Elderly user experience to improve a Kinect-based game playability

When it comes to using computers, older people experience many barriers, which are a considerable hurdle to overcome in order to enable them to accept technological aids. Thus, computer interface design and development must support elderly end users by avoiding many usability issues which lead to negative impacts on them. This paper describes the combination of a computer game design for the elderly and its implementation with user experience considerations embedded in the process. In this way, a positive gaming experience is provided to the end user. This game uses the Kinect device, enabling users to interact intuitively with the computer without any intermediary controller, and its main purpose is to promote at the same time cognitive and physical activities for healthy living. Feedback was taken from physiotherapists’ written observations and user experience questionnaires, which allowed the game to be adapted to their needs, obtaining 86.25% satisfaction. The effectiveness of this study opens the door to new developments in ICT that not only improve quality of life but also reduce the existing digital divide for the elderly.     

Correction to: Can search result summaries enhance the web search efficiency and experiences of the visually impaired users?

There are limited studies that are addressing the challenges of visually impaired (VI) users when viewing search results on a search engine interface by using a screen reader. This study investigates the effect of providing an overview of search results to VI users. We present a novel interactive search engine interface called InteractSE to support VI users during the results exploration stage in order to improve their interactive experience and web search efficiency. An overview of the search results is generated using an unsupervised machine learning approach to present the discovered concepts via a formal concept analysis that is domain-independent. These concepts are arranged in a multi-level tree following a hierarchical order and covering all retrieved documents that share maximal features. The InteractSE interface was evaluated by 16 legally blind users and compared with the Google search engine interface for complex search tasks. The evaluation results were obtained based on both quantitative (as task completion time) and qualitative (as participants’ feedback) measures. These results are promising and indicate that InteractSE enhances the search efficiency and consequently advances user experience. Our observations and analysis of the user interactions and feedback yielded design suggestions to support VI users when exploring and interacting with search results.

     

The Effects of Hover Interface on Users’ Behavioral Multitasking Intention

As the number of features with smartphones is increasing, user interfaces have been advanced considerably with innovative ways for providing useful, multitasking interfaces. In particular, the z-axis of the user interface has been considered to help multitaskers control their smartphone more easily. However, relatively little research has been conducted on the significance of the z-axis on task switching. The main research goal of this study is to explain how a z-axis can affect the experience of multitasking on a mobile device. In particular, the authors focused on a hover interface because of its high functional relevance to multitasking as a form of task switching. Theoretically, the authors provide a conceptual model based on the concept of spatial presence. Systemically, they suggest the important system factors for implementing z-axis interface technology: controllability and naturalness. With regards to users, the authors assume that if the experience with the z-axis interface is increased, users’ intention to multitask is also increased, even when the task complexity is high. The influence of controllability on perceived spatial presence by the hover interface was negatively validated, and the influence of naturalness was positively validated. In addition, the influence of perceived spatial presence on users’ behavioral multitasking intention was positively validated. Finally, the influence from perceived spatial presence to users’ behavioral multitasking intention in the high level of task complexity was significantly stronger than in the low level. Implications and limitations of the study results are discussed in the final section of the article.     

Design, implementation and evaluation of an adaptive user interface

Software systems developed in recent years are becoming increasingly powerful, but in most cases they tend to abandon the user to deal with the complexity of the system alone. There is an immense need for systems with individual, context-sensitive support. The paper discusses the development of such a support system with special focus on the user interface. The extension of an existing and complex program. Excel, to an adaptive and customizable system is described. This extension is called Flexcel, and it has been implemented and evaluated.

The primary aim of this extension is to provide a convenient environment for adapting Excel's user interface to particular users and their current tasks. For example, it allows the user to define new menu for actions that are frequently needed and normally require a tedious dialog step. Flexcel also analyzes the user's interaction style and presents adaptation suggestions. A critique component supports the user in his/her problem solving and learning activities related to the adaptability of Flexcel's user interface.     

A case study of user immersion-based systematic design for serious heritage games

Modern digital technologies support the preservation and transfer of cultural heritage information via devices and applications such as digital storage systems, electronic books and virtual museums. Advances in virtual and augmented reality, real-time computer graphics and computer games have made it possible to construct large virtual environments in which users may experience cultural heritage through a variety of interactions and immersions. Thus, an emerging problem is to implement an appropriate systematic design method for achieving various types of entertainment, learning and information transfer. This paper proposes two important design factors that impact on user immersion in serious heritage games: user interface space volume and subsystem sequence. The impact of the two factors on proposed systematic design methods was investigated through comparative studies by implementing a serious heritage game system on three different platforms.     

