INF3720/201/1/2014

Tutorial letter 201/1/2014

Solution to Assignment 1

Human Computer Interaction

INF3720
Semester 1
School of Computing

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
This tutorial letter contains important information
about your module.

INF3720/201

Assignment 1 solution
Nota aan Afrikaanse studente: Weens die tegniese aard van die studiemateriaal is hierdie
studiebrief in Engels. Moet asb. nie huiwer om ons te kontak indien iets vir u nie duidelik is nie.
The answers to the questions in this assignment are open-ended and every student approached them
differently. There is thus no set solution to this assignment and you must compare your own answers to
the page references and answers as presented here. If you presented us with a satisfactory attempt in
your assignment you were rewarded with the credits for that question.
We allocated five marks for Q1 to Q10, and multiplied it by 2 to give you a percentage mark.

Question 1
Give the four activities that make up the process of interaction design.
See Ch 1 page 15 and Ch 9 page 329 330.
Explain each one: See Ch 9 page 330.
The four basic activities of the process of interaction design:
(1) Identifying needs and establishing requirements for the user experience.
(2) Developing alternative designs that meet the requirements.
(3) Building interactive versions of the designs i.e. prototypes
(4) Evaluating what is being built throughout the process and the user experience it provides

Question 2
Briefly describe the four interaction types, discussed in Chapter 2 of the prescribed book.
See Chapter 2 page 46 - 54: Instructing, Conversing, Manipulating and Exploring.

Question 3
Give five examples of collaborative technologies that support coordination.
See Chapter 4 page 115: Coordination implies people working and interacting together towards a
common goal. Examples are Electronic scheduling, electronic, whiteboards, group calendars, project
management tools, workflow tools.

Question 4
Describe the four types of pleasure proposed in Jordan's pleasure model.
See Chapter 5 page 151: Physio, socio, psycho and ideo-pleasure.

Question 5
What are the five key issues that determine the success of a data gathering exercise according to
Preece, et al.?
See Chapter 7 page 223: Setting goals, identify participants, relationship between data collector and
participants, triangulation, pilot studies

Question 6
Describe three ways in which users can be involved in the interaction design process.
See Chapter 9: pages 327 Gould and Lewis, but also read sections 9.2.1 and 9.2.2 for an alternative
view i.e. involve the real users, manage their expectations, and let them take ownership.
2

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Question 7
List six ways in which data can be gathered to establish user requirements. Give a one sentence
description of each.
See Chapter 7 table 7.1 page 261: Interviews, Focus groups, Questionnaires, Direct observation (Field),
Direct observation (Lab), Indirect observation

Question 8
Briefly explain the three evaluation types or approaches as discussed in chapter 12.3 of Preece, et al.
See Chapter 12.3 page 437 Controlled, natural and any settings.

Question 9
What are the steps involved in cognitive walkthrough?
See the steps: 1-5 as listed Chapter 15 page 515.

Question 10
Give a definition for Interaction Design.
Use your own research to expand on the definition given in your textbook on pages xi, and 9 to 13.

UNISA 2014