User experience: a complete HCI conversation
Philip J. Corriveau · 2010
When you think of creating a product, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Well, depending on who you are, that framing can be totally different. For an engineer it is all about the technology, for a planner it is all about the roadmap, for marketing it is all about the sale, for validation it is all about reliable functionality, and for the social scientists it is all about whether the product will serve user needs and meet the expectations of the experience.Within the general area of social science, again the framing can be different. Human Computer Interaction is more than designing interfaces based in software. HCI is also the ability to develop and standardize techniques for evaluating and comparing interfaces. It is also the development of predictive models that are built around the theories of interaction. In reality HCI is not one tool but a complex kit of tools that enables the creation of a fantastic user experience.Broadening the HCI conversation to include Ethnography and Human Factors allows an even more compelling toolkit to create the user experience. Ethnography allows us to discover the unmet needs for our future products. Human Factors methods apply rigor to the development process to ensure we stay on target for a complete user experience.When you lift the hood of user experience you find what can be a well oiled machine of social science components that can ultimately discover, define, develop and deploy something that is fascinating. Regardless of whether you are designing for a productive environment like the cockpit of a plane, the control machinery for a factory, or a consumer product like a 3D television, the experience should come first. What does the well-oiled machine look like when all the pillars of social science are included in the HCI conversation?Combining the skills and results of all of the social science disciplines creates the pillars of a foundation upon which any product can be developed.Today we look under the hood of user experience at Intel.