Chapter 2

Describe Schneiderman’s Eight

Golden Rules

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LEARNING OUTCOME:

• Organize a various styles of interfaces interaction of software and hardware products (P3, PLO2)

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Schneiderman’s Eight Golden Rules of Interface Design

Golden rules and heuristics

• Provide a convenient and succinct summary of the key

principles of interface design.

• ‘Broad brush’ design rules – may not always applicable

to every situation.

• There are many sets of rules :

– Nielsen‘s 10 Heuristics (Chapter 3)

– Norman‘s 7 Principles (chapter 1)

– Shneiderman‘s 8 Golden Rules

Schneiderman’s Eight Golden Rules of Interface

1. Strive for consistency

2. Enable frequent users to use shortcuts

3. Offer informative feedback

4. Design dialogs to yield closure

5. Offer error prevention and simple error handling

6. Permit easy reversal of actions

7. Support internal locus of control

8. Reduce short-term memory load

Strive for consistency

• Strive for consistency in action sequences, layout, terminology, command use and so on.

• Identical Terminology (prompts, menus, help)

• Consistent visual layout (fonts, color, etc.)

• Exceptions: – Confirmation of deletion

– No password echoing

– Limited

Enable frequent users to use shortcuts

• Enable frequent users to use shortcuts, such as abbreviations, special key sequences and macros, to perform regular, familiar actions more quickly.

Offer Informative Feedback

• Offer informative feedback for every user action, at a level appropriate to the magnitude of the action.

• For every user action, the system should provide feedback

Design Dialogs To Yield Closure

• Design dialogs to yield closure so that the user knows when they have completed a task.

• Action sequences should have a beginning, middle, and end.

• Feedback provides sense of accomplishment. • Ex. Purchasing items via internet has a clearly

defined step-by-step process

Offer Error Prevention and Simple Error Handling

• Offer Error Prevention and Simple Error Handling so that, ideally, users are prevented from making mistakes and, if they do, they are offered clear and informative instructions to enable them to recover.

Permit Easy Reversal of Actions

• Permit Easy Reversal of Actions in order to relieve anxiety and encourage exploration, since the user knows that he can always return to the previous state.

Support Internal Locus of Control

• Support Internal Locus of Control so that user is in control of the system, which responds to his actions.

• Experienced operators want to feel in control. – User is in charge of the interface – Interface rapidly responds to the user

• Lack of control builds anxiety and dissatisfaction. - Surprising interface actions - Tedious actions - Difficulty in obtaining necessary ability - Difficulty in producing action

• Good rules: Avoid a causality, make users initiators rather than responders

Reduce Short Term Memory Load

• Reduce short term memory load by keeping display simple, consolidating multiple page displays and providing time for learning action sequences.

Reduce Short-term Memory Load ►Rule of thumb: Humans can remember 7 +/- 2

chunks of information

►Displays kept simple

►Multiple page displays should be consolidated

►Training if using codes, mnemonics, long sequence of actions

►Online access to command-syntax, abbreviations, codes, etc.

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ACTIVITY • Based on Shneiderman‘s 8 Golden Rules,

Discuss in Group :

1. www.psp.edu.my

2. www.poliku.edu.my

3. www.ptss.edu.my

4. www.polimas.edu.my

5. www.puo.edu.my

6. www.uthm.edu.my

7. www.unimas.edu.my

• Present Your Finding Prepared by Mdm PYTan

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