Introduction to the new usability

ABSTRACT

This paper introduces the motivation for and concept of the "new usability" and positions it against existing approaches to usability. It is argued that the contexts of emerging products and systems mean that traditional approaches to usability engineering and evaluation are likely to prove inappropriate to the needs of "digital consumers." The paper briefly reviews the contributions to this special issue in terms of their relation to the idea of the "new usability" and their individual approaches to dealing with contemporary usability issues. This helps provide a background to the "new usability" research agenda, and the paper ends by posing what are argued to be the central challenges facing the area and those which lie at the heart of the proposed research agenda.

REFERENCES

• 1: Naohiko Kohtake , Jun Rekimoto , Yuichiro Anzai, InfoPoint: A Device that Provides a Uniform User Interface to Allow Appliances to Work Together over a Network, Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, v.5 n.4, p.264-274, December 2001 [doi>10.1007/s007790170005]
• 2: Lowe, A. 2001. Future usability issues for Interactive TV. UsableiTV 1, 1, 6--9. Abstracted online at http://www.itv-network.org.
• 3: Nielsen, J., Ed. 1994. Usability laboratories. Behav. Inform. Tech. 13, 1--2.
• 4: Sharpe, B. 2002. Appliance computing. Appliance Design, 1, 1 (Feb.), 2--7. Abstracted online at http://www.appliancedesign.org.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.2 User Interfaces (D.2.2, H.1.2, I.3.6)
          Subjects: User interface management systems (UIMS)

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.1 MODELS AND PRINCIPLES
      H.1.2 User/Machine Systems
  H.5 INFORMATION INTERFACES AND PRESENTATION (I.7)
      H.5.2 User Interfaces (D.2.2, H.1.2, I.3.6)
          Subjects: Theory and methods; Interaction styles (e.g., commands, menus, forms, direct manipulation); User-centered design

  J. Computer Applications
  J.7 COMPUTERS IN OTHER SYSTEMS
      Subjects: Consumer products

General Terms:
Design, Human Factors

Keywords:
Internet appliances, design, new usability, ubiquitous computing, usability engineering