Distributed Application as a new application Standard

The constant growth in IT field more precisely the Internet, determines the need of new technologies and applications which can provide new possibilities and accessibility to the contemporaneous information society. The field of construction, isn’t a domain that has not information systems but there is still one way to distribute information for this domain that isn’t enough developed. The way to distribute processed information for this domain can be the Internet. This paper describes the way to develop an application that easy the process of centralization, distribution, and analysis of information gathered from the construction site to the headquarters and then to the final users who signed the contract with the construction company to build the construction. The IT solution implies the use of new technologies for communicating and centralizing the information, that simplifies the way information travels between departments and finally to the end-user, with the benefit of the Internet and VPN.distributed applications, vpn, domains

The use of think-aloud and instant data analysis in evaluation research: Exemplar and lessons learned

AbstractWhile health information technologies have become increasingly popular, many have not been formally tested to ascertain their usability. Traditional rigorous methods take significant amounts of time and manpower to evaluate the usability of a system. In this paper, we evaluate the use of instant data analysis (IDA) as developed by Kjeldskov et al. to perform usability testing on a tool designed for older adults and caregivers. The IDA method is attractive because it takes significantly less time and manpower than the traditional usability testing methods. In this paper we demonstrate how IDA was used to evaluate usability of a multifunctional wellness tool, discuss study results and lessons learned while using this method. We also present findings from an extension of the method which allows the grouping of similar usability problems in an efficient manner. We found that the IDA method is a quick, relatively easy approach to identifying and ranking usability issues among health information technologies

Digital Nudging: Altering User Behavior in Digital Environments

Individuals make increasingly more decisions on screens, such as those on websites or mobile apps. However, the nature of screens and the vast amount of information available online make individuals particularly prone to deficient decisions. Digital nudging is an approach based on insights from behavioral economics that applies user interface (UI) design elements to affect the choices of users in digital environments. UI design elements include graphic design, specific content, wording or small features. To date, little is known about the psychological mechanisms that underlie digital nudging. To address this research gap, we conducted a systematic literature review and provide a comprehensive overview of relevant psychological effects and exemplary nudges in the physical and digital sphere. These insights serve as a valuable basis for researchers and practitioners that aim to study or design information systems and interventions that assist user decision making on screens

Managing obesity through mobile phone applications: a state-of-the-art review from a user-centred design perspective

Evidence has shown that the trend of increasing obesity rates has continued in the last decade. Mobile phone applications, benefiting from their ubiquity, have been increasingly used to address this issue. In order to increase the applications’ acceptance and success, a design and development process that focuses on users, such as User-Centred Design, is necessary. This paper reviews reported studies that concern the design and development of mobile phone applications to prevent obesity, and analyses them from a User-Centred Design perspective. Based on the review results, strengths and weaknesses of the existing studies were identified. Identified strengths included: evidence of the inclusion of multidisciplinary skills and perspectives; user involvement in studies; and the adoption of iterative design practices. Weaknesses included the lack of specificity in the selection of end-users and inconsistent evaluation protocols. The review was concluded by outlining issues and research areas that need to be addressed in the future, including: greater understanding of the effectiveness of sharing data between peers; privacy; and guidelines for designing for behavioural change through mobile phone applications

Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Gestalt Principles of Perceptual Observation for Virtual Reality User Interface Design

There is a lot of interest and excitement surrounding the areas of Virtual Reality and Head-Mounted Displays with the recent releases of devices such as the Oculus Rift, Sony PSVR and the HTC Vive. While much of the focus for these devices has been related to sectors of the entertainment industries, namely the cinema and video game industries, there are many more practical applications for these technologies, with potential benefits in educational, training/simulation, therapeutic and modelling/design software. Developing a set of reliable guidelines for Virtual Reality User Interface Design could play a crucial role in whether the medium successfully integrates into the mass market. The Gestalt Principles of Perceptual Organisation offer a psychological explanation of human perception, with particular reference to pattern recognition and how we subconsciously group entities together. There are seven Principles of Perceptual Organisation, nearly all of which are currently widely used in User Interface design, offering designers guidelines on what the size, shape, position and colour the different components of an interface should be. This study presents an analysis on the effects that the employment of the Gestalt Principles has on the usability and mental workloads of Virtual Reality applications

Characterization of End-users’ Engagement and Interaction Experience with Social Media Technologies

People, particularly digital citizens, gain more technological experiences from their frequent usage of social media technologies. Their experience as end-users occurs before, during, and after their engagement and interaction with the technologies and is popularly described using behaviour-related definitions. However, an end-user\u27s experience with technologies goes beyond the \u27click-and-type definition. This prompts the question, what are the user experience elements that define and characterise end-users\u27 engagement and interaction with social media technologies? . Using a case study-based approach, end-users\u27 engagement and interaction with social media technologies were identified. The study\u27s findings indicated that several user experience elements were characterised by emotions, cognitive, and behavioural dimensions. Combining the characteristics of the dimensions resulted in a more holistic view of the engagement and interaction that end-users have with social media technologies

“What I Love about Technology”: Older Adults and Mobile Communication Technologies

In a series of in-depth interviews, ten older adults described their use and experience with mobile technologies (e.g., E-readers and tablets). The results reveal that while older adults may not be leaders in new technology adoption, they do utilize mobile technology when they find it useful. The participants expressed both satisfaction and some frustration with their mobile devices. Participants suggested that the devices allowed them to partake in behaviors they might not be able to otherwise enjoy for a variety of physical and social reasons