Machine learning: A tool to support usability?

One problem facing designers of interactive systems is catering to the wide range of users who will use a particular application. Understanding the user is critical to designing a usable interface. There are a number of ways of addressing this problem, including improved design methodologies using ''intuitive'' interface styles, adaptive interfaces, and better training and user support materials. In this article, we argue that each of these solutions involves pattern recognition in one form or another and that machine learning can therefore aid designers of interactive systems in these areas. We report on experiments that demonstrate the potential of machine learning to user modeling that has application to two of these areas in particular: adaptive systems and design methodologies.     

User Modeling for Adaptive News Access

We present a framework for adaptive news access, based on machine learning techniques specifically designed for this task. First, we focus on the system's general functionality and system architecture. We then describe the interface and design of two deployed news agents that are part of the described architecture. While the first agent provides personalized news through a web-based interface, the second system is geared towards wireless information devices such as PDAs (personal digital assistants) and cell phones. Based on implicit and explicit user feedback, our agents use a machine learning algorithm to induce individual user models. Motivated by general shortcomings of other user modeling systems for Information Retrieval applications, as well as the specific requirements of news classification, we propose the induction of hybrid user models that consist of separate models for short-term and long-term interests. Furthermore, we illustrate how the described algorithm can be used to address an important issue that has thus far received little attention in the Information Retrieval community: a user's information need changes as a direct result of interaction with information. We empirically evaluate the system's performance based on data collected from regular system users. The goal of the evaluation is not only to understand the performance contributions of the algorithm's individual components, but also to assess the overall utility of the proposed user modeling techniques from a user perspective. Our results provide empirical evidence for the utility of the hybrid user model, and suggest that effective personalization can be achieved without requiring any extra effort from the user.     

Prediction of individual learning curves across information visualizations

Confident usage of information visualizations is thought to be influenced by cognitive aspects as well as amount of exposure and training. To support the development of individual competency in visualization processing, it is important to ascertain if we can track users’ progress or difficulties they might have while working with a given visualization. In this paper, we extend previous work on predicting in real time a user’s learning curve—a mathematical model that can represent a user’s skill acquisition ability—when working with a visualization. First, we investigate whether results we previously obtained in predicting users’ learning curves during visualization processing generalize to a different visualization. Second, we study to what extent we can make predictions on a user’s learning curve without information on the visualization being used. Our models leverage various data sources, including a user’s gaze behavior, pupil dilation, and cognitive abilities. We show that these models outperform a baseline that leverages knowledge on user task performance so far. Our best performing model achieves good accuracies in predicting users’ learning curves even after observing users’ performance on a few tasks only. These results represent an important step toward understanding how to support users in learning a new visualization.     

Adaptive personalized interfaces—A question of viability

It is widely accepted that interfaces between computers and users should differ to accommodate individual, or group, needs. One method of 'personalizing' an interface is to have the system form a limited model of the user and employ it to fashion the dialogue to his needs. Unfortunately, little is known about the effect of adaptation on the man-machine interface. Although obvious advantages accrue from 'personalized' interfaces, there are also obvious disadvantages to presenting users with a changing, adapting and perhaps apparently inconsistent interface. The goal of this work is to determine the viability of an adaptive interface through a human-factor pilot study of a simple, specially designed, interactive computer system. The system uses menu-driven selection to retrieve entries from a large ordered telephone directory. This simple task has several advantages: it is a realistic application area for interactive computers; plausible adaptive modelling methods exist and have been studied theoretically; and previous work has determined the best way to display the menus to users. The results of this empirical study support the use of adaptive user modelling. In the (admittedly highly constrained) example system, a computer interface can indeed adapt successfully to every user. Although it does not necessarily generalize to other user interfaces, the result supplies evidence to refute published objections to adaptive user modelling in general.     

The efficacy of narrative video for raising awareness in ICT designers about older users’ requirements

This paper discusses the efficacy of narrative video to communicate some of the fundamental differences between older users of ICT interfaces and the interface designers who tend not to be familiar with the general perspectives and user requirements of this and other ‘non-typical’ target groups. Preliminary results show the impact such videos can have on relevant audiences’ perspective on designing systems for older adults. The findings suggest that they can influence the mind set of those with little or no experience of designing for older users and that this influence can persist in the longer term. The findings also suggest that the extent of this influence can be an appropriate alternative to that of meeting and interacting with older users in a user centred design process, which although very valuable can be a logistically (and otherwise) challenging element in the training of prospective software designers. The potential utility and limits of this approach are also discussed.     

