HCI (human-computer interaction) is a study of how humans interact with computers. This study is important, since computers are one of humankind’s most productive inventions that’s ever been built. But there are computers yet to be created which seamlessly interact with human beings. The recent developments in technology have made positive impacts on the human-computer interaction. There are corporations however, even progressive institutions, which are carving out a niche spot for the globe to come forth and experience the enhanced benefits reaped by the progress made in the HCI arena.
As we all know, the effectiveness of the current computer interface is broken. We’re still using mouse and keyboards to communicate with the sophisticated machine. In the realm of measurements, any form of human communication with a machine is usually not more than 50 bits per second; this is inclusive of speech and typing. That’s the maximum rate at which a human can transmit information to technology despite the upgradation in the sophistication. It is a known fact that when two or more humans interact, an individual’s senses gather more than 11 million bits per second from the environment. If you compare the two speeds of communication, you will notice a disparity between how we communicate with each other and how we communicate with a computer. This just makes consistent innovation a need in the realms of Human-Computer Interaction, in order to harness the full potential of computers.
Historically, developers have not paid much attention to computer’s ease-of-use. The field, however, saw light in the late 1970s after the emergence of personal computers. The appearance of the personal computer in the market also led to investments and developments in new operating systems, programming languages, and hardware. One of the earliest known applications which caused a similar human-computer interaction was an interactive computer game Pac-Man.
Many computer users today would argue that manufacturers are not paying much attention to make it completely “user-friendly.” The computer system developers might argue that computers are extremely complex products to design and the demand for the services that computers can provide has always outdriven the demand for ease-of-use. However, one may focus on how instead of monopolizing the potential of the computers to a select-few experts, who have learnt the computer’s language and interface, developers can try to make the computer learn from a user, about the user and cater to the user’s need.
HCI factors in when different users, especially with different conceptions or mental cognitions, have different feedbacks about their interactions with the computer. Each user is essential in their contribution to HCI and therefore bettering it, as all of them have different ways of learning and keeping knowledge and skills. HCI innovation musters inputs from related fields such as education and professional skills development. In addition, cultural and nationalities play an important part in the development and usage of HCI.
The more recent the research is, the more improvements are made in HCI. This debunks previous research findings, making them redundant in comparison to current findings and applications. Designing HCI in accordance to the user’s needs aids the necessary changes in the user-interface technology, offering new possibilities of interaction and collaboration. The faster the user adapts, consumes and masters the new interfaces in market, the more rapid user preferences changes, making innovation necessary to keep up with demand. Cybernetyx is one company that helps the education and professional industry by constantly innovating collaborative and interactive devices, which aims to make the world a better place.
About The Author: Sindhya Ravikumar
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