A User Modeling Design Tool Based on a Cognitive Architecture for Comparing Interfaces

Usability evaluation has long been recognized as an indispensable part of the development of interactive software. Evaluation can still be a difficult and laborintensive task with conventional tools and user studies, however. Results can vary with the knowledge and experience of the evaluator and with the subjects. We describe an approach to evaluation, based on cognitive modeling, that will alleviate some of these problems. We are building a general-purpose, crossplatform architecture in which user performance in an interactive environment is simulated by a cognitive model. The results of the model can be analyzed and fed back into the development lifecycle. This project is still preliminary, but progress is accelerating.