The Computer Reaches out: The Historical Continuity of Interface Design

Abstract

The focus of user interface research and development has evolved over the past forty years. The term ''user interface'' was not used at first, when most users were engineers and programmers; it may again become inappropriate when more applications are designed for groups than for individuals. But there is a continuity to the outward movement of the computer's interface to its external environment, from hardware to software to increasingly higher-level cognitive capabilities and finally to social processes. As the focus shifts, the approaches to design and the skills required of practitioners changes. This paper identifies five foci of interface development. Research and development foci may be independent, and progress in one area may influence others, so a comprehensive framework may help position existing research and development efforts and plan future work more eflectively.