Course Description: Human-Computer
Interaction
(SYST
469-001; Spring 2005)
Instructor:
Dr. Leonard Adelman
Office:
S&T II, Room #325; Phone # 703-993-1624
Office
Hours: Wednesdays, 3:30 - 4:10 (or by appointment)
E-Mail
Address: ladelman@gmu.edu
Teaching Assistant:
Mr. Matthew Fischl
Office:
Central Module, Room 17; Phone: 703-993-1696
Office
Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1-2
Email
Address: mfischl@gmu.edu
Text: J. Preece,
Y. Rogers, & H. Sharp. Interaction Design: Beyond Human-Computer
Interaction. Wiley & Sons, 2002.
Prerequisites:
IT 108 and IT/STAT 250
This course will cover
the principals of human-computer interaction: including information processing
design, cognitive models, ergonomics, and design metaphors. Students will learn to evaluate interface
design in terms of effectiveness, efficiency, and cost. (Systems engineering majors can not take this course for credit toward
their major. They need to take SYST 470.)
Student Evaluation Criteria
Midterm
Exam 35%
Class
Project 30%
Final
Exam 35%
I
use the full grading scale, including pluses and minuses. The
exams will
cover material presented in the text and class. The exams are closed-book and
closed-notes. The exam questions will probably be short-answer in format. There
will be a review period the session before the exams. Laptops can not be used
to take the exams.
Students
will work in pairs (of their choosing) to complete the class project. The
project can be (a) an initial design and evaluation of an interactive product
(e.g., website) or (b) an evaluation of two or more existing interactive
products. In either case, the projects need to be guided by user requirements
and usability goals. Each team will make a 15-minute presentation describing
their project. You should discuss you presentation topic with me to make sure
it is acceptable. Three-person teams might be acceptable if the project is
adequately large in scope or if students need teammates. Students who present
on April 27th will receive 2 additional points. So, a high A
presentation could be worth 32 instead of 30 points, which could easily be the
difference between a B+ and an A-.
Week 1 (1/26) What
is interaction design? (Ch. 1)
Week 2 (2/2) Understanding
and conceptualizing interaction (Ch. 2)
Week
3 (2/9)
Understanding
users (Ch. 3)
Week 4 (2/16) Design process (Ch. 6)
Week 5 (2/23) Establishing requirements (Ch. 7)
Week 6 (3/2) Prototyping (Ch. 8) and Review for midterm exam
Week 7 (3/9) Mid-Term Exam
Week 8 (3/16) No Class (Spring Recess)
Week 9 (3/23) Mid-Term Review and User-centered
approaches to interaction design (Ch. 9)
Week 10 (3/30)
Introducing evaluation (
Week 11 (4/6) User
testing and experiments (Ch. 14 to page 448)
Week 12 (4/13)
Asking users and experts (
Week 13 (4/20)
Designing for collaboration and communication (Ch. 4)
Week 14 (4/27)
Student Presentations
Week 15 (5/4) Student Presentations and Review for Final
Exam
Week 16 (5/11)
Final Exam
(only
on material after the mid‑term)