User interface

About: User interface is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 85402 publications have been published within this topic receiving 1728377 citations. The topic is also known as: UI & input method.

The impact of interface usability on trust in Web retailers

Abstract: Web retailing is expected to grow at aggressive rates in future years, but lack of trust on the part of potential customers can impede this growth. So, as transactions through the Internet develop and mature, success will largely be dependent on gaining and maintaining this trust. It has been suggested that the quality of the user interface of the Web site is a determinant of the initial establishment of trust. Describes a study where 66 subjects were asked to perform some predefined book purchasing task in a series of sites with varying interface quality. A strong relationship between interface quality and trust was found and some components of user interface quality were more important than others. Discusses the implications for Web site design.

Unified messaging methods and systems for communication and cooperation among distributed agents in a computing environment

Abstract: The present invention provides a Unified Messaging system with an emphasis on ubiquitous access and dynamic presentation of the information and services supported by an agent community. The present invention allows queries across dynamically changing, complex information; shared context and reference resolution among applications; and flexible translation of multimedia data. Utilizing an Open Agent Architecture, the present invention allows a user to receive multiple information types, such as email, voicemail, and multimedia data, utilizing a single user interface, such as a phone. Communication and cooperation between agents are brokered by one or more facilitators, which are responsible for matching requests, from users and agents, with descriptions of the capabilities of other agents. It is not generally required that a user or agent know the identities, locations, or number of other agents involved in satisfying a request, and relatively minimal effort is involved in incorporating new agents and “wrapping” legacy applications. Extreme flexibility is achieved through an architecture organized around the declaration of capabilities by service-providing agents, the construction of arbitrarily complex goals by users and service-requesting agents, and the role of facilitators in delegating and coordinating the satisfaction of these goals, subject to advice and constraints that may accompany them.

Where should the person stop and the information search interface start

Abstract: Many users of online and other automated information systems want to take advantage of the speed and power of automated retrieval, while still controlling and directing the steps of the search themselves. They do not want the system to take over and carry out the search entirely for them. Yet the objective of much of current theory and experimentation in information retrieval systems and interfaces is to design systems in which the user has either no or only reactive involvement with the search process. It is argued here that the advanced information retrieval research community is missing an opportunity to design systems that are in better harmony with the actual preferences of many users—sophisticated systems that provide an optimal combination of searcher control and system retrieval power. The user may be provided effective means of directing the search if capabilities specific to the information retrieval process, that is, strategic behaviors normally associated with information searching, are incorporated into the interface. There are many questions concerning (1) the degree of user vs. system involvement in the search, and (2) the size, or chunking, of activities; that is, how much and what type of activity the user should be able to direct the system to do at once. These two dimensions are analyzed and a number of configurations of system capability that combine user and system control are presented and discussed. In the process, the concept of the information search stratagem is introduced, and particular attention is paid to the provision of strategic, as opposed to purely procedural capabilities for the searcher. Finally, certain types of user-system relationship are selected as deserving particular attention in future information retrieval system design, and arguments are made to support the recommendations.

Browsing or searching user interfaces and other aspects

Abstract: User interfaces for browsing and/or searching are described. In one embodiment, a method includes displaying a first display area for display representations of documents matching a search query, the first display area configured to display content of the documents which can have a plurality of different types of content including at least one of text-based content and a folder, and displaying a second display area for selecting a selected document to be displayed in the first display area. Other embodiments are also described, and computer readable media and apparatuses are also described.