Some lessons from an exercise in specification

Authors:
David M. Frohlich;Paul Luff
Affiliations:
Department of Sociology, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK;Department of Sociology, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK
Venue:
Human-Computer Interaction
Year:
1989

Citing 8
Cited 0

The human factors of computer graphics interaction techniques

IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications
Fundamentals of interactive computer graphics

Fundamentals of interactive computer graphics
Foundations of dialog engineering: the development of human-computer interaction. Part II

International Journal of Man-Machine Studies
A virtual protocol model for computer-human interaction

International Journal of Man-Machine Studies
The Alvey DHSS demonstrator project: applying intelligent knowledge-based systems to social security

Information Age
Formal models and techniques in human-computer interaction

Human factors for informatics usability
Using formal specifications in the design of a human-computer interface

Communications of the ACM
Lexical and pragmatic considerations of input structures

ACM SIGGRAPH Computer Graphics

Quantified Score

Hi-index	0.00

Visualization

Abstract

Formulating precise descriptions of human-computer interactions is a prerequisite for the principled design, implementation, and evaluation of interactive systems. This article reports an exercise in interaction specification using Foley and Van Dam's (1982) multilayered method of documenting the design of a user-computer interface. The specification was used to communicate the intended behaviour of a Forms Helper system from a design team to an implementation team. The ease with which the interaction could be represented at each of Foley and Van Dam's four levels of abstraction is discussed, and recommendations are made for improving the method in places where its guidance was unclear or inadequate. The value of the method is examined prior to a discussion of the potential role of such specifications in the design and development cycle.