designed with economy and consistent structure. [he economy arises in t h i s methodology from the table-like description o~: t h e i n t e r a c t i o n s , which could be implemented more quickly than by brute-T orce programming. lhe structural consistency arises from the rlotati on for prompt, inpuk , action, {low control, escape, hello, a n d i n p u t editing for each interaction. The human factors benefiL would principal be this consistency, which i'~i o n l y one ,::i.~: m a n y issues that need to be considered in designing a good inter.face. ( B y J . M. H a m m e r , A t l a n t a , GA) [ E x c e r p t e d from COMPUTING REVIEWS, July, 1985]. (By A. L. Tharp, Raleigh, NC) [Excerpted #rom COMPUTING REVIEWS, July, 1985]. Smith, Michael J. (Univ. ol ~ W i s c o n s i n Madison, Madisoa) Human {actors issues in VDT use: environmental and workstation design considerat, i on. IEEE COMPUI. GRAPH.. A P P L . ~):, i f ( N o v . 1984), 56-63. - Cro{:t, W. B. (Univ. of M a s s a c h u s e t t s , Amherst) The role of context and adaptation in user interTaces, iNT. J. MAN-MACH. S I U D . _21, 4 ( O c t . 1984), 283-292. This paper clearly argues the case T o r _____context a n d ~!~j..i~lLa3L!.-'~)!) in b u i l d i n g user interfaces. These factors a r e in contrast t o t h e i s s u e s cH ~ p r e s e n t a t i o n and the mechanics of i n t e r a c t i o n , such as windows, icons, and pop-up menus. A u s e r inter~Face is v i e w e d a s a m e a n s by which a user maps his task into the available set of tools. Context defines the {eatures o-F the environment which are important in determining the ~:Iow o~ the interaction. Adaptation is the o.f the system to act ability appropriately in a g i v e n c o n t e x t . An offic:e s y s t e m a n d a d o c u m e n t retrieval system a r e u s e d to i l l u s t r a t e the use oq: c o n t e x t and adaptation. In t h e o f f i c e s y s t e m , the context is used to adapt the user inter.race and t h e s y s t e m to t h e u s e r in s e v e r a l ways. For example, planning can be used to automate certain tasks which can be anticipated because of the [he system can propose context. possible actions t o t h e u s e r b a s e d con what has already transpired. The context can be used to recognize and correct l o c a l a n d g l o b a l e r r o r s of t h e user. For example, in a database environment, most management system users would have little difTiculty in .forming a ~2~!~.~i~i.~.!..~.~ correct query. But the query may not be semantically accurate and the naive user may not realize this since the magnitude of the data inw:~l v e d will usually be large enough '1.;o preclude hand checking. Many people also view any results which come from a computer as being unchallenged gospel. the paper includes a formalism .for task definition, w h i c h m a y b e help.ful in defining adaptive u s e r inter.faces. In t h e d o c u m e n t retrieval e×ample, the types o.f documents retrieved are adjusted based upon the user satis.faction with previous retrievals. Smith's paper provides a s u m m a r y o.~: human factors issues which relate to the design a n d u s e o.f V D I s . Smith summarizes the results .from a numberof field studies on the health problems associated w i t h t h e uses o{ VDTs. Topic:s s u c h as s c r e e n glare, improper illumination, screen flicker, and temperature and humidity problen~s associated with workstation design are disc:ussed. T h e p a p e r is recommended reading as an i n t r o d u c t o r y source tin t h e t o p i c of h u m a n T a c t o r s in V D T use. (By W. B a r f i e l d , W e s t La.fayette, IN) .from COMPUTING REVIEWS, [Excerpted July, 1985]. Sheppard, S y l v i a B., B a i l e y , J o h n W. , and Bailey, Elizabeth K. "An empirical evaluation of soq:tware H _uman ........... documentation formats." In Thomas a n d M. Publ. Corp., 135-164. Schneider Norwood, (Eds.), NJ, ABLEX 1984, This paper presents a summary oT tests discussing various symbolic and spatial Tormats on s # o t w a r e program speci f ication documents. Programmers of varying ability (years and exposure to multiple programming languages) are presented with design speciTications ranging .from f o u r t y p e s of symbolic design languages to three spatial t y p e s of .format a r r a n g e m e n t s . The s y m b o l i c~ l a n g u a g e consists of ideograms, a program design language, and normal and abbreviated English. The spatial arrangements consist, of sequential, hierarchical, and branching flew charts. Tests were conducted in the areas o$ writing, debugging, and modiTying oT software programs. The graphical of the documentation representation formats at t h e e n d of t h e p a p e r and the tables throughout the paper are indispensable. Conclusions a r e d r a w n on t h e e + f e c t of the programmer's experience and software doc:umentation -formats as t h e y relate to errors in t h e p r o g r a m s and time expenditures. The combined use o.f a succinct language with a branching spatial arrangement in the documentation speci÷ications and broad programming experience is f:ound t o b e .for ef f e c t i v e programming. optimal (By C. Baddor-f , Golenta, CA) [Excerpted .from COMPUTING REVIEWS, July, 1985]. January1986 Volume17 Number3 SlGCHlBulletin

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