|
|
| Designing for interaction: mapping task and information |
 |
The
problem with designing for interaction is not the
actual process of collecting the functionality and
providing this in some sort to the customer, but
organizing the functionality such that the complete
offering makes sense to the user in the context
of the task.
You can recognize the failing interaction by the work around found. Take for example the image to the right. It shows a console with a trashcan for the paper towels. But where are the clean ones?
As the image below, on the left shows, many users had the same problem, which resulted in a stack of clean towels being placed next to the sink. Some investigation revealed the 'official' location of the clean towels, which was located above the trashcan. |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
| Another nice example is the dish washing machine below, which I encountered at a company. It was a very nice and silent model. Nicely detailed interface, small lights, delicate buttons and so on. The only problem was that because it was so beautifully nice and silent, nobody knew it was running. Consequence was that people would simply pull it open. They soon adopted the behavior of mounting a piece of paper whenever it was on. |
|
|
|
| A good example is shown in the figure below. Two different solutions to the same problem: road maps. On the left, the overview of available Swiss maps, on the right an overview of the available French maps. At a first glance, both provide the same information: a detailed overview of what can be found where in the specific country, although the French maps do this a little less economically as there is some overlap. |
|
 |
|
| The task the user will try to fulfill with these maps is to go from point A to point B. The producers of the French maps have recognized that there are some points A and points B which are more frequently moved between than others, and have provided maps accordingly; they have provided the information on how to move from one point to the other. The producers of the Swiss maps, however, provide data on the location of points A and B, and leave it up to the user to discover what combination of maps is needed for movement between them. |
|
| The spin of interaction design is not the ability to provide data but the ability to organization of information to fit the task at hand. There are simple rules you must follow to enable this: you have to provide information on what is possible (direct the users in the right direction), you must provide feedback while in the process of usage. |
|
|
|
|
