Human Computer Interfaces & Interactions
What Are They and How Have They Advanced?
Intro
When discussing the hardware and technologies associated with the various games platforms, one of the first thoughts which may spring to mind is that of interaction. To play a game, the user must have some form of peripheral, whether physical or virtual to interact or perceive the illusion of interaction within the video game. Because of this, platform developers and games developers alike must keep in mind the use of ergonomics and playability whilst also introducing unique and fun features which allow for better immersion.
Due to this requirement and demand for better interaction and continued development of peripherals necessary to play games a field of study has arisen alongside both the games and computer science sectors known as Human Computer Interfaces/Interactions or HCI for short. It is within this following section of the blog in which I will be detailing the 4 various areas of HCI.
Now the first place to begin when talking about HCI is simply "what are the devices used?" Well the list of items is extremely long and varied but the best place to start is with that of game's consoles and PC's
When looking at the Xbox One, PS4, WII U or PC today what are one of the most talked selling points of the console's besides the games? The controllers. People including fans and casual gamers will always bring up and talk about the various controllers for the systems along with their superiority. That is because these are some of the main HCI devices in development today and they are all hand based having been developed throughout the beginning of games idnustry. These controllers originally began with only a knob or paddle and eventually the have advanced to their multi-button configurations which we have today. But, there are other more estranged HCI devices as well as these standard ones. For example the Kinect and Playstation Move are all relatively new HCI developed devices based off of the WII's motion control design. These HCI devices allow players to interact with a game by using physical movement and motion rather than pressing buttons on a controller. There are both pro's and cons to this form as they enable the user to feel more interacted with the game but it also requires the player to be willing to exercise whilst playing the video-game and it also in some cases requires them to be physically fit enough to play the game. Another problem is of course that controllers have a wide range of programmable buttons which can change with every different game whilst the motion controllers are limited to specific movement and voice commands which severely hampers the gameplay experience.
There are of course then gameplay specific HCI devices such as MIDI guitars and instruments as seen in use by the popular guitar hero and band hero franchise of games. Then there are dance mats and whack-a-mole style controllers. All of these are game specific and so they fail to function when used with any other game. But, the same rules of development and ergonomics and configurations etc. have to be put into the planning of these as well.
Now, we have just read and understood the various types of HCI devices available along with the mainstream types. But, why are controllers and keyboards so popular and why are they the main constituent HCI device? You ask. Well it is all due to the their design and their ergonomics. You see even though it is incredibly important for the device to be able to actually function and interact with the medium it still needs to consider the user and their ability to interact with the control itself as well. Hence the ever prevelant name "Human Computer Interface". So this is where Ergonomics come in.
Ergonomic design simply refers to and means the how easy and functional a control or device is for the user. Whether it is easy and comfortable to hold, how comfortable it stays after a prolonged period of use, how much physical damage is caused to the user after prolonged periods of use etc. The best way to showcase ergonomic design and it's evolution is by simply looking at popular controllers through the years and from there you can infer a strong correlation between the various controllers appearance and design. With that in mind below i will discuss 2 of the most popular controllers available today and although they are technically last generation and we now have new hardware. The new controllers are yet to be proven as they are still extremely new devices and have not yet retained the popularity and praise that the previous generation have successfully generated.
Xbox 360 Controller
As you can see from the xbox 360's controller design it is created for people to hold with two hands and whereby all of te analog sticks, buttons adn various triggers are easily accesible within one position. This controller is required to paly games, navigate the OS and in some cases even switch the console and so it's ergonomic design must be well thought out so as to ensure user comfort and accessibility.
So, you ask. What is it about this controller that has been ergonomically designed brilliant? Well, good question if you look toward the bottom of the controller you will 2 protruding pieces of plastic which are placed at a slight angle with a contoured effect. These allow the players hand to clasp the controller comfortable and according to the natural shape a hands clasp. This allows the user the ability to hold the controller for a prolonged period of time with no major issues. This is a major and important are of ergonomic design, creating something which can held and used comfortably for extended periods of time. Otherwise the user would end up frustrated, annoyed and with possible physical pain just from using the device. Another brilliant feature of the ergonomics of this controller is it's natural almost bell shaped curvature which begins at the the handles apexes at the middle and fades out again by the end of the controller. This allows th player easy and comfortable access to all of the various components of the controller without causing too much strain upon the users fingers when in use. Finally the last point to note is the position of the analog sticks on this device they are position with one at the top left and one at the bottom right. Now the position of these sticks is in many cases down to personal preference as their is no significant difference in the position of the sticks. But, because Microsoft have patented this controller design other manufacturers are unable to directly reference this device otherwise they risk being sued.