Bayesian and behavior networks for context-adaptive user interface in a ubiquitous home environment

Modern home theater systems require users to control various devices simultaneously including a TV, audio equipment, DVD and video players, and a receiver. To perform the requested user functions in this situation, the user is required to know the functions and positions of the buttons on several remote controls. Users will become more confused if a ubiquitous home environment, which contains many mobile and stationary control devices, is realized. Therefore, the user interface should be adaptable for requested user functions and to fit a specific control device. This paper presents a context-adaptive user interface for the control of devices in ubiquitous home environment. First, we modeled the ubiquitous home environment in order to implement the context-adaptive user interface. We used a Bayesian network to predict the necessary devices in each situation and used a behavior network to select the functions that constitute an adaptive user interface in several conditions. The selected functions were used to generate an adaptive interface for each controller using a presentation template. In this paper, we implemented a ubiquitous home environment and generated a controller usage log for this environment. We confirmed that the Bayesian network effectively predicted the user requirements by evaluating the inferred results of the necessary devices based on several scenarios. Finally, we compared the adaptive user interface with the fixed user interface by surveying fourteen subjects. We confirmed that the generated adaptive user interface was more comfortable for use with typical tasks than was the fixed user interface.     

Providing public access to information in complex and weakly structured domains: A 3-layered model for hypermedia information systems

Abstract

Advice systems are defined as information systems which present users with both information and more subjective expert advice about complex and weakly structured domains. This paper presents a Generic Advice System Architecture (GASA) to assist in developing such systems. It describes how the architecture was used in developing the SPIRE system, whose aim is to provide advice and information which will assist the integration of students with disabilities into higher education. The paper discusses the way in which the GASA addresses key issues in the development of hypermedia advice systems including the need to make such systems available to users with little training and limited knowledge of the domain; the requirement to support diverse information exploration strategies; the provision of purely ‘point and select access; ’ and the minimisation of user disorientation and cognitive overhead.     

Understanding the behavior changes in belief and attitude among experienced and inexperienced learning object users

Prior empirical studies in the implementation of general information technologies (IT) have revealed that IT adoption and usage were determined by user beliefs and attitudes. However, little is known about how user beliefs and attitudes form and change over time. To address these issues, this paper reports a study of 481 inexperienced and 120 experienced potential users on learning objects. Technology acceptance model’s constructs were used to conduct a longitudinal study across three phases (introduction, training and direct-use experience) to examine the formation and the changes in users’ beliefs and behavioral intention to use learning objects over time. The results showed that the rates of changes in users’ beliefs and behavioral intention toward learning objects usage were time-variant and were more predominant during the early stage (introduction to training) of learning objects usage than in the later stages (training to direct-use experience). The study confirmed that initial exposure through introduction and training was effective in improving inexperienced users’ beliefs and intentions to use learning objects. It also helped to reduce the belief and intention gaps that existed between experienced and inexperienced users. In addition, the influence of initial introduction and training on users’ beliefs and perceptions was sustained over time, thus further indicating their importance.     

From user interface design to the support of intelligent and adaptive interfaces: an overhaul of user interface software infrastracture

Research on adaptive interfaces in the past has lacked support from user interface tools which allow interfaces to be easily created and modified. Also, current user interface tools provide no support for user models which can collect task-oriented information about users. Developing an adaptive interface requires a user model and an adaptation strategy. It also, however, requires a user interface which can be adapted. The latter task is often time-consuming, especially in relation to more sophisticated user interfaces.

The paper presents a user interface design environment, UIDE, which has a different software infrastracture. Designers use high-level specifications to create a model of an application and links from the application to various interface components. The model is the heart of all the design and run-time support in UIDE, including automatic dialog sequencing and help generation. UIDE provides automatic support for collecting task-oriented information about users, by the use of its high-level specifications in its application model as a basic construct for a user model. Some examples of adaptive interfaces and adaptive help are presented that use the information that is collectable in UIDE.     

