From: harrison@inttech.com (Ed Harrison)
Newsgroups: comp.human-factors
Subject: CHIFOO Mtg Announcement - "Method Engineering", plus CHIFOO News (LONG)
Summary: Method Engineering: From Data to Model to Practice (Erik Nilsen)
Date: 7 Apr 92 19:26:34 GMT
Article-I.D.: inttech.1992Apr7.192634.934
Followup-To: pdx.computing
Distribution: or,wa
Organization: Computer-Human Interaction Forum of Oregon (CHIFOO)

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-------------------------->>> PLEASE POST <<<--------------------------------
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   *****  *   *  *****  *****  *****  *****     |          CHIFOO
   *      *   *    *    *      *   *  *   *     | Computer-Human Interaction
   *      *****    *    *****  *   *  *   *     |       Forum of Oregon
   *      *   *    *    *      *   *  *   *     | 
   *****  *   *  *****  *      *****  *****     | Portland ACM/SIGCHI Chapter


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                 M E E T I N G   A N N O U N C E M E N T
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            Method Engineering: From Data to Model to Practice

                              Erik Nilsen
                         Lewis & Clark College


-----------  "In attempting to help users achieve high levels of productivity,  
 ABSTRACT    designers of application software commonly provide users with  
-----------  multiple methods of performing the same task.  These are often  
             specialized methods to deal with frequently occurring special 
             cases of important tasks, such as navigation through a document 
             or spreadsheet.  For example, in Lotus 1-2-3 there are numerous 
             (more than eight) methods for navigating through spreadsheets.  
 
             Unfortunately, such multiple specialized methods have 
             surprisingly large cognitive costs.  Improvements in produc-
             tivity have to be balanced against the cognitive costs of 
             learning the specialized methods and selecting the most 
             efficient method to use in a specific context.
 
             This research presents data showing how real experts of a 
             piece of popular software (Lotus 1-2-3) select from among a 
             set of methods to accomplish a variety of tasks in several 
             situations.  From the results, the researchers show that 
             efficiency in performance is not the only criterion on which 
             people choose methods.  Based on their results, Dr. Nilsen
             and his co-researchers have developed a technique to help 
             designers assess whether they should offer multiple methods 
             for some tasks, and if they should, how to make them so that 
             they are chosen appropriately."
 
             This is a preview of a paper that will be presented at the 
             CHI '92 convention in May, 1992 in Monterey California.  Dr. 
             Nilsen is co-researcher and co-author with: 
 
                HeeSen Jong       National University of Singapore
                Judith S. Olson   University of Michigan
                Peter G. Polson   University of Colorado.

             Their research was funded under a grant from the Army
             Research Institute; Judith Olson, Principle Investigator.
             (Judith Olson will be in Portland to speak on April 17th.  
             See "OTHER LOCAL NEWS," below.)

-----------  Erik Nilsen is Assistant Professor of Psychology at  
 BIOGRAPHY   Lewis & Clark College, teaching courses in Human-Computer 
-----------  Interaction, Computer Simulation, and Research Methodology.

             Dr. Nilsen came to Lewis & Clark from the University of Michigan, 
             where he graduated in 1991 with M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in 
             Psychology, Cognition and Perception.
 
             His research interests are "...developing a predictive
             performance model of skilled users of application software
             which encompasses research findings from cognitive science
             areas of Human Performance and Motor Skills, Decision Making,
             Visual Perception, and Cognitive Psychology."  He is also
             interested in the use of computer simulations in education,
             and Computer Supported Collaborative Work (CSCW).
 
             He is involved in ongoing research projects with the Cognitive
             Science and Machine Intelligence Laboratory (CSMIL) at the
             University of Michigan School of Business.  


-----------  Tuesday, April 14, 1992
   TIME      4:30 p.m.
-----------  

-----------  Main Seminar Room
   PLACE     Administration Building
-----------  Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and Technology
             19600 NW von Neumann Drive
             Beaverton, OR 97006

             From Portland, drive West on Hwy 26 (Sunset Hwy) to NW 185th, 
             turn left (South).  After 0.5 miles, turn right (West) onto NW 
             Cornell Road.  After 0.6 miles, turn left on NW Compton Drive.
             Take the 3rd left onto NW von Neumann Drive (at the sign that 
             says "OGC").  The Administration Building is ahead on the right.

             From Beaverton, take Walker Road past 185th to its end at NW 
             Compton, turn left. Take the 2nd left onto NW von Neumann.

             This facility is wheelchair accessible; if you require special
             accommodations or disability aids, please contact Ed Harrison
             at 644-0111.             

