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Georgia Institute of Technology

Human-Computer Interaction I: Fundamentals & Design Principles

Georgia Institute of Technology via edX

Overview

This course takes you through the first eight lessons of CS6750: Human-Computer Interaction as taught in the Georgia Tech Online Master of Science in Computer Science program.

In this course, you’ll take the first steps toward being a solid HCI practitioner and researcher. You’ll learn the fundamentals of how HCI relates to fields like user experience design, user interface design, human factors engineering, and psychology. You’ll also learn how human-computer interaction has influence across application domains like healthcare and education; technology development like virtual and augmented reality; and broader ideas like context-sensitive computing and information visualization.

You’ll then dive into the fundamentals of human-computer interaction. You’ll learn three views of the user’s role in interface design: the behaviorist ‘processor’ view, the cognitivist ‘predictor’ view, and the situationist ‘participant’ view. You’ll discover how these different views of the user’s role affect the scope we use to evaluate interaction. These perspectives will be crucial as you move forward in designing interfaces to ensure you’re considering what goes on inside the user’s head, as well as in the environment around them.

You’ll then learn the gulfs of execution and evaluation, which determine how easily the user can accomplish their goals in a system and how well they can understand the results of their actions. All of user interface design can be seen as taking steps to bridge these gulfs. You’ll also investigate the notion of direct manipulation, which shortens the distance between the user and the objects they are manipulating in the interface. With these tools, you’ll be well-equipped to start designing effective interfaces.

You’ll then take a deeper dive into what humans are even capable of accomplishing. You’ll learn the limitations of human sensing and memory and how we must be aware of the cognitive load we introduce on the user while using our interfaces. Cognitive load can have an enormous impact on a user’s satisfaction with an interface, and must be kept in mind as you begin your career as a designer.

You’ll finally conclude with an overview of the major design principles in human-computer interaction. Curated from the work of Don Norman, Jakob Nielsen, Ronald Mace, Larry Constantine, and Lucy Lockwood, these design principles cover revolutionary ideas in the design of interfaces: discoverability, affordances, perceptibility, constraints, error tolerance, and more. These principles are crucial whether you move forward as a designer, an evaluator, a front-end engineer, or any other role in technology design.

By the end of the course, you’ll have an understanding of where HCI sits in the broader field, a grasp of the goals of HCI, and a foundation in core principles that inform interface design.

Taught by

David Joyner

Reviews

4.9 rating, based on 13 Class Central reviews

4.6 rating at edX based on 5 ratings

Start your review of Human-Computer Interaction I: Fundamentals & Design Principles

  • Devid Joyner is a very good instructor. Lots of examples are given in this course. Lots of leaning and reading sources are provided within the course itself. It is a self- passed course so no time-boundaries to complete the course.
  • Anonymous
    Amazing course. Dr. David Joyner was an amazing instructor throughout the course, I have learned so much from him. The way he lectures us is so fascinating and interesting. In fact, he inspired me to pursue a masters degree in HCI after finishing my bachelors degree.
  • Profile image for Amber L.
    Amber L.
    I highly recommend anyone interested in design in tech, HCI, and UX UI design to take this course!

    Professor David Joyner designed these courses very well; the knowledge of design and human perception must be used in course planning.

    This is a course you will want to continue in front of your desk, and you will be excited about the knowledge you are discovering!
    Profound theories are always followed by examples making them easy to understand!

    I had a great learning experience taking this class online.

  • Anonymous
    This was a great class. I enjoyed the interactive course which kept me engaged in the learning environment. An added benefit was suggested reading material that supplemented the course material and gave a more in-depth understanding of the material. I would recommend the course.

    I would like to see all the reading materials consolidated in one area for ease of access.
  • Anonymous
    This course is highly recommended. I like that the course is divided into several small chunks which makes it easier to learn. I think that the instructor is interactive and really makes learning fun. The course is well designed and a must for those who wants to learn about HCI.
  • Anonymous
    The course was insightful as David walked us through it. In particular, the many Principles of Interaction Design sourced from different authors and merged into 15 by David really revealed a lot of real-life situations regarding how interfaces affect usability.
  • Anonymous
    This class provided a great introduction to HCI principles for designing interfaces. The professor presented the material in a way that was easy to understand and the graphics featured in the videos helped reinforce the ideas presented.
  • Profile image for Dian Palupi
    Dian Palupi
    Interesting course with an exciting video. although I need a week to accomplish this course I didn't feel boring
  • Anonymous
    HCI is a very well designed course. It makes the learners understand the basic concepts of human computer interaction in a very easy and interactive way. The video lectures along with the transcripts are very helpful in learning the core concepts of HCI.
  • Anonymous
    The instructor presented the course material in a very engaging way. You can tell that great effort was put into the preparation, execution and editing of this course. I'll be looking for other courses by David Joyner.

    Thank you!
  • Anonymous
    Well organized. Everything is explained in a fun and engaging way. So sudden learning curve or anything like that. I am really hopeful going through the rest of the course. Thanks to everyone put there efforts setting it up.
  • Anonymous
    I liked that this course was very accomodating for one's own personal opinion and that we were able to collaborate with others frequently.
  • Anonymous
    i just completed the course. but don't know where to get my certificate for completion of course. as i choose paid course.

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