Interaction technique: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 00:49, 14 December 2010

Revision as of 23:28, 28 December 2010

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[[Image:Foldndrop.png|thumb|right|Fold n' Drop, a [[Crossing-based interface|crossing-based]] interaction technique for dragging and dropping files between overlapping windows.]]

An '''interaction technique''', '''user interface technique''' or '''input technique''' is a combination of [[Computer_hardwareComputer hardware|hardware]] and [[software]] elements that provides a way for computer users to accomplish a single task. For example, one can go back to the previously visited page on a Web browser by either [[Point-and-click|clicking]] a [[Button_Button (computing)|button]], pressing a [[Computer_keyboard_keysComputer keyboard keys|key]], performing a [[mouse gesture]] or uttering a [[Hands-free computing|speech command]]. It is a widely-used term in [[human-computer interaction]]. In particular, the term "new interaction technique" is frequently used to introduce a novel user interface design idea.

== Definition ==

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Although there is no general agreement on the exact meaning of the term "interaction technique", the most popular definition is from the [[computer graphics]] literature:

{{"|An interaction technique is a way of using a physical input/output device to perform a generic task in a human-computer dialogue. <ref name="foley">J.D. Foley, A. van Dam, S.K. Feiner and J.F. Hughes (1990), [[Computer Graphics: Principles and Practice]], Addison-Wesley.</ref> }}

A more recent variation is:

{{"|An interaction technique is the fusion of input and output, consisting of all software and hardware elements, that provides a way for the user to accomplish a task. <ref name="tucker">A.B. Tucker (2004), Computer Science Handbook, Second Edition. Chapman & Hall/CRC. p20-2.</ref> }}

=== The computing view ===

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=== The user's view ===

From the user's perspective, an interaction technique is a way to perform a single computing task and can be informally expressed with user instructions or [[Scenario_Scenario (computing)|usage scenarios]]. For example "to delete a file, right-click on the file you want to delete, then click on the delete item".

=== The designer's view ===

From the user interface designer's perspective, an interaction technique is a well-defined solution to a specific [[user interface design]] problem. Interaction techniques as conceptual ideas can be refined, extended, modified and combined. For example, [[contextual menu|contextual menus]]s are a solution to the problem of rapidly selecting commands. [[Pie menus]] are a radial variant of [[contextual menu|contextual menus]]s. [[Marking menu]]s combine pie menus with [[gesture recognition]].

=== Level of granularity ===

Interaction techniques are usually fine-grained entities. For example, a [[desktop environment]] is too complex to be an interaction technique, whereas [[Exposé_Exposé (Mac_OS_XMac OS X)|Exposé]] fits the common intuitive understanding of the term perfectly well. In general, a user interface can be seen as a combination of many interaction techniques, some of which are not necessarily as explicit as [[GUI_widgetGUI widget|widgets]].

== Interaction tasks and ___domain objects ==

An [[interaction task]] is "the unit of an entry of information by the user" ,<ref name="foley"/>, such as entering a piece of text, issuing a command, or specifying a 2D position. A similar concept is that of [[___domain object]], which is a piece of application data that can be manipulated by the user.<ref name="mbl">M. Beaudouin-Lafon (2000) Instrumental interaction: an interaction model for designing post-WIMP user interfaces. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.</ref>

Interaction techniques are the glue between physical I/O devices and interaction tasks or ___domain objects.<ref name="mbl"/><ref name="dragicevic">P. Dragicevic and J-D Fekete (2004) The Input Configurator toolkit: towards high input adaptability in interactive applications. In Proceedings of the Working Conference on Advanced Visual interfaces.</ref> Different types of interaction techniques can be used to map a specific device to a specific ___domain object. For example, different [[Handwriting_recognitionHandwriting recognition|gesture alphabets]] exist for [[Pen_computingPen computing|pen-based]] text input.

In general, the less compatible the device is with the ___domain object, the more complex the interaction technique.<ref name="buxton">W. Buxton (1986) There's More to Interaction than Meets the Eye: Some Issues in Manual

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New Jersey, 319-337.</ref> For example, using a mouse to specify a 2D point involves a trivial interaction technique, whereas using a mouse to rotate a 3D object requires more creativity to design the technique and more lines of code to implement it.

A current trend is to avoid complex interaction techniques by matching physical devices with the task as close as possible,<ref name="buxton"/>, such as exemplified by the field of [[Tangible_User_InterfaceTangible User Interface|tangible computing]]. But this is not always a feasible solution. Furthermore, device/task incompatibilities are unavoidable in [[computer accessibility]], where a [[Switch_AccessSwitch Access|single switch]] can be used to control the whole computer environment.

== Interaction style ==

Interaction techniques that share the same [[Interface_metaphorInterface metaphor|metaphor]] or design principles can be seen as belonging to the same [http://www.interaction-design.org/encyclopedia/interaction_styles.html interaction style]. General examples are [[Command_line_interfaceCommand line interface|command line]] and [[direct manipulation]] user interfaces.

== Visualization technique ==

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== Research and innovation ==

A large part of research in [[human-computer interaction]] involves exploring easier-to-learn or more efficient interaction techniques for common computing tasks. This includes inventing new ([[post-WIMP]]) interaction techniques, possibly relying on methods from [[user interface design]], and assessing their efficiency with respect to existing techniques using methods from [[experimental psychology]]. Examples of scientific venues in these topics are the [http://www.acm.org/uist UIST] and the [[CHI_CHI (conference)|CHI]] conferences. Other research focuses on the specification of interaction techniques, sometimes using formalisms such as [[Petri nets]] for the purposes of [[formal verification]].<ref name="schyn">Schyn, A., Navarre, D., Palanque, P., and Porcher Nedel, L. 2003. Formal description of a multimodal interaction technique in an immersive virtual reality application. In Proceedings of the 15th French-Speaking Conference on Human-Computer interaction on 15eme Conference Francophone Sur L'interaction Homme-Machine (Caen, France, November 25 - 2825–28, 2003). T. Baudel, Ed. IHM 2003, vol. 51. ACM, New York, NY, 150-157. </ref>.

== See also ==

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== External links ==

* [http://www.acm.org/uist/archive/html/videos.html UIST video archive]

* [http://designinginterfaces.com/ Patterns for effective interaction design]

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{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Interaction Technique}}

[[Category:User interface techniques]]

[[Category:User interface]]