Research Paper on:
HCI Overview Human-Computer Interface

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
words, this is a general category for the various forms of operating systems that provide a means for allowing a human operator to interact with a computer to obtain specific  goals. One form of human-computer interface is the DOS operating system, in which the user of the computer interacts with the machine by entering lines of code. However, by  far, the most common form of human-computer interface being used today are direct manipulation interfaces (DMIs) (Macaulay, 1995). This term, direct manipulation interface, refers to a style of human-computer  interface that features an interactive design based on natural representation of tasks and actions. The illusion for human users is that they are directly performing the tasks themselves, rather than  through the intermediary provided by the software designers programming (Dennehy, no date). In actuality, the user is manipulating an interface that, in turn, produces the proper software code to tell  the computer how to perform the intended task. An analogy that is often used in the literature on this subject explains this process draws parallels between DM and  driving a car. With an intermediary style of interface, the user is rather like a passenger sitting in the backseat of a car giving a stranger directions (Dennehy,  no date). This analogy becomes even more accurate, according to Dennehy, if one images that the stranger driving the car has poor interpersonal skills and a limited vocabulary. If the  directions given this "driver" are not explicit and in a fixed order, the car will either idle in the middle of the road or take the user to unfamiliar territory  from which it is difficult to find the way out (Dennehy, no date). With direct manipulation interfaces, a visual representation of a task takes the place of the user typing