PlayStation 3 Controller
Now, from the outset it is clear that the PS3 controller is similar to that of the 360 control. This is due to standard ergonomic conventions which have become prevalent over the years and evolution of controllers. It still retains the same protruding plastic appendages and the button configuration is almost exactly similiar. The difference though, lies within both the patent issues and history of the controller. First of all it is smaller and more slimline than that of it's Xbox counterpart this is due to the cultural area in which the controller was developed for in this case Japan. Japanese people having naturally smaller hands required a more slimline and smaller control whilst the Xbox 360 having been developed fro Americans required a larger size for their hands. Also due to the patent of the position of the analog controllers begin first owned by SEGA and now Microsoft, Sony is unable to make to much of a change with regards to the stick placement. Also when the PlayStation controller was originally created it had no analog sticks. It only a directional pad for navigation until 1997 when the analog sticks were added to the original controller design. But, the originally controller garnered extreme praise from the fan base and critics and so for the their 2nd and 3rd generation releases little was changed due to extreme popularity of it's design. Also the triggers for the L2 and R2 button are angled down rather than up. Again, due to the patent of Microsoft's triggers.
Now, in the previous sections i may have touched upon very briefly the subject of button configuration. But, within this following section i will be explaining it in more detail and it's importance within HCI developments.
Now as i am typing this i a currently using a keyboard which uses a layout known as QWERTY. This keyboard configuration has existed since the late 19th century with the invention of typewriters and since then it has been expanded upon until it has reached it's full layout which we have today and which is shown below.
Larger Zoomable Version
Now, while there may be some subtle variations from manufacturer to manufacturer and different OS usage's the layout is almost entirely the same every time. This is because it has been this way for such a long time. Originally existing due to technological limitations of typewriters of the time it has become the standard due to sheer practicality. It is well used and widely adopted by almost every culture. But, it is not necessarily an example of good button configuration or even clever ergonomic design as their exists far more practical and well thought out keyboard configuration layouts which are designed specifically for the user and their ergonomics.
DVORAK
The DVORAK keyboard layout named after August Dvorak. Is a keyboard button configuration layout created by August Dvorak and his partner/brother-in-law William Dealey. It is designed to be more streamlined, faster and easier to type with in the long term it also prevents RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) after long periods of use and prevents muscle cramping in fingers after extended bouts of typing and is much more favorable amongst dyslexic learners enabling to learn configuration of keyboard faster. The reason it is so good is simply because it was concept-ed and designed to be. But, as i mentioned earlier the QWERTY layout has been around for so long there is no sense in completely changing the standard of typing which has been solidified after almost of century of use. It would require entire manuals and information packages to be written with the new layout in mind and millions of people would have to completely re-learn a new button configuration standard which is just not practical. Having said that, almost every major operating system on both phones and PC's have support for a DVORAK keyboard layout.
So to sum up. Button Configuration it literally refers to the configuration and layout of a device's buttons or interactive elements. For example let's take another look at console controllers. When we look back at the ps3 controller we notice that the shape of the controller is symmetrical including the button configuration. This creates a more comfortable feeling for the user and enables muscle memory to react quicker as the motions of both hands are simply mirrored on the other side of the controller.
Finally the last important thing to note about HCI is that of portability. Portability refers to the ability of either the console or peripheral devices portability. For example the 3DS and PS Vita are both examples of handheld console which combine: ergonomic design, button configuration and portability into on device for the user. Whilst on the other hand you have controllers and their ever increasing ability to become more and more portable. Long gone are the days when controllers used leads thanks to the advent of such technologies as bluetooth and wireless.
Now whilst portability is a useful feature to have within a device as it allows the user to position themselves wherever they may find best comfortable or even position there console wherever they may need it to be placed without of tripping or pulling it off of a shelf. It is also can cause negative impacts. Bluetooth and wireless technologies are extremely temperamental technologies and in some cases they can stop functioning if the user positions themselves wrong causing them to die or fail within a game. They also rely on potable power sources which can fail after a period of time which causes the user to have to pay for 3rd-party sources just to use their device. Finally in the case of handheld consoles, with their ability to be portable comes the issue of less powerful hardware and screen size issues for example the graphical capability of a PS vita is similar to that of a PS2 whilst a 3DS is only capable of N64/GameCube style graphics and their screen sizes are rather small for the games they host which can cause straining issues and jagged resolution problems for the users.
