James L. Alty
Has also published under the name of:
"J. L. Alty" and "James Alty"
Personal Homepage:
lboro.ac.uk/departments/co/people/part-time_staff/alty.html
Current place of employment:
Loughborough UniversityJames Alty has worked for over 30 years in Human Computer Interaction. He is currently an Emeritus Professor at the Computer Science Department at Loughborough University (UK) and lectures part-time there. Previously he was a Professor of Computer Science at Liverpool University (1972-82) Strathclyde University (1982-90) and at Loughborough University. Between 1984-90 he was Executive Director of the Turing Institute in Glasgow and Chair of the Scottish HCI Centre. From 1991-2003 he was a co-director of the LUTCHI Research Centre at Loughborough University.
He has over 100 research publications mainly in HCI area and has written a number of books including Computer Skills and User Interface(1980). His research interests are Auditory Interfaces, Process Control Interfaces and Multimedia.
Publications by James L. Alty (bibliography)
» 2006 «
Alty, James L., Al-Sharrah, A. and Beacham, N. (2006): When humans form media and media form humans: An experimental study examining the effects different digital media have on the learning outcomes of students who have different learning styles. In Interacting with Computers, 18 (5) pp. 891-909
“A set of computer-based experiments are reported that investigate the understanding achieved by learners when studying a complex domain (statistics) in a real e-learning environment using three different media combinations -- Text only, Text and Diagrams and Spoken Text and Diagrams, and the results agree with earlier work carried out on more limited domains. The work is then extended to examine how student interaction and student learning styles affect the learning outcomes. Different responses to the media combinations are observed and significant differences occur between learners classified as Sensing and Reflective learners. The experiment also identified some important differences in performance with the different media combinations by students registered as Dyslexic. The experiment was therefore repeated with a much larger sample of Dyslexic learners and the earlier effects were found to be significant. The results were surprising and may provide useful guidance for the design of material for Dyslexic students.”
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» 2005 «
Rigas, Dimitrios and Alty, James L. (2005): The rising pitch metaphor: an empirical study. In International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 62 (1) pp. 1-20
“This paper describes a set of experiments that investigated the use of rising pitch notes to communicate graphical information to visually impaired users. The information communicated in the experiments included coordinate locations within a 40x40 graphical grid, the navigation of an auditory cursor within the graphical grid, the communication of simple graphical shapes and their size. The five simple shapes communicated were rectangles, squares, circles, horizontal and vertical lines. Stereophony, timbre, rhythms, and short tunes were used in addition to the rising pitch metaphor to aid disambiguation. Results suggested that the rising pitch approach enabled visually impaired users to understand the graphical information communicated in the absence of any visual aid. The paper concludes with a discussion of the use of rising pitch metaphor to communicate graphical information.”
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Alty, James L. and Rigas, Dimitrios (2005): Exploring the use of structured musical stimuli to communicate simple diagrams: the role of context. In International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 62 (1) pp. 21-40
“The results from previous experiments using structured musical stimuli to communicate coordinate locations within a graphical grid, navigation of an auditory cursor and simple shapes are used as a basis for further exploratory research to communicate diagrams. An experimental framework program (called AudioGraph) provided a platform for investigating musical information processing for blind users. Under this platform, simple arrangements of shapes (forming diagrams) were communicated to users using structured musical stimuli. Meaningfully arranged graphical shapes (at least for the visual sense) were communicated in the absence, and in the presence of a particular perceptual context or different perceptual contexts. The results indicated that perceptual context played an important role in the interpretation of the structured musical stimuli that communicated simple diagrams. The paper concludes with a discussion on the implications of the results, the role of context and the use of structured musical stimuli to communicate graphical information to visually impaired users.”
