Where Do GUIs Come From? And How Can We Make Them Better? Course Project

" On my honor as a student, I have neither given nor received aid on this assignment " 1 Executive Summary With the advent of window based operating system interfaces, Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) have emerged as the de facto means by which users employ computer programs. Nonetheless, GUIs represent only a single interface – that between the user and other software. In the field of Computer Science, designers, developers and programmers are schooled primarily in the implementation of algorithms in order to solve problems. In many instances, the concerns of the users are considered only as an afterthought to the development of a code base designed to address a problem or provide utility to users. At best, user interfaces are addressed by programmers or designers other than those responsible for core algorithms or processes. We explore two prominent platforms by which many computer scientists gain their first experience in developing a GUI – JavaSwing and Tcl/Tk (pronounced tickle/tee-kay). Sun Microsystems has provided an extensive, web-based tutorial for JavaSwing in order to assist programmers and developers in the design and implementation of GUIs for their Java code. On the other hand, Tcl/Tk is not a proprietary product, except as distributed by vendors, therefore there is no foremost authority to provide a tutorial for it. A handful of tutorials have emerged as a primary means for developers to obtain elementary skill in employing Tcl/Tk, as well as a freely distributed computer-based training application called TclTutor. We asses how well the JavaSwing and Tcl/Tk tutorials and freeware address GUI design principles, demonstrate where this foundational instruction falls short of addressing critical human factors concerns, and discuss some of the fundamentals of GUI design. We propose how these tools can be improved to include elements of design crucial to users.