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    The integration of task and dialogue modelling in the early stages of user interface design : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Computer Science at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2003) Scogings, Christopher John
    In the early stages of the design of graphical user interfaces, models and notations are required for describing user tasks and for describing the structure of the human-computer dialogue to support these tasks. These descriptions should ideally be linked, but in practice task modelling and dialogue modelling are conducted in isolation with differing notations. The research reported in this thesis reviews both task and dialogue modelling and describes how the divide between the two can be bridged via the Lean Cuisine+ notation. Lean Cuisine+ was developed as a semi-formal graphical notation for describing the underlying behaviour of direct manipulation user interfaces (Phillips, 1995). The notation has a significant advantage over other dialogue modelling notations in that it can represent task sequences within the context of the dialogue structure and hence bring dialogue modelling and task modelling together. The research describes how Lean Cuisine+ has been analysed and modified in order to simplify it and to make it more suitable for use with a supporting software tool. There exists a significant gap between user interface design and the design of entire software applications. This is true even for the latest software engineering notation, UML, which has become the de facto industry standard. The thesis reviews UML and reveals its shortcomings regarding support for user interface design. The research suggests a solution for the problem by proposing a method for the early stages of user interface design that uses Lean Cuisine+, in order to combine both task and dialogue modelling, and is constructed to form an integral part of the overall software design process advocated by the authors of UML. The method is applied to two case studies. A prototype Software Environment for Lean Cuisine+ with UML (SELCU) has been developed to enable the construction, storage, editing and printing of Lean Cuisine+ specifications, and to partially support the method. The thesis describes the design, implementation and use of this software support environment. Finally, preliminary work by the author on the automatic generation of Lean Cuisine+ specifications is reported. This shows promise, and has been further developed recently in associated masters-level research in which extensions to SELCU have been implemented.
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    Visually representative web history browser : a thesis submitted to the College of Creative Arts, Massey University, New Zealand, as fulfilment for the degree Master of Design
    (Massey University, 2007) Hodgkinson, Gray
    The familiar computer graphic user interface (GUI) makes extensive use of visually representative devices such as folders and files. These symbols help the user deal with computer data and operations that otherwise have little or no physical form. The computer’s underlying complexity is symbolised for the user, who is then able to manipulate the computer by interacting directly with the interface. The early development of computer interface design was largely the domain of software and hardware developers. Many sound principles of user interaction and testing were established and provided essential guidance for new generations of interface designers. As computer technology and its tools became more widely available, a broader range of designers began contributing, including those from product design and visual communication. This study is written from the point of view of a “visual designer” – a designer who began his career in graphic design and who has moved towards interface design out of curiosity and a desire to proffer a different attitude and approach to interface issues. The study therefore will demonstrate a design process that many visual designers will be able to identify with. The process includes research, analysis, methodical progression and artistic inspiration. The artistic inspiration in this case comes from the Constructivist artist El Lissitzky, and will illustrate the significant contribution that art can make to interface design. This art-influenced design process was presented at the 2005 Ed-Media World Conference on Educational Multimedia, (Montreal, 2005). The enthusiastic response and discussion provided encouragement to continue in this direction. In the following year another presentation, which included the working prototype, was presented as part of a keynote speaker presentation at the 2006 Siggraph Taipei Conference, National Chiao Tung University, Taipei. The specific task chosen to work with in this study is that of Web browser history. As a user browses the Web the computer records a list of visited websites. The first few generations of browsers presented this information as a simple list, but this approach incorporated many flaws and caused problems for users. More recent browsers provide more options, but significant issues remain. This study offers solutions to several of these problems. The resulting design prototype is named “isoBrowser”. It is the result of the alternative design process outlined above and offers alternative methods of visualising, organising and manipulating data. The prototype is not intended to be fully functional nor “live”. However, it is sufficiently operable so as to test interface interaction and user response. A fully functional version, operably and aesthetically complete, would be the subject of further development.