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» 2003 «
Vickers, Paul and Alty, James L. (2003): Siren songs and swan songs debugging with music. In Communications of the ACM, 46 (7) pp. 86-93
» 2002 «
Vickers, Paul and Alty, James L. (2002): Using music to communicate computing information. In Interacting with Computers, 14 (5) pp. 435-456
“The audio channel remains little used in most computing applications, often its use being relegated to providing trivial sound effects whose novelty value soon wears off. Nevertheless, in principle sound offers much to the process of human-computer interaction as for most people the notion of auditory imagery is easily accepted. In this paper we explore how sound, specifically musical sound, can be used to communicate computing information. The findings of two studies are presented. The first investigated how pitch intervals and musical phrases of complex (non-sinusoidal) tones can be recognised. The second study aimed to demonstrate that musical structures could communicate information about high-level programming language structures and program run-time behaviour. Both studies showed that music could successfully be used as a communication medium and that listeners did not need to be musically trained to benefit from the audio signals. Finally, recommendations for further work are made.”
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Vickers, Paul and Alty, James L. (2002): Musical program auralisation: a structured approach to motif design. In Interacting with Computers, 14 (5) pp. 457-485
“In an earlier paper, Vickers and Alty (2002) showed that musically untrained users could make use of musical cues to understand computing information. Using a technique known as musical program auralisation, they showed that music could communicate run-time and structural information about Pascal programs. This paper describes how a set of hierarchically related auralisation motifs was designed and constructed within a formal musical framework. These auralisations were then evaluated in an experiment to determine how well they could be interpreted by computer science students. The results showed that the musical motifs were generally understood by the subjects and that any prior musical training of the subjects did not affect their ability to interpret the musical signals. Based on the results of the experiment and study of some cognitive aspects of music perception, a set of organising principles for musical program auralisation is proposed. Finally, recommendations for further study are made with particular regard to assessing the usefulness of the auralisations in program debugging situations.”
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Vickers, Paul and Alty, James L. (2002): When bugs sing. In Interacting with Computers, 14 (6) pp. 793-819
“In The Songs of Insects, Pierce (1949) described the striped ground cricket, Nemobius fasciatus-fasciatus, which chirps at a rate proportional to ambient air temperature. Twenty chirps-per-second tell us it is 31.4 {deg}C; 16 chirps and it is 27 {deg}C. This is a natural example of an auditory display, a mechanism for communicating data with sound. By applying auditory display techniques to computer programming we have attempted to give the bugs that live in software programs their own songs. We have developed the CAITLIN musical program auralisation system Vickers and Alty, 2002b) to allow structured musical mappings to be made of the constructs in Pascal programs. Initial experimental evaluation [Interacting with Computers (2002a,b)] showed that subjects could interpret the musical motifs used to represent the various Pascal language constructs. In this paper we describe how the CAITLIN system was used to study the effects of musical program auralisation on debugging tasks performed by novice Pascal programmers. The results of the experiment indicate that a formal musical framework can act as a medium for communicating information about program behaviour, and that the information communicated could be used to assist with the task of locating bugs in faulty programs.”
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» 2000 «
Alty, James L., Knott, R. P., Anderson, Ben and Smyth, M. (2000): A Framework for Engineering Metaphor at the User Interface. In Interacting with Computers, 13 (2) pp. 301-322
“Interface metaphors facilitate the learning of new computer systems by supporting the transformation of existing knowledge in order to improve the comprehension of novel situations. However, there is very little guidance for software designers on how to select, implement and evaluate interface metaphors. This paper, which is based upon extensive work in developing metaphors for telecommunications systems, provides a framework for software designers who wish to exploit the use of interface metaphors. The paper proposes a set of six design steps, to provide designers with a practical approach to the application of metaphor in the design of interactive systems. An explanation of the activities required in each step is given and justified from experience gained in developing a number of interface metaphors. A pragmatic model of the use of metaphor in human centred system design is introduced, and a technique for eliciting metaphor characteristics is developed from ethnomethodology. The approach has been discussed with software designers at two workshops, and the final content has been influenced by their input.”
