As our technology gets more complex, so do the interfaces we use to
communicate with that technology. Communication breakdown in these
interfaces is evident all around us: video recorder remote controls with
functionalities too complex to understand, and repeated frustration at
call-centre automation via less than perfect speech recognition, are two
very visible instances.
This doesn't need to be the case: humans are more complex than any devices
we have yet created, but we communicate with each other effortlessly. This
research priority area focuses on what it is that makes a human-computer
interface, particularly one where speech is used as the mode of
communication, effective. Can we achieve effectiveness by making these
interfaces more 'natural', and if so, how natural should such interfaces be?
In particular, what can we learn from human-human communication? What
aspects of communication between humans does it make sense to attempt to
mimic in human-machine interfaces? Can our understanding of the production
and perception of music help make interfaces more effective and affective?
By bringing together expertise from HCSNet contributing disciplines as
diverse as speech processing, linguistics, psychology, human-computer
interaction, graphics, music, and audio-visual communication, this priority
area aims to shed new light on how we can improve human-machine interfaces.
Events
- Workshop on Effective Interactive Interfaces, Sydney, Sept 27-28, 2006.
- Joint HCSNet/HxI Workshop on Human Issues in Interaction and Interactive Interfaces, Sydney, Sept 13-14, 2007.
- Second HCSNet Workshop on the Use of Vision in HCI (VisHCI2007), Adelaide, Dec 2, 2007.
- Joint HCSNet/HxI Workshop on Collaboration and Communicative Tools for Distributed Communities, Sydney, Dec 6-7, 2007.