The TV-WEB project - combining internet and television – lessons learnt from the user experience studies

We present the results of the user experience studies conducted as part of the European SEE TV-WEB project activities. The SEE TV-WEB project aims to use the free digital terrestrial television (DTT) broadcasting frequency spectrum capacities for transmitting selected Internet content and ensuring at least some Internet experience via TV devices to the certain less advantaged segments of the population, or those in rural areas without broadband access. Five different test study cases are presented, four in Slovenia and one in Austria, each with different specific target user groups and their own dynamics. According to the project disposition goals the focus was on the elderly. Methods, such as think-aloud protocol in combination with a guided interview and observation of verbal as well as of non-verbal responses, were used. To ensure the repeatability of tests and to help guide the process, a special questionnaire was developed. The research questions focused on: the navigation and interaction concept, the content, the readability, and the overall acceptance and the perception of value of the TV-WEB service. More than 74 users participated in the user experience studies, 27 of them 65 years old or older. The results indicate that the presented navigation and interaction concept is indeed intuitive and simple enough to be used by most users with no or little effort. This is especially proven by the results from studies at both elderly citizens homes, where the majority of participants were 65 years old or older.     

Open source software: The effects of training on acceptance

Open Source Software (OSS) is an alternative to proprietary software. It is growing in popularity, which has brought about an increase in research interest. Most of the research studies have focused on identifying individual personal motives for participating in the development of an OSS project, analyzing specific solutions, or the OSS movement, itself. No studies have been found which have undertaken research on the impact of user experience and training on OSS. The study reported here sought to identify factors that predict acceptance of technologies based on OSS after training in these solutions. A research model based on the Technology Acceptance Model (Davis, 1989) was developed. Furthermore, the possible moderating effects of users’ gender, age and level of education were analyzed. It was found that external determinants such as user training, user fit, technological complexity and trainers’ support were important indicators in the success of adopting these solutions.     

Adaptive hypertext navigation based on user goals and context

Hypertext systems allow flexible access to topics of information, but this flexibility has disadvantages. Users often become lost or overwhelmed by choices. An adaptive hypertext system can overcome these disadvantages by recommending information to users based on their specific information needs and preferences. Simple associative matrices provide an effective way of capturing these user preferences. Because the matrices are easily updated, they support the kind of dynamic learning required in an adaptive system.HYPERFLEX, a prototype of an adaptive hypertext system that learns, is described. Informal studies with HYPERFLEX clarify the circumstances under which adaptive systems are likely to be useful, and suggest that HYPERFLEX can reduce time spent searching for information by up to 40%. Moreover, these benefits can be obtained with relatively little effort on the part of hypertext authors or users.The simple models underlying HYPERFLEX's performance may offer a general and useful alternative to more sophisticated modelling techniques. Conditions under which these models, and similar adaptation techniques, might be most useful are discussed.     

自适应网络学习用户界面设计和实现

An adaptive user interface helps to improve the quality of human-computer interaction. Most people at present join to Web-Based Learning by common browser. Due to the one-fits-all user interface, they have to face with the problem of lack of the support on personalized learning. The design and implementation of the adaptive user interface for Web-based learning in this paper is grounded in our work done before, for example interaction model,adaptive user models including domain models. The adaptivity is mainly expressed on learning contents and representation including layout as well as operation.     

智能汽车座舱人机交互任务复杂度分析方法

智能汽车座舱中的人机交互任务及行为直接影响车内用户体验.为了帮助汽车内外饰和人机交互界面设计师有效规避界面可用性差的风险,对智能汽车中人机交互行为进行了定量化的研究,总结了人机交互任务复杂度量化指标,挖掘了影响智能座舱内部人机交互复杂度的具体任务指标及权重分布,提出了基于熵的智能汽车人机交互任务复杂度测量方法,最终通过...     

A user-centric approach to dynamic adaptation of reusable communication services

The pervasiveness of electronic devices coupled with increasing resources within these devices has aided the explosion of available software services. While reusable software services have become more accessible and the cost of using these services has become cheaper, the increased number of services and access methods also increases the complexity for the user of these services, demanding too much attention from the user. On the other hand, automation can alleviate some of the complexity issues but at the expense of user control. We propose a balance between smart reusable integration, automation and user controllability, through a dynamically adaptive user-centric approach that utilizes goal-oriented intent modeling. This work leverages the convergence of services and providers for the user through reuse, autonomic adaptation of services to relieve the user’s of laborious and tedious tasks, while ensuring that the user’s end-goal remains central at all times. We applied our approach to the domains of collaborative communication as demonstration of the feasibility of the approach.