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Miah, T. and Alty, James L. (2000): Vanishing Windows Technique for Adaptive Window Management. In Interacting with Computers, 12 (4) pp. 337-355
“Windowing system offer many benefits to users, such as being able to work on multiple tasks concurrently; or working with a number of windows, each connected to different remote machines or applications. Unless these windows are managed efficiently, users can easily become overwhelmed by the number of windows currently open and begin to lose their way round the desktop. This can lead to a state where the desktop is cluttered with windows. At this stage "window thrashing occurs, as users begin to perform window management operation (move, resize, minimise and etc.) in order to locate relevant pieces of information contained in one of several open windows. This article identifies a number of problems experienced by users of any windowing system such as Microsoft Windows, X-Windows or the Apple Macintosh windowing systems. It outlines a technique for reducing screen clutter when using such systems. The technique is known as Vanishing or Fading Windows. One of the features of this technique is that some of the burden of the window management operation is taken over by the system, hence allowing the user to focus more on application domain activities.”
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Viano, Gianni, Parodi, Andrea, Alty, James L., Khail, Chris, Angulo, Inaki, Biglino, Daniele, Crampes, Michel, Vaudry, Christophe, Daurensan, Veronique and Lachaud, Philippe (2000): Adaptive User Interface for Process Control based on Multi Agent Approach. In: Advanced Visual Interfaces 2000 2000. pp. 201-204.
» 1998 «
Alty, James L. and Rigas, Dimitrios I. (1998): Communicating Graphical Information to Blind Users Using Music: The Role of Context. In: Karat, Clare-Marie, Lund, Arnold, Coutaz, Joëlle and Karat, John (eds.) Proceedings of the ACM CHI 98 Human Factors in Computing Systems Conference April 18-23, 1998, Los Angeles, California. pp. 574-581. Available online
“We describe the design and use of AUDIOGRAPH -- a tool for investigating the use of music in the communication of graphical information to blind and partially sighted users. This paper examines the use of the system to communicate complex diagrams and gives some examples of user output. Performance is not as good as expected and it is postulated that context will play an important part in the perception of diagrams communicated using music. A set of experiments are reported which indicate that context does indeed seem to play an important role in assisting meaningful understanding of the diagrams communicated. The implications for using music in auditory interface design are discussed.”
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Rigas, Dimitrios I. and Alty, James L. (1998): How Can Multimedia Designers Utilize Timbre?. In: Johnson, Hilary, Nigay, Laurence and Roast, C. R. (eds.) Proceedings of the Thirteenth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers XIII August 1-4, 1998, Sheffield, UK. pp. 273-286.
“When musical sound is required during development of auditory or multimedia interfaces, designers often need to utilize different musical voices or timbre (usually produced via a multiple timbre synthesizer or a sound card) in order to communicate information. Currently, there is a limited set of guidelines assisting multimedia designers to select appropriate timbre. This paper reports a set of recall and recognition experiments on timbres produced by a multiple timbre synthesizer. Results indicate that a number of instruments were successfully recalled and recognized. A set of empirically derived guidelines are suggested to assist multimedia designers in selecting timbre.”
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» 1997 «
Alty, James L. (1997): Human Computer Interaction: The Year 2000 and Beyond. In: Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction 1997. pp. 193-196.
» 1996 «
Williams, David, Duncumb, Iain and Alty, James L. (1996): Matching Media to Goals: An Approach Based on Expressiveness. In: Sasse, Martina Angela, Cunningham, R. J. and Winder, R. L. (eds.) Proceedings of the Eleventh Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers XI August, 1996, London, UK. pp. 333-347.
