Michael HarrisonCambridge University PressEdition: Reissue, 4/20/2009EAN 9780521448673, ISBN10: 0521448670Paperback, 344 pages, 24.4 x 17 x 1.8 cmLanguage: EnglishFirst published in 1990, this book discusses the application of formal methods to the human-computer interface. Formal methods - the attempt to provide methods that rigourously and unambiguously describe the behaviour of a computer program or system - is receiving a great deal of attention in human-computer interaction (HCI). Topics such as the specification of a system, the construction of a system from its specification and the abstraction of a specification from an existing system, are clearly of great theoretical and practical interest. The contributors to the work are well-known in the field of HCI and their articles cover much of the work in the area. The book is a series of papers specially commissioned by the editors for the book; it is thus a coherent and important contribution to the area.PrefaceContributors1. The role of formal methods in human-computer interaction Michael Harrison and Harold Thimbleby2. HCI formalisms and cognitive psychologythe case of Task-Action Grammar Franz Schiele and Thomas Green3. Putting design into practiceformal specification and the user interface Roger Took4. Non-determinism as a paradigm for understanding the user interface Alan Dix5. A state model of direct manipulation in interactive systems Michael Harrison and Alan Dix6. Specification, analysis and refinement of interactive processes Bernard Sufrin and Jifeng He7. From abstract models to functional prototypes Colin Runciman8. Designing abstractions for communication control Gilbert Cockton9. Structuring dialogues using CSP Heather AlexanderBibliographyIndex.
