HCI WEEK

Content:
I believe Dr.Kanav introduced the vast doamin of HCI in a very simple ,lucid and understandable manner.I found one more definition of HCI from SIGCHI which says "it is a descipline concerned with design,evaluation and implementation of interactive computer systems for human use and with the study of major phenomenon around them." I think it preety much sums up  about the whole concept of HCI.The three components of HCI are Human,Computer and their interaction which is very obvious.Humans have limited capacity to process to information which actually put implications and constraints on the design.Information is recieved by sensory system,stored in memory and processed and applied by reasoning,problem solvingand also errors.All the users share the same capabilities with a common differnce. A computer system  also comprises of many elements. The interaction models translates between what the user wants and what the system does.
Interface is also a key aspect of HCI.There are seven basic principles in creating user interface design which you can look in wikipedia. Modern design models give user the center stage in desinging of any interface.It has become essential for designers to observe users at work and developing a understanding of how they interact with systems.It is very important because as Eric mentioned in his blog that a good HCI for any product will attract userswhile the bad one will result in loss of users.
A mobile phone is a very common and handy product of HCI.I would like to share my observation that I made during my days in India.In India the usability of touch screen phones like the "iphone" is still not widespread.People normally use phones which has controls via keys or buttons. Although these phones have all latest features like high definition graphics,3D games,camera ,music player,web service and many more.All these features are operated by keys. Although the features of phones of different companies are more or less same but their key controls and key positions are different.As a result the position of "enter" key of one phone turns out to be the position of "delete" key in other.As a result the user gets frustated and they are unwilling to change their mobile brand even if the others offer you a better deal.In this way the users are distributed which in a way has its own advantages and disadvantages.
I also found a fascinating article on potential application of HCI for aiding children with mental disorders like autism and bipolar disorer.By using HCI it is possible to analyze  and influence human perception and behaviour.Its really a nice article telling about application of HCI for treatment of disorders.U can read this article through this link:www.acm.org/crossroads/xrds12-2/mental.html.This also reminds me of the fascanating seminar presentation by Dr.Kanav.I was quite amazed to know that we can derive lot of applications in medical field through 3D games.The work that he is doing with Banner in rehabilitation centers is also commendable.We all know the value of cost effectiveness in every field and he and his team is able to device methods and devices for surgery just for 400$ which i guess is nothing  as compared to cost of  the conventional devices,its amazing.I feel I am more intersted in this field than ever after listening to him.

Posted by
Ashutosh Singraur