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                 U P C O M M I N G   M E E T I N G S
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-----------  Jim Larson
 May 12      Advanced Applications Architecture Group
-----------  Intel Corporation

             "Modeling the User Interface"
             A model of a user interface consists of a description of the 
             functions which the user can perform and the objects to which 
             those functions apply.  An understanding of this model is 
             vital to the end user in understanding the application in 
             terms of the objects and relationships with which the end 
             user may interact.  The model helps the end user interpret 
             the results displayed by the user interface, and to construct 
             sequences of operations using the user interface. The model 
             is also useful in constructing and evaluating alternative user 
             interfaces.  


-----------  CHIFOO hosts a series of monthly forums, usually held on the 
 MEETINGS    second Tuesday of every month at the OGI Main Seminar Room 
-----------  at 4:30 p.m.. If you would like to speak, please contact 
             Ed Harrison, the Program Chair, at the address below. 
             Our meetings are free and open to the public.

             Additional dates:  June 9, July 14, August 11, September 8


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                         C H I F O O   N E W S 
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-----------  This is my introductory attempt at a column "from        <-- LOOK!
 FROM THE    the chair" of CHIFOO.  My plan for this spot in the 
  CHIFOO     newsletter is to give you a glimpse at those issues 
  CHAIR      currently of concern to those helping to make CHIFOO 
-----------  activities come together.  In this introductory column, however, 
             I would like to lay out a little background information... I think 
             I'll start with the Executive Council.

             The members of the council are, like you, programmers, 
             researchers, artists, user interface designers -- the list goes
             on.  We are employees of local companies and professors at local 
             universities.  Some of us are between positions or are in search 
             of that first professional opportunity.  We are folks that want 
             to know what's going on in the Oregon area and who's doing it.  
             We believe that when we interact with others interested in 
             Computer-Human Interaction, we all benefit from the knowledge 
             gained and the relationships forged.

             The council members meet once a month, usually the week preced-
             ing the monthly general meetings.  We catch breakfast at Tom's 
             Pancake House in Beaverton ("great potato pancakes" :-).  Let one 
             of us know you're interested and you will be very welcome to join 
             us.  The discussions contain several recurring themes:

               * what activities can we arrange to increase participation?
               * how do we make these activities happen?
               * how do we get the word out to people who don't know of CHIFOO?
                 (especially difficult for those without e-mail or news access)
               * and, perhaps most importantly, how do we get more people to 
                 not only participate in events that the council members put 
                 together, but to direct what CHIFOO is all about?

             Now if at this point you find yourself fighting back the urge to 
             say to yourself "those guys oughta be doing ..." or "why aren't 
             they ...?", resist no more! Suggest a talk that you'd like to 
             hear... give a talk!  Let us know about that workshop that you'd 
             like to attend (but that hasn't yet been formed).  Tell us about 
             the class you'd like to attend (but isn't being offered).  Give 
             us that idea that you have (even if we should have thought of it 
             ourselves already).  What topics interest you in CHI that you'd 
             like to discuss with others?  What problems are you having that 
             others might have solved?  You just might be surprised at what 
             others in this region can offer.  I find many folks are even more 
             surprised at what they have to offer others.

             Whether you'd like to be an occasional CHIFOO participant, a 
             mover and shaker, or pull off the supreme coup and take over the 
             organization, CHIFOO will benefit from your participation... 
             and so will you!

             Well <climbing carefully down off of my soapbox>, that should 
             give you a general idea of what the members of the Executive 
             Council are concerned with.  In future columns, I'll try to 
             focus more on individual issues of the day.  In the meantime, 
             look up a council member and give us a glimpse of -your- thoughts.

                          /|
                         / ||\         
                        /  || \         -- Chris Jacobson
                       / -*||>>\
                      -=========-


-----------  The CHIFOO executive council met at 8:30 am on March 13,  
 EXECUTIVE   1992 at Tom's Pancake House in Beaverton.  Present were
  COUNCIL    Chris Jacobson, David Novick, Jim Larson and Ed Harrison. 
-----------  Jean Scholtz was out of town. 

             We reviewed submissions to our 4/10/92 workshop on next-
             generation interface environments.  We have five entries, 
             whom we'll invite, plus we'll accept a few more if late entries 
             are submitted [REGISTRATION HAS SINCE CLOSED - Editor].  

