efficiency, if a designer relocated the keys on a keyboard it would be more complex and different to what the human may previously had remembered on other designs. Therefore it is crucial for designers to consider past adaptations, and use such examples to make a product as easy to use as possible. Though regardless the human has the role of being able to learn and remember how their inputs achieve desired outputs. For example one could easily learn that by interacting with the interface and pressing ‘Ctrl’ + ‘C’ on the keyboard that a highlighted image or text on screen has been copied.

(Source: https://www.quietpc.com/matias-quiet-pro-keyboards)

The role of the Computer is very simple, it must remember what inputs create which outputs and must be quick and efficient at producing the desired demands of the human. However,  although the computer has an important role, if it is poorly designed , then it may not be a successful product. “Interaction is about Efficiency” (Peter Kottas, 2017)

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B) discuss the relationship between games design and human-computer interaction

The relationship is simple in my opinion, when designing a game, developers must take into account HCI as this determines how easily players will be able to interact with their product, otherwise players may struggle to find patience to play it. Some games can even be ruined if the interaction between the player and computer is appalling, players usually expect controls for instance to be mostly universal, if you play a shooting based game on a console for instance, many would expect the right trigger  (RT) on the controller to fire the gun on screen. Another way in which both games design and HCI overlap, is within the design of the onscreen gameplay. A player may be reluctant to play a game with a higher motion blur to it as it may induce nausea.
Game controls for Tom Clancy's The Division on PS4
(Source: http://www.gamecontrols.net/ps4/tom-clancys-the-division/)
If game developers ignore how the player may interact with the game then the product they are designing could easily fail to be successful. When it comes to controls for standard genres of games, many players would seem to prefer matching or similar controls to previous games they’ve played instead of completely new controls.
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References:

https://www.slideshare.net/gsantosh031/1204-hci-ne

Anon, (2017). User Interface Principles Every Designer Must Know. [Online] Available from:  https://www.nngroup.com/courses/hci/ [Accessed 22 November]

Peter Kottas, (2017). [Online] Available from:https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-of-the-best-examples-of-human-computer-interaction-interfaces-either-being-developed-or-in-use [Accessed 22 November]

Bibliography

Allen Newell, Stuart Card and Thomas Moran (1983). The Psychology of Human-Computer Interaction. L.Erlbaum Associates. [Accessed 22 November]

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