“This paper addresses the problem of output media selection in the design of human-computer interfaces. Particular emphasis is placed on the effect that the chosen medium has on the nature and effectiveness of the interactions that can take place. A novel approach is suggested in an attempt to gain an insight into why particular media allow certain goals to be achieved more effectively. This approach borrows ideas from linguistics and logic, and views media as formal representational systems. Out of this approach is developed the notion of expressiveness; the amount of abstraction a representation system affords a referent domain. The approach suggests that it is the congruence between the representation required by the goal and the expressiveness afforded by the media that largely determines the effectiveness of the interface. To give an example of this approach, three VCR user interfaces are discussed in terms of expressiveness.”
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» 1995 «
Anderson, Ben and Alty, James L. (1995): Everyday Theories, Cognitive Anthropology and User-Centred System Design. In: Kirby, M. A. R., Dix, Alan J. and Finlay, Janet E. (eds.) Proceedings of the Tenth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers X August, 1995, Huddersfield, UK. pp. 121-135.
“This paper introduces the notion of everyday theories and outlines their role in the design of human-computer interfaces. The paper provides a case study of the use of techniques from cognitive anthropology in eliciting user's everyday theories as an aid to system design. It concludes that cognitive anthropology appears to offer valuable analytic tools for user-centred system design; and that the relationship between researcher and informant in anthropological investigations provides a useful model for the required relationship between interface designer and potential user.”
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Smyth, Michael, Anderson, Ben and Alty, James L. (1995): Metaphor Reflections and a Tool for Thought. In: Kirby, M. A. R., Dix, Alan J. and Finlay, Janet E. (eds.) Proceedings of the Tenth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers X August, 1995, Huddersfield, UK. pp. 137-150.
“This paper introduces a model of metaphor at the human-computer interface that is grounded in the psycho-linguistic literature. The utility of the model is demonstrated in the course of the design and evaluation of a series of prototype systems that use metaphor as a strategy for interface design. Based on these experiences, a practical set of steps is presented which utilises the model as a 'Tool for Thinking' about metaphor and its role at the human-computer interface.”
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Alty, James L. (1995): Can We Use Music in Computer-Human Communication?. In: Kirby, M. A. R., Dix, Alan J. and Finlay, Janet E. (eds.) Proceedings of the Tenth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers X August, 1995, Huddersfield, UK. pp. 409-423.
“The audio channel has been somewhat neglected in Human Computer Interface Design. It is a powerful channel which offers processing options often of a complementary nature to the visual channel. Music makes the most complex and sophisticated use of this channel and has well-organised techniques and structures for disambiguating parallel time-dependent events. This paper examines the contribution music might make to interface design and reports on some preliminary investigations, which indicate that there does seem to be a prima facie case for examining the subject further.”
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» 1994 «
Anderson, Ben, Smyth, Michael, Knott, R. P., Bergan, Marius, Bergan, Julie and Alty, James L. (1994): Minimising Conceptual Baggage: Making Choices about Metaphor. In: Cockton, Gilbert, Draper, Steven and Weir, George R. S. (eds.) Proceedings of the Ninth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers IX August 23-26, 1994, Glasgow, Scotland, UK. pp. 179-194.
“This paper introduces a pragmatic model of the use of metaphor in human-centred system design. It identifies a number of issues implied by the model and describes an experimental investigation of a subset of these issues. Three interfaces were developed in order to compare the effect on perceived and actual user understanding of different metaphors for a common underlying functionality. The investigation demonstrates that it is not only important to ensure a close coupling between metaphor and system, but that it is equally important to consider the likelihood that users will make incorrect inferences from the metaphor. The paper concludes that the pragmatic model provides a technique that can be of use to interface designers in addressing this problem.”
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Bray, A. D. and Alty, James L. (1994): Multiple Worlds: An Approach to Multimedia Resource Management Using Truth Maintenance. In Interacting with Computers, 6 (2) pp. 135-150
“Resource management in a multimedia presentation system is discussed with reference to the PROMISE multimedia presentation system. Because of the complex nature of environments such as process control, designers need to be able to examine the alternative possibilities which arise from their design decisions. The paper describes an approach to this problem using truth maintenance. A tool is described which allows multiple views of competing presentation worlds.”
