Human-Computer Interaction

Introduction
Human-computer interaction (HCI) involves the relationships and interfaces that exist between users and technology, particularly computers. HCI combines the fields of psychology, sociology, anthropology, computer science, and linguistics and studies the impacts of human-centered design in technology. It is an often-studied discipline in the field of technical communication, as technical communication, by its nature, must be performed through the human-computer interaction process. For example, when a user accesses a knowledge-base and reads a help article, they are a human interacting with a computer.

In the context of technical communication, HCI most often concerns user experience, information design, and user interfaces.

History
The most ubiquitous interface in human-computer interactions is the graphical user interface (GUI). Xerox first employed the GUI in its Palo Alto Research Center in 1973. Inspired by this, Steve Jobs went on to champion the GUI in 1979 by developing the line of computers that would eventually lead to the Apple Macintosh. Since then, GUIs have proliferated through most forms of technology. Virtually all software written today that is intended for human use contains some form of interface.

Academics have promoted interdisciplinary studies within technical communication by supporting the inclusion of HCI concepts. Technical communication and human-computer interaction have both historically found difficulty expressing their identities. Their intersection helps both fields broaden the scopes of their interests and better articulate their goals and priorities.

Topics in human-computer interaction
Human-computer interaction is a broad subject and covers many topics. Because it draws from so many different fields, the details of HCI can differ vastly. For computer science, HCI focuses on the technology side. For psychology, it focuses on the human aspect. For technical communicators, the focus is on the interaction itself. Three topics are of the most importance for technical communicators: user experience, information design, and user interface. Though all three topics are parts of the process of human-computer interaction, information design and user interfaces are included in the more abstract concept of a "user experience." While not the only topics covered by user experience, information design and user interfaces are of the most relevance to technical communicators.

User experience
User experience (UX) describes the experience of users as they use a system, particularly an interface. More specifically, professionals and academics in the UX field study the factors and processes necessary for creating a good user experience—that is, a user experience that ". . . meets the exact needs of the [user], without fuss or bother." Industry leaders consider simplicity and elegance to be the gold standards of good UX design.

Research in human-computer interaction typically aims to determine best practices and effective designs for interfaces by studying how users interact with an interface as well as the results of these interactions. HCI researchers study interactions by administering experiments, designed to mimic a task or function involved with the interface, to control groups. Sometimes these tasks or functions are representative of a best-case use case, while other times, they are representative of a negative or atypical user case. When testing all areas of an interface, researchers collect robust data that is used to improve the product and the human-computer interaction process.

Knowing the background and needs of users allows a UX professional to design an optimal user experience within an interface. Peter Morville, a prolific UX researcher and leader in the field, describes a good user experience with seven characteristics in a "honeycomb" pattern. The characteristics are:
 * 1) Useful: original and fulfills a need
 * 2) Usable: easy to use
 * 3) Desirable: design elements evoke appreciation
 * 4) Findable: navigable and locatable
 * 5) Accessible: usable by those with disabilities
 * 6) Credible: develops and maintains trust
 * 7) Valuable: delivers value

UX, being a component of HCI, shares many traits with technical communication, such as a focus on the interaction process between humans and technology. An analysis of 502 job postings for technical communicators and UX professionals found that technical communicators were well-qualified for work as UX designers, developers, architects, managers, and researchers with minimal expansion of competencies.

Information design
The International Institute for Information Design defines information design as ". . . the defining, planning, and shaping of the contents of a message and the environments in which it is presented, with the intention to satisfy the information needs of the intended recipient." Put simply, information design is the presentation of information in a way that most benefits the user. In the context of technology, and thus human-computer interaction, it involves the presentation of information through technological means, such as a computer.

A technical communicator's role in information design lies in the content. The technical communicator translates raw source material to a level that is appropriate for the audience, then uses information design skills to determine how best to display the finished content.

User interface
In human-computer interaction, the user interface (UI) is the space where human interaction with technology occurs. The UI most often refers to the GUI, but emerging technologies have expanded the breadth of UI to include natural user interfaces, or NUI, such as ones with voice recognition and motion-sensing capabilities. Software in its lowest state is intangible, so a UI gives the user a means by which they can interact with the software.

As with information design, technical communicators typically work with the content contained behind the UI. However, they may have some involvement, whether minimal or pivotal, in the design of the UI so that it most accurately meets the needs of its users.

Usability
Usability has been discussed as a core component of a good user experience, and it is therefore a core component of a good user interface. The usability of an interface is its ease of access or use. The features of an interface design combined with the context of the user determine its usability. A usable interface will have three main qualities:


 * 1) It should be easy for the user to become familiar with and competent in using the user interface during the first contact with the website. For example, if a travel agent’s website is a well-designed one, the user should be able to move through the sequence of actions to book a ticket quickly.
 * 2) It should be easy for users to achieve their objective through using the website. If a user has the goal of booking a flight, a good design will guide him/her through the easiest process to purchase that ticket.
 * 3) It should be easy to recall the user interface and how to use it on subsequent visits. So, a good design on the travel agent’s site means the user should learn from the first time and book a second ticket just as easily.

Accessibility
As with usability, accessibility is a member of Morville's user experience honeycomb. Accessibility is the ability for all individuals to access and navigate an interface. Usability and accessibility are similar, but there is a key difference in each: when an interface has poor usability, the user has a poor user experience; when an interface has poor accessibility, the user is excluded and has no user experience.

Accessibility is a term often used when describing the exclusion of those with disabilities, but it covers the exclusion of any person. This exclusion can be physical, conceptual, economic, cultural, or social. With the emergence of new types of user interfaces and new ways to interact with computers, more issues regarding accessibility have been raised. One such issue is how to make NUIs accessible to those with certain physical impairments.