Interaction Design

Aims

The aim of this course is to provide an introduction to interaction design, with an emphasis on understanding and experiencing the user-centred design process, from conducting user research and requirements development to implementation and evaluation, while understanding the background to human-computer interaction.

Lectures

• Course overview and user research methods. Introduction to the course and practicals. User-Centred Design. User research methods.
• Keeping usera in mind. User research data analysis. Identifying users and stakeholders. Representing user goals and activities. Identifying and establishing requirements.
• Design and prototyping. Methods for exploring the design space. Prototyping and different kinds of prototypes.
• Visual and interaction design. Memory, perception, attention, and their implications for interaction design. Modalities of interaction, interaction design patterns, information architecture, and their implications for interaction design.
• Evaluation. Practical methods for evaluating designs. Evaluation methods without users. Evaluation methods with users.
• Case studies from industry and research. Guest lectures (the topics of these lectures are subject to change).

Objectives

By the end of the course students should

• have a thorough understanding of the user-centred design process and be able to apply it to interaction design;
• be able to design new user interfaces that are informed by principles of good design, and the principles of human visual perception, cognition and communication;
• be able to prototype and implement interactive user interfaces with a strong emphasis on users, usability and appearance;
• be able to evaluate existing or new user interfaces using multiple techniques;
• be able to compare and contrast different design techniques and to critique their applicability to new domains.

Recommended reading

* Preece, J., Rogers, Y. and Sharp, H. (2015). Interaction design. Wiley (4th ed.).