School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics

University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg

Human Computer Interaction

Class Test
Dr. Hima Vadapalli
10.15 - 12:15, 5th September, 2017
Instructions
This is an closed book test.
There are 45 marks in total. 45 will count as 100%.
You have 120 minutes to complete the test.

Question 1. {29 Marks}

1. A mental model is defined as “what a user believes about a system/program at hand”.

Explain the two important elements of this definition. {3 Marks}

2. Below are some important properties of a prototype. Discuss each property in 3-4 sen-
tences. {4
Marks}
(a) easy to change
(b) allows to test key design concepts

3. What is direct manipulation in the realm of HCI? State two advantages and one disad-
vantage of using direct manipulation as an interaction framework. {5 Marks}

4. Why is Normans model of interaction one of the most influential models in HCI? Explain
how this model can be used to demonstrate user problems such as ‘gulf of execution’ and
’gulf of evaluation’ in ATM machines. {5 Marks}

5. Consider the instances of scroll bars on Windows versus the Mac OSX in Figure 1. Win-
dows has the left arrow at the left and right arrow at the right, where as Mac OSX has the
arrows side by side. Explain the placement of arrows on these systems using the concepts
“mental models” and “Fitts’ Law”. {4 Marks}

Figure 1: Windows versus Mac OSX

1
 6. Predictability and Familiarity are said to be two of the important principles for building
mental models for learnable interfaces. Explain these principles and their importance for
building effective models.
{4 Marks}

7. State the difference and relationship between ‘Usability’ and ‘User Experience’.
{4 Marks}

Question 2. {6 Marks}
You have been assigned responsibility for designing a vision based “image browser” using hand
gestures and/or voice prompts.
1. Which prototype representation would you use and why? {3 Marks}

2. How would you test the usability of your design? {3 Marks}

Question 3. {10 Marks}

Optical Character Recognition (OCR) provides an effective way of non verbal communication,
and has a potential of being used in HCI.
1. Come up with a detailed prototype for designing an OCR based user interface interaction
model. All components of the model, along with data type and collection should be
included. {8 Marks}
2. What are the disadvantages you foresee with a system based on OCR. {2 Marks}