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» 1993 «
Alty, James L., Diaper, Dan and Guest, D. (eds.) Proceedings of the Eighth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers VIII August 7-10, 1993, Loughborough University, UK.
» 1992 «
Edmonds, Ernest, Alty, James L., Clarke, Anthony and Scrivener, Stephen A. R. (1992): The LUTCHI Research Centre. In: Monk, Andrew, Diaper, Dan and Harrison, Michael D. (eds.) Proceedings of the Seventh Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers VII August 15-18, 1992, University of York, UK. pp. 527-529.
» 1991 «
Alty, James L. (1991): Multimedia -- What is It and How Do We Exploit It?. In: Diaper, Dan and Hammond, Nick (eds.) Proceedings of the Sixth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers VI August 20-23, 1991, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK. pp. 31-44.
“The importance of a user-centred approach to multimedia interface design is stressed. We must respond to what users wish to do rather than considering what users might be able to do. Much existing multimedia research has been disappointing partly because of a concentration on exploratory presentation approaches rather than on investigations of how media in combination can improve human-computer bandwidth. Multimedia terminology is examined and suggestions are made as to how to improve the terminology. Arguments are put forward to support more research into multimedia devices and for knowledge-based support for non-deterministic multimedia situations. Finally a set of questions is posed as a possible research agenda.”
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» 1989 «
Alty, James L. and Mullin, Jim (1989): Dialogue Specification in the GRADIENT Dialogue System. In: Sutcliffe, Alistair and Macauley, Linda (eds.) Proceedings of the Fifth Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers V August 5-8, 1989, University of Nottingham, UK. pp. 151-168.
“The need for a more human-centred approach to the design of dialogues for dynamic systems is highlighted and the knowledge-based approach to the design of the dialogue system in the GRADIENT project is described. The system has been designed to take advantage of the benefits of a User Interface Management approach and some deviations from the Seeheim Model are discussed. A dialogue specification technique is described in which the specification is separated into an environmental specification and a control specification. Using SAVE as an example the technique is explained and the resulting tool strategy in GRADIENT is outlined. Three examples of the benefits arising from the use of this specification technique are described -- quicker implementation, the use of a Minimum Presentation Tool and Path Algebra analysis.”
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» 1987 «
Alty, James L. and Mullin, Jim (1987): The Role of the Dialogue System in a User Interface Management System. In: Bullinger, Hans-Jorg and Shackel, Brian (eds.) INTERACT 87 - 2nd IFIP International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction September 1-4, 1987, Stuttgart, Germany. pp. 1007-1012.
“The respective roles of the Dialogue Controller and Application Model in a User Interface Management System are discussed in the context of a process control application, and application dependent and independent aspects of the dialogue are identified. A multi-channel dialogue controller is proposed which allows concurrent interaction on the interface and dialogues are implemented as a set of dialogue assistants. Application independent assistants control the transfer of information and application dependent assistants implement the task-orientated conversations. As far as possible the design of an assistant is independent of any other. This eases problems in dialogue design and allows assistants to be defined in a specification language which can be analysed for appropriate properties. Assistants can be constructed using a number of paradigms. An event-driven network approach is given as an example. A possible object-orientated approach is briefly outlined.”
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» 1986 «
Alty, James L. and McKell, P. (1986): Application Modelling in a User Interface Management System. In: Harrison, Michael D. and Monk, Andrew (eds.) Proceedings of the Second Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers II August 23-26, 1986, University of York, UK. pp. 319-335.
“The role of the Application Model (or Application Expert) in a User Interface Management System is discussed. It is postulated that it should represent an expert's view of the interface and that all other user related information should be housed in a separate User Model. By this approach the Application Model acts as an anchor point in the design of an Interface System. The Model is considered to have two main functions, as a custodian to the application and as a source of guidance and advice to the User Model. An outline architecture for an Application Model for command-driven systems is developed using UNIX as an example application. The output of user error log files is used to identify appropriate modules in an Application Model which, because of the general nature of UNIX ought to be applicable to other command-driven situations. A control strategy is developed for a blackboard-like approach and some examples or error detection by the Application Model are given. The work will now be applied to a more specific application used by Petroleum Engineers.”
