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Subject:Terms for user interface? From:"Hart, Geoff" <Geoff-H -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 25 Jan 2001 13:33:57 -0500
Julia Land has <<... a software program with three different types of user
interface. A user can issue commands and interact with the program with a
typical graphical user interface and mouse, with a joystick and its buttons,
and by voice. Some commands can be issued using any of the three methods,
but some can be issued with only two of the three. When we talk about it, we
say things like "You can do that with the GUI or with a voice command," and
we know what we mean. The users probably would, too, but we still don't want
to use the term GUI in the user guide.>>
In a case like this, it's probably more effective to refer to the means by
which the reader accomplishes something rather than overtly referring to the
underlying technology (e.g., GUI). So rather than "you can use the GUI or
with a voice command", say "you can enter a command from the keyboard, with
the mouse, or with the joystick, but not with your voice." In each case, you
refer to the tool the reader would use, in terms that are familiar to the
user.
--Geoff Hart, FERIC, Pointe-Claire, Quebec
geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
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