Human–computer Interface

Posted: September 9th, 2013

Human–computer Interface

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Human–computer Interface

In the requirements phase, interface requirements development teams ensure that they establish the precise software requirements. Several factors influence the system requirements such as social and organizational factors. The requirements process involves understanding the domain, collecting requirements, classification, structuring and prioritization (Kelkar, 2007). The requirements phase determines the success and failure of the projects in an organization. One of the main objectives of the requirements phase is to produce an ambiguous, consistent and easy to comprehend systems requirements specification document. Identification of a user interface during the requirements phase is imperative in determining the appropriate solutions. The development team adheres to the user interface guidelines as the application of the UI progresses. The team also ensures that the UI is accessible from the beginning of the product lifecycle.

The requirement phase needs to support the international market place by including internationalization support in the user interface design from the beginning of the project (Fichtinger, Hood, Pautz & Wiedemann, 2008). Successful interfaces are attained through understanding the user needs and other human factors. Facilitating the process of communication is necessary to ensure that agreements are preserved and traced to the final product. Communication is done through paying informal visits to the users and discussing their issues with their current tools. After collecting all needed feedback, it is analyzed and distilled into related requirements. At this stage, it is advisable to develop problem statements to help in determining the solutions. Development teams ensure that they have priority lists in the requirements phase to avoid misunderstandings concerning the actions to be taken.

After the requirements phase is the conceptual phase then the logical and physical phases respectively. The logical design phase is when the preliminary models supporting the conceptual design are developed (Sweets et al, 2011). This stage also sees the identification of the precise hardware and software technologies to be used during the development process. This will determine the aptitude of the user interface in the final product. The application’s targets and hardware requirements are also identified in this stage. The physical design establishes the implementation of the UI design for the hardware and form factors identified in the logical design. It is during this phase that unanticipated constraints on the UI might be introduced by the hardware or form factors. This phenomenon will require considerable modifications to the design.

The most innovative method for gathering requirements is through interviews. It is necessary to understand the goals and expectations of users and stakeholders in order to satisfy them. The perspective of every interviewee needs to be recognized so that his or her inputs can be carefully weighed and addressed. Interviews are carried out to create a set of preliminary requirements for the project. After interviews, it is crucial to build an interface prototype and solicit feedback from the users and stakeholders about it. This prototype should be kept as simple as possible in order to present the alternatives to the users. Prototyping should be done in an environment that has appropriate prototyping tools. Depending on the feedback received, further revision to the prototype might be necessary until the software concept is accepted (Stone, 2005).

This method is effective as it guarantees successful projects in an organization. Involving users and other stakeholders in the requirements phase ensures that their needs are addressed by the development team. It enables the gathering of information in a fast and friendly way. Interviews and the use of prototypes enable the team to understand the needs of their users before developing the design. Interviews should be carried early in the design process for gathering requirements, during and after the process to ensure effectiveness and efficiency.

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