             Ed Harrison presented a draft of the CHIFOO brochure.  The 
             brochure is being developed as a recruitment aid; we expect to 
             use it in a targeted mailing primarily to local industry and as 
             a general handout on CHIFOO.  The main thing the brochure needs 
             is grabby artwork for the cover.  The artwork would also be a help 
             in putting together a CHIFOO poster; Chris and Jean Scholtz know 
             people who can deal with the production aspects of a poster but 
             it's the central idea that we lack [IF YOU CAN HELP, PLEASE CONTACT
             CHRIS JACOBSON - Editor].  

             We discussed upcoming elections.  The biggest question is how to 
             involve more of the membership in the organization.  Chris asked 
             that CHIFOO officers send him suggestions on activities that 
             volunteers could do as a way of getting involved in CHIFOO.
             [GET INVOLVED --> CONTACT A CHIFOO OFFICER - Editor]

             David reported great guilt over not being able to reach organizing 
             the CHIFOO "show and tell" workshop.  He will plan on setting this 
             up for sometime in the summer.
 
             We twisted Chris' arm to write a monthly chair's column for the 
             newsletter. [SEE THE RESULTS, ABOVE - Editor]

             Executive Council meetings are planned for the week before the 
             Tuesday general meeting.  If you would like to attend, please 
             contact a council member for the actual date and time.
 
-----------  CHIFOO is looking for a volunteer to set up and run a "job 
 JOB MATCH   match" referral program for our membership and the local  
-----------  user interface community.  If you are interested, please
             contact Chris Jacobson or one of the other officers.
 
-----------  "The Next Generation of User Interface Development Environments" 
 WORKSHOP    A full day workshop sponsored by CHIFOO 
-----------  April 10 at the Oregon Graduate Institute 

             Registration for this workshop has closed.  A brief summary
             of the workshop will be in next months CHIFOO newsletter, and
             a summary will eventually be submitted for publication
             in the ACM/SIGCHI bulletin. 
             
             The goal of the workshop is to identify requirements for the 
             next generation user interface development environment.  

-----------  Please don't forget about the upcomming CHIFOO elections.
 ELECTIONS   Many of the current officers have been involved in CHIFFO
-----------  since the beginning and are getting "tired".  If you 
             have been thinking of getting more involved in the local
             professional community please consider running.  


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                   O T H E R   L O C A L   N E W S 
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-----------  The Portland Chapter of the International Motif User's Group is 
 PiMUG       currently planning its May meeting.  The topic will be "Develop-
-----------  ment tools for Motif and other X-based toolkits."  If you have 
             used any of these tools, and would like to offer your opinion 
             (good/bad/indifferent) at the meeting, please contact Marc 
             Millier at 644-0111 (millier@inttech.com).  People considering 
             using these tools should find this meeting of particular interest.

-----------  "The Role of Plan Structure in Program Design and Maintenance"
  Apr 3      Robert Rist, Univ. of Technology, Sydney, Australia
-----------  1:30 pm at Ocate; Contact Jean Scholtz, PSU 725-4103 

-----------  Repeat of above talk.
  Apr 6      
-----------  4:00 pm @ PSU Schl Bus Admin Rm 170; Contact Jean Scholtz 725-4103 

-----------  "How a Group-Editor Changes the Character of a Design
  Apr 17     Meeting as well as its Outcome"
-----------  Judith Olson, University of Michigan
             3:30 pm at OGI Main Seminar Room; Contact David Novick, 690-1151

-----------  "The Quality Assurance Process"
  Apr 21     Mark Neal
-----------  Portland Quality Assurance Group
             7:30-9:00 A.M. (!) at Mentor Graphics, Bldg D (Wilsonville)
             Contact Steve Whitchurch for details (503) 685-7000 x2671  
                                                  steven@pdx.mentorg.com

-----------  "Contribution of Cognitive Psychology to 
  Apr 27      Human-Computer Interaction"
-----------  David Gilmore  
             University of Nottingham, Psychology Department   
             4:00 pm @ PSU Schl Bus Admin Rm 170; Contact Jean Scholtz 725-4103 

-----------  "Psychological Factors in the Software Engineering Process"
  Apr 28     David Gilmore  
-----------  University of Nottingham, Psychology Department   
             3:30 pm @ OCATE

             See description in last month's CHIFOO newsletter.  Sponsored 
             by Portland State University, Ocate and CHIFOO.



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                            A C M   N E W S 
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-----------  ACM Network Services ("ACM.ORG") is offering a new        <-- LOOK!
  E-MAIL     electronic mail forwarding service which will, in 
 FORWARD &   the words of ACM President John White, provide sub- 
 INTERNET    scribers with a "cradle to grave electronic mail 
  ACCESS     address".  A subscriber signing up for the service 
-----------  can publish his/her mail address as johndoe@acm.org.  
             ACM.ORG will forward the subscriber's mail to the subscriber's 
             current electronic mail address.  The subscriber will be allowed 
             to change address whenever needed, and mail will follow to the new 
             address.  

