Catalog Description: The design, implementation, and evaluation of user interfaces. User-centered design and task analysis. Conceptual models and interface metaphors. Usability inspection and evaluation methods. Analysis of user study data. Input methods (keyboard, pointing, touch, tangible) and input models. Visual design principles. Interface prototyping and implementation methodologies and tools. Students will develop a user interface for a specific task and target user group in teams.

Units: 4

Prerequisites: COMPSCI 61B, COMPSCI 61BL, or consent of instructor.

Credit Restrictions: Students will receive no credit for Computer Science 260A after taking Computer Science 160.

Formats:
Spring: 3.0 hours of lecture and 1.0 hours of discussion per week
Fall: 3.0 hours of lecture and 1.0 hours of discussion per week

Grading basis: letter

Final exam status: No final exam

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Class Schedule (Spring 2025):
CS 160/260A – TuTh 14:00-15:29, Jacobs Hall 310 – Bjoern Hartmann

Class homepage on inst.eecs

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Department Notes:

Course objectives: The goal of the course is for students to learn how to design, prototype, and evaluate user interfaces using a variety of methods

Topics covered:

• HCI Introduction
• Brainstorming and Creativity
• User Centered Design
• Contextual Inquiry and Task Analysis
• Informal Prototyping
• Managing Teams
• Evaluation Methods
• Graphic Design
• Platforms and Toolkits
• Model-View Controller
• Human Perception and Memory
• Human Learning
• Quantitative Evaluation Methods
• Computer-Supported Cooperative Work
• Mobile Device Interaction
• Localization
• Speech Interfaces
• Personalization
• Visualization
• Help System Design

Related Areas:

• Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)