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» 1985 «
Coombs, Michael J. and Alty, James L. (1985): An Application of the Birmingham Discourse Analysis System to the Study of Computer Guidance Interactions. In Human-Computer Interaction, 1 (3) pp. 243-282
“University researchers need to use computers in their work yet they are not computer professionals and are not able to progress efficiently without adequate guidance. All British universities make such computer-use guidance available, the most important source of information being the advisory service of the local computer center. However, little is known of the structure and effectiveness of advisory interactions. The analysis of advisory conversations requires some method for representing their structure. This paper reports such a method based on a scheme devised by a research team at the University of Birmingham, UK (Sinclair & Coulthard, 1975) for the study of teaching discourse. Using this system, we are able to define the problem-solving nature of advisory discourse, along with a number of limitations inherent in the way advisors currently conduct interactions. Various coding extensions are suggested along with proposals for the application of the system to the development of improved advisory strategies.”
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Alty, James L. and Ritchie, Russell A. (1985): A Path Algebra Support Facility for Interactive Dialogue Designers. In: Johnson, Peter and Cook, Stephen (eds.) Proceedings of the Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers I August 17-20, 1985, University of East Anglia. pp. 128-137.
“Path algebras have been shown to be useful in interactive dialogue design. They can be used to carry out consistency checks, path analyses and other analytical functions on interactive dialogues described as recursive transition networks. Such analyses are important for large networks. A path algebra support facility has been built which runs on the VAX 11/750 and which allows different algebras to be defined by the designer in an easy to use manner. The algebraic operators are described to the system using LISP and they act upon a uniform arc-labelling scheme based upon lists. The resultant adjacency matrix for a particular dialogue network together with its powers are displayed and a number of iterative techniques are used to obtain the weak and strong closure matrices. The designer can not only analyse these networks using existing algebras but can also define new algebras and investigate their properties. The system and its application to dialogue design are explained. Possible future uses of this algebraic approach are outlined.”
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Brooks, Andrew and Alty, James L. (1985): The Use of Rule Induction, A Knowledge Acquisition Technique for Expert Systems, to Interpret HCI Experiments. In: Johnson, Peter and Cook, Stephen (eds.) Proceedings of the Conference of the British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Specialist Group - People and Computers I August 17-20, 1985, University of East Anglia. pp. 255-263.
“Traditional statistical analyses can be carried out only on data gathered from carefully designed experiments. However, even when HCI experiments have been carefully designed, it is all too often the case that some other unconsidered problem attribute is a major contributory factor to the results. An alternative approach suggested here is based on the technique of automated rule induction from examples. This technique has been successfully used to develop rule bases for expert systems. Using this technique all possible problem attributes that can be thought of, before and after an experiment, may be included in the analysis. Hidden patterns or rules are automatically induced and less relevant problem attributes discarded. Results are reported of using rule induction on experimental data collected with Alty's CONNECT system which show rule induction to be a worthwhile method. It is further suggested that rule induction should be used to form experimental hypotheses from naturalistic or unplanned experiments as a first step toward more meaningful traditional experimentation.”
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» 1984 «
Alty, James L. (1984): Use of Path Algebras in an Interactive Adaptive Dialogue System. In: Shackel, Brian (ed.) INTERACT 84 - 1st IFIP International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction September 4-7, 1984, London, UK. pp. 351-354.
“The CONNECT system-an adaptable dialogue delivery vehicle -is briefly described. The system casts interactive dialogues in the form of a transition network. Adaptability is achieved through a production system which monitors user transitions in the network and thereby enables or disables transitions in the network. A multilayered network representation technique is described and an example of use providing access to the CP/M operating system is outlined. Some preliminary user experience of automatic adaptation is reported. The importance of the path algebra approach is emphasised.”
