CS 8316 (Spring 2022) Syllabus

User Interface Design


Prof. Jeff Tian, CS Dept., SMU, Dallas, TX 75275
Phone: (214)768-2861
E-mail: tian@smu.edu
Webpage: www.lyle.smu.edu/~tian/class/8316.22s

1. General Information and Course Contents

With the pervasive use of various type of computers (ranging from general/special-purpose, standing-alone/embedded/inter-connected, etc.) and interactive systems (including smart devices, software and information systems, networks and infrastructure, and related products and services) in modern society or the "connected-world" by the massive and diverse user population for work, leisure, societal, and other functions/purposes, usability ("how easy to use it? or, how easy to interact with it?") has taken on increased importance for both the consumers and producers of such systems, making it one of the primary quality attributes and a critical factor that determines the success or failure of the products, systems, or services.

User interface design (UID) is broadly interpreted as also encompassing the whole system development and maintenance process, but with a focus on design activities and the related usability evaluation/improvement activities. UID plays a key role in achieving our goal of good (universal) usability for these diverse population of users. Another term commonly used nowadays for UID in this sense is UI/UX (user interface/user experience). Broadly speaking, UID or UI/UX are the subjects of study in the inter-disciplinary field of HCI (human-computer interaction, also called CHI, computer-human interaction, although we prefer the former to emphasize the human-centered or user-centered perspective). In this course, we will cover related activities and techniques, including:

Workload and Grading

The course grade each student receives will reflect the weighted average of exams, homework assignments, and course project. The approximate weight assignment is as follows:

Homework and participation
Midterm exam
Final exam
Project

15%
25%
25%
35%

Textbook and Other Information

Notices and relevant SMU policies:


Prepared by Jeff Tian (tian@smu.edu).
Posted: Jan. 16, 2022. Last update: Jan. 16, 2022.

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