Predictive text input in a mobile shopping assistant: methods and interface design

ABSTRACT

The fundamental nature of grocery shopping makes it an interesting domain for intelligent mobile assistants. Even though the central role of shopping lists is widely recognized, relatively little attention has been paid to facilitating shopping list creation and management. In this paper we introduce a predictive text input technique that is based on association rules and item frequencies. We also describe an interface design for integrating the predictive text input with a web-based mobile shopping assistant. In a user study we compared two interfaces, one with text input support and one without. Our results indicate that, even though shopping list entries are typically short, our technique makes text input significantly faster, decreases typing error rates and increases overall user satisfaction.

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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: Interaction styles (e.g., commands, menus, forms, direct manipulation)

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.3 INFORMATION STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL
      H.3.5 On-line Information Services
          Subjects: Web-based services

General Terms:
Design, Experimentation

Keywords:
adaptive, recommendations, usability, user interface