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Alty, James L. (1984): The Application of Path Algebras to Interactive Dialogue Design. In Behaviour and Information Technology, 3 (2) pp. 119-132
“The CONNECT interactive dialogue system is briefly described and the path-algebra technique explained. Its relevance to interactive dialogue design is illustrated by a number of examples. The analysis and usefulness of multilayered networks is briefly explained and a possible extension to step retracing is outlined.”
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» 1982 «
Coombs, Michael J., Gibson, R. and Alty, James L. (1982): Learning a First Computer Language: Strategies for Making Sense. In International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, 16 (4) pp. 449-486
“It is a common observation that people differ greatly in their ability to make use of computers. In controlled experiments on the writing and debugging of programs, for example, large discrepancies in performance have been found even at the professional level, and in universities it is often noted that some individuals make more effective use of facilities than others who have undergone the same training and whose needs are just as great. This paper reports a study in which individual differences found in the learning of FORTRAN as a first computer language by a university population are used as a source of information on the nature of computing skills. The study employed two classes of task: a "target" task consisting of tests of programming skill and an "indicator" task being a measure of learning style devised by Pask. Novice programmers completed these tasks following a standard introductory FORTRAN course. Comparison of performance by each subject on the two tasks was then used to draw inferences on the nature of successful strategies for learning a first programming language. Successful learners worked from "inside" the language, paying close attention to the procedural representation of logical relations between individual language structures. Less successful learners sought to determine important structural detail with reference to factors external to the program language itself, e.g. features of the local machine, and to represent this knowledge in descriptive rather than procedural terms.”
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» 1981 «
Coombs, M. J. and Alty, James L. (eds.) (1981): Computing Skills and the User Interface. New York, NY, Academic Press
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» 1980 «
Alty, James L. and Coombs, Michael J. (1980): Face-to-Face Guidance of University Computer Users -- I. A Study of Advisory Services. In International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, 12 (4) pp. 389-405
“This paper reports the results of a quantitative study of the use of guidance systems by university computer users. The study has identified the importance of face-to-face guidance services, particularly those provided by the official advisory service of a computer centre. Data from three other university sites have supported the Liverpool findings and have indicated that they can be generalized across university sites. A study of user attitudes to the official advisory service has revealed that whilst users value the service as a source of sound operational advice they often do not understand the advice given. Moreover, the experience of attending the service is often not a pleasant one. This was recognized as a source of dissonant attitudes which could inhibit the effectiveness of the service. A more detailed analysis revealed that this dissonance was most marked with inexpert users. Such results suggest that present advisory services cater better for the expert user whereas the need of the inexpert user ought to be the principal guiding factor in advisory service provision.”
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Coombs, Michael J. and Alty, James L. (1980): Face-to-Face Guidance of University Computer Users -- II. Characterizing Advisory Interactions. In International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, 12 (4) pp. 407-429
“This paper reports the results of an investigation carried out to ascertain if face-to-face advisory service interactions in a university computer centre can be regarded as an identifiable category of face-to-face encounter. A further objective of the study was to determine any independent variables affecting the course of an interaction. An analysis of participant goals has revealed a simple 3-part structure and a high degree of uniformity was observed across our sample. Furthermore, studies at three other university sites have supported the Liverpool findings. Two major characteristics of the interactions themselves have been identified -- significant advisor control and the operational nature of the advice give. Quantitative measures for both these characteristics have been defined. Expertise has been identified as the key independent variable in advisory interactions and a re-examination of the data has indicated that advisors exert far more control over inexpert users and are less responsive to their needs. It seems that the very people who would benefit from explanation and sensitive guidance do not receive it and that a real improvement in the efficiency of the advisory service might result from an awareness of this fact and better advisor training.”
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