Title
FROM ICONS TO INTERFACE MODELS: DESIGNING HYPERMEDIA FROM THE BOTTOM UP
Published in
International Journal of Man-Machine Studies (1993) vol.39, 453-472
Author
Abstract
We describe a method to derive design models for hypermedia interface
from the bottom up. Firstly, we compile a list of hypermedia interface
features which we classify according to the category of functions they
fulfill. We then describe an experiment in which candidate designs for
low-level interface features were designed and tested for
recognizability. In the experiment, icons for each of 61 hypermedia
concepts were generated and then judged. Finally, we outline and
illustrate a model induction phase in which low-level features are
combined into an overall interface model via "micro-models" that take
account of the types of icons that worked best for each class of
interface feature. We suggest that, at least for hypermedia systems, a
bottom-up approach to interface design based on the functions of
low-level features is preferable to the dominant, top-down apporach
based around one or more metaphores.