Due to this requirement and demand for better interaction and continued development of peripherals necessary to play games a field of study has arisen alongside both the games and computer science sectors known as Human Computer Interfaces/Interactions or HCI for short. It is within this following section of the blog in which I will be detailing the 4 various areas of HCI.
Interface Devices
Now the first place to begin when talking about HCI is simply "what are the devices used?" Well the list of items is extremely long and varied but the best place to start is with that of game's consoles and PC's
When looking at the Xbox One, PS4, WII U or PC today what are one of the most talked selling points of the console's besides the games? The controllers. People including fans and casual gamers will always bring up and talk about the various controllers for the systems along with their superiority. That is because these are some of the main HCI devices in development today and they are all hand based having been developed throughout the beginning of games idnustry. These controllers originally began with only a knob or paddle and eventually the have advanced to their multi-button configurations which we have today. But, there are other more estranged HCI devices as well as these standard ones. For example the Kinect and Playstation Move are all relatively new HCI developed devices based off of the WII's motion control design. These HCI devices allow players to interact with a game by using physical movement and motion rather than pressing buttons on a controller. There are both pro's and cons to this form as they enable the user to feel more interacted with the game but it also requires the player to be willing to exercise whilst playing the video-game and it also in some cases requires them to be physically fit enough to play the game. Another problem is of course that controllers have a wide range of programmable buttons which can change with every different game whilst the motion controllers are limited to specific movement and voice commands which severely hampers the gameplay experience.
There are of course then gameplay specific HCI devices such as MIDI guitars and instruments as seen in use by the popular guitar hero and band hero franchise of games. Then there are dance mats and whack-a-mole style controllers. All of these are game specific and so they fail to function when used with any other game. But, the same rules of development and ergonomics and configurations etc. have to be put into the planning of these as well.
Ergonomic Design
Now, we have just read and understood the various types of HCI devices available along with the mainstream types. But, why are controllers and keyboards so popular and why are they the main constituent HCI device? You ask. Well it is all due to the their design and their ergonomics. You see even though it is incredibly important for the device to be able to actually function and interact with the medium it still needs to consider the user and their ability to interact with the control itself as well. Hence the ever prevelant name "Human Computer Interface". So this is where Ergonomics come in.
Ergonomic design simply refers to and means the how easy and functional a control or device is for the user. Whether it is easy and comfortable to hold, how comfortable it stays after a prolonged period of use, how much physical damage is caused to the user after prolonged periods of use etc. The best way to showcase ergonomic design and it's evolution is by simply looking at popular controllers through the years and from there you can infer a strong correlation between the various controllers appearance and design. With that in mind below i will discuss 2 of the most popular controllers available today and although they are technically last generation and we now have new hardware. The new controllers are yet to be proven as they are still extremely new devices and have not yet retained the popularity and praise that the previous generation have successfully generated.
Xbox 360 Controller
.png) |
| (Ex. 1 - Xbox 360 Controller) |
As you can see from the xbox 360's controller design it is created for people to hold with two hands and whereby all of te analog sticks, buttons adn various triggers are easily accesible within one position. This controller is required to paly games, navigate the OS and in some cases even switch the console and so it's ergonomic design must be well thought out so as to ensure user comfort and accessibility.
So, you ask. What is it about this controller that has been ergonomically designed brilliant? Well, good question if you look toward the bottom of the controller you will 2 protruding pieces of plastic which are placed at a slight angle with a contoured effect. These allow the players hand to clasp the controller comfortable and according to the natural shape a hands clasp. This allows the user the ability to hold the controller for a prolonged period of time with no major issues. This is a major and important are of ergonomic design, creating something which can held and used comfortably for extended periods of time. Otherwise the user would end up frustrated, annoyed and with possible physical pain just from using the device. Another brilliant feature of the ergonomics of this controller is it's natural almost bell shaped curvature which begins at the the handles apexes at the middle and fades out again by the end of the controller. This allows th player easy and comfortable access to all of the various components of the controller without causing too much strain upon the users fingers when in use. Finally the last point to note is the position of the analog sticks on this device they are position with one at the top left and one at the bottom right. Now the position of these sticks is in many cases down to personal preference as their is no significant difference in the position of the sticks. But, because Microsoft have patented this controller design other manufacturers are unable to directly reference this device otherwise they risk being sued.
