The Pocket PC

Analytical Essay # 116795

Computer and Technology > Hardware
Engineering

The Pocket PC

Looks at usability, or HCI, principles as adapted to the interface of the pocket-sized PC.

2,690 words () | 8 sources | APA | 2009 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper explores the effectiveness of the interaction between the human brain and the machine built to facilitate human tasks, in this case, the pocket-sized Sprint Ultravox Pocket PC, which is the most advanced PDA. The PDA is evaluated on factors such as memorability, recovery from errors, user satisfaction and ease of use. The paper concludes that the challenge for the pocket PC lies with understanding hierarchical data in direct reaction to its diminishing disk space.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
HCI Issues or Usability Attributes/Principles Used to Evaluate the Interface
Memorability
Recovery from Errors
User Satisfaction
Ease of Use
Recommendations for Improving the Interface Design
Recommendations for Improving the Interface Design

From the Paper:

"As far as memorability, we refer once again to HCI principles of methods of operation, this time referring to testing for memory retrieval as a means of measuring human association between two things where the user has to stop and think. This method of cognitive operation duplicates the cognitive structure of the human brain as a processor is intended to integrate the processing structure of the human being with the processing of the machine."

Sample of Sources Used:

Berkshire Encyclopedia of Human-Computer Interaction (2004). 2 vols. Berkshire.
Carrol, John (2003). HCI Models, Theories, and Frameworks: Toward a Multidisciplinary Science. San Francisco, CA: Morgan Kaufmann.
Encyclopedia of Human Computer Interaction. Ed. by Claude Ghaoui (2006). Hershey, Pa.: Idea Group.
Jacko, Julie and Sears, Andrew (2004). One cycle of the cognitive processor. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Idea Group Publishing.
Nittono, Hiroshi, Aya Hamada, and Tadao Hori (2003). Brain potentials after clicking a mouse: a new psychophysiological approach to human-computer interaction. Human Factors 45.4 (Winter 2003): 591(9).