Work on the project has been progressing albeit slowly due to the workload from other units.
Extensive research has been carried out on current literature covering the subjects of HCI, gesture-based applications and the applicability of current HCI principles to gesture-based interfaces. The research revealed some interesting trends.
It was noted that numerous experts in the field (Bill Buxton, Jeff Han, Dan Saffer, Ben Schneiderman and more) all believe the standard desktop input devices impede our ability to interact with technology and computers in a natural way. They call for a more intuitive means of interaction and believe this lies in gesture-based interfaces.
A significant finding during research was the general consensus amongst usability experts (Nielsen & Norman) that HCI theory and practises historically lag behind the technology. This possibly suggests the current HCI theories & practises are out-dated and no longer applicable to interfaces today - touch and gesture.
However other experts believe core fundamentals of HCI - Fitt's Law, perceived affordances, mappings, and transfer effects are not only applicable but also cite examples of where they are in use in gesture-based applications today. This points to a certain degree of applicability.
Research also revealed a preference / suitability for the RITE methodology for developing a gesture-based applications. The Rapid Iterative Testing and Evaluation (RITE) method is an iterative usability method which some believe lends itself particularly well to gesture-based application development.
Some very interesting results came out of the initial research phase of this project and will be used to inform the project from hereon in.
The next phase will involve researching the most suitable methodology to adopt for the duration of the project and identifying how this will be implemented.
No comments:
Post a Comment