PlayStation 3 Controller
 |
| (Ex. 2 - PlayStation 3 Controller) |
Now, from the outset it is clear that the PS3 controller is similar to that of the 360 control. This is due to standard ergonomic conventions which have become prevalent over the years and evolution of controllers. It still retains the same protruding plastic appendages and the button configuration is almost exactly similiar. The difference though, lies within both the patent issues and history of the controller. First of all it is smaller and more slimline than that of it's Xbox counterpart this is due to the cultural area in which the controller was developed for in this case Japan. Japanese people having naturally smaller hands required a more slimline and smaller control whilst the Xbox 360 having been developed fro Americans required a larger size for their hands. Also due to the patent of the position of the analog controllers begin first owned by SEGA and now Microsoft, Sony is unable to make to much of a change with regards to the stick placement. Also when the PlayStation controller was originally created it had no analog sticks. It only a directional pad for navigation until 1997 when the analog sticks were added to the original controller design. But, the originally controller garnered extreme praise from the fan base and critics and so for the their 2nd and 3rd generation releases little was changed due to extreme popularity of it's design. Also the triggers for the L2 and R2 button are angled down rather than up. Again, due to the patent of Microsoft's triggers.
Button Configurations
Now, in the previous sections i may have touched upon very briefly the subject of button configuration. But, within this following section i will be explaining it in more detail and it's importance within HCI developments.
Now as i am typing this i a currently using a keyboard which uses a layout known as QWERTY. This keyboard configuration has existed since the late 19th century with the invention of typewriters and since then it has been expanded upon until it has reached it's full layout which we have today and which is shown below.
Larger Zoomable Version
Now, while there may be some subtle variations from manufacturer to manufacturer and different OS usage's the layout is almost entirely the same every time. This is because it has been this way for such a long time. Originally existing due to technological limitations of typewriters of the time it has become the standard due to sheer practicality. It is well used and widely adopted by almost every culture. But, it is not necessarily an example of good button configuration or even clever ergonomic design as their exists far more practical and well thought out keyboard configuration layouts which are designed specifically for the user and their ergonomics.
DVORAK
The DVORAK keyboard layout named after August Dvorak. Is a keyboard button configuration layout created by August Dvorak and his partner/brother-in-law William Dealey. It is designed to be more streamlined, faster and easier to type with in the long term it also prevents RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) after long periods of use and prevents muscle cramping in fingers after extended bouts of typing and is much more favorable amongst dyslexic learners enabling to learn configuration of keyboard faster. The reason it is so good is simply because it was concept-ed and designed to be. But, as i mentioned earlier the QWERTY layout has been around for so long there is no sense in completely changing the standard of typing which has been solidified after almost of century of use. It would require entire manuals and information packages to be written with the new layout in mind and millions of people would have to completely re-learn a new button configuration standard which is just not practical. Having said that, almost every major operating system on both phones and PC's have support for a DVORAK keyboard layout.
So to sum up. Button Configuration it literally refers to the configuration and layout of a device's buttons or interactive elements. For example let's take another look at console controllers. When we look back at the ps3 controller we notice that the shape of the controller is symmetrical including the button configuration. This creates a more comfortable feeling for the user and enables muscle memory to react quicker as the motions of both hands are simply mirrored on the other side of the controller.
Portability
Finally the last important thing to note about HCI is that of portability. Portability refers to the ability of either the console or peripheral devices portability. For example the 3DS and PS Vita are both examples of handheld console which combine: ergonomic design, button configuration and portability into on device for the user. Whilst on the other hand you have controllers and their ever increasing ability to become more and more portable. Long gone are the days when controllers used leads thanks to the advent of such technologies as bluetooth and wireless.
Now whilst portability is a useful feature to have within a device as it allows the user to position themselves wherever they may find best comfortable or even position there console wherever they may need it to be placed without of tripping or pulling it off of a shelf. It is also can cause negative impacts. Bluetooth and wireless technologies are extremely temperamental technologies and in some cases they can stop functioning if the user positions themselves wrong causing them to die or fail within a game. They also rely on potable power sources which can fail after a period of time which causes the user to have to pay for 3rd-party sources just to use their device. Finally in the case of handheld consoles, with their ability to be portable comes the issue of less powerful hardware and screen size issues for example the graphical capability of a PS vita is similar to that of a PS2 whilst a 3DS is only capable of N64/GameCube style graphics and their screen sizes are rather small for the games they host which can cause straining issues and jagged resolution problems for the users.
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