Framework for Human/Computer Interacton

Philosophical Presuppositions and Overarching Goals

Kent L. Norman

Fundamental Presuppositions Regarding Humans and Machines

1. Humans are human and machines are machines.
2. An interface exists between humans and machines.
3. The human/computer interface is one sided in the sense that the human side has all the brains and the machine side has all bits and bytes.
4. Empirical research and guiding theory are required to direct the design of the interface rather than reliance on millions of years of evolution.
5. In the design of the interface, human needs and desires take precedence over machine requirements and limitations.
6. While some humans are smarter than other humans, and some machines are faster than other machines, no machine acting independently of humans is smarter than a human acting independently of a machine.
7. Machines were created by humans to serve humans. Although some humans hold that humans were created by God to serve the Creator, no machines hold that machines were created by humans to serve humans or vice versa.

Overarching Goals of the Lab

1. Investigate the nature of the human mind and its use of machines to solve problems, make decisions, and accomplish goals.
2. Investigate design features of the interface that facilitate the cognitive processing of the human mind in the pursuit of its goals.
3. Expose design flaws, biases, prejudices, and the ideologies of designers embedded in the interface that have a negative impact on users.
4. Encourage students to publish papers and attend conferences with a sense of purpose and excitement.

Macintosh Versus Windows

1. Elegance
2. usability