             ACM.ORG is also offering accounts on an Internet host for 
             electronic mail and access to the wide variety of Internet 
             resources.  Subscribers can also benefit from the many elec-
             tronic discussions on the Internet or download lists, files 
             and programs from the ACM machine or from other locations on 
             the Internet.  SLIP, Telnet and other common Internet tools 
             are also provided.

             Full service accounts (including Internet access privileges) are 
             currently available for $70 for the first year and $50 per year 
             renewal.  Usage charges based on connect time will be added 
             to this cost for local or 800 dial-in service.  For subscribers 
             requiring only the mail forwarding service, the cost in $10 per 
             year with no access charges.  Forwarding accounts will have no 
             login privileges.  You must be an ACM member to receive either 
             service.

             More information will follow next month.  To sign-up for 
             either program, send email to Lemley@acm.org.


-----------  The ACM 1992 Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative   
  CSCW '92   Work (CSCW '92) is seeking student volunteers to assist with the   
  STUDENT    conference.  The conference is being held November 1-4, 1992 in 
 VOLUNTEER   Toronto, Ontario.  Volunteers will receive complimentary 
  PROGRAM    admission, access to reduced rate housing and other benefits in
-----------  exchange for approximately 20 hours of work.  For info contact:

                  Steve Portigal  (stevep@snowhite.cis.uoguelph.ca) 
                  Computing and Information Science
                  University of Guelph
                  Guelph, Ontario  N1G 2W1  CANADA 


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                         A B O U T   C H I F O O
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-----------  CHIFOO, the Computer-Human Interaction Forum of Oregon, is the 
DESCRIPTION  local chapter of SIGCHI, the ACM's Special Interest Group on 
-----------  Computer-Human Interaction.  The ACM is the Association for 
             Computing Machinery, the national professional society for 
             computing and information processing. 

-----------  CHIFOO's purpose is to provide a mechanism for exchanging ideas, 
  PURPOSE    and organizing workshops & similar educational activities 
-----------  related to computer-human interaction. 

-----------  All persons in Oregon and Southwest Washington who are
MEMBERSHIP   interested in computer-human interaction are invited to join 
-----------  CHIFOO by sending your name, address, telephone number and 
             electronic mail address (if possible) to the address below.
             There are currently no dues.

             If you are a member of ACM and/or ACM/SIGCHI, you may become 
             a voting member of CHIFOO by providing your ACM membership number.

-----------  Requests for CHIFOO information may be sent directly to
  ADDRESS    one of the officers listed below, or to their attention at:
-----------
                     e-mail:    chifoo-request@cse.ogi.edu

                     US-mail:   CHIFOO
                                P.O. Box 5005
                                Beaverton OR 97006

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                  E X E C U T I V E   C O U N C I L
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-----------  Chair:          Chris Jacobson
 OFFICERS                    Tektronix
-----------                  (503) 627-6153
                             chrisj@crl.labs.tek.com

             Vice Chair:     Jeanne Scholtz
                             Portland State University
                             Computer Science Department
                             (503) 725-4036
                             jean@cs.pdx.edu

             Secretary:      David Novick
                             Oregon Graduate Institute
                             Computer Science Department
                             (503) 690-1156                             
                             novick@cse.ogi.edu

             Treasurer:      Jim Larson
                             Intel Corporation
                             (503) 696-2979
                             jlarson@ashland.intel.com

             Program Chair:  Ed Harrison
                             Interactive Technology, Inc.
                             (503) 644-0111                             
                             harrison@inttech.com

-----------  In addition to the offices listed above, our bylaws permit
    GET      the officers to round out the executive council with
  INVOLVED   appointed positions.  We are currently soliciting volunteers
-----------  for many positions.  If you are interested, please send e-mail 
             to chifoo-request@cse.ogi.edu

             Program Committee           Ed Harrison, Chair

                                         Scott Ables, Consolidated Freightways
                                         (503) 226-4692  ables@techbook.com

                                         ** Additional members needed **

             Publicity Committee         Jeanne Scholtz, Chair
                                         ** Additional members needed **

             Education Committee         David Novick, Chair
              (Colloquia, etc)           ** Additional members needed **

             Membership Chair            ** Volunteer Needed **
                                           (David Novick, Acting)

             Special Events Chair        ** Volunteer Needed **

             Newsletter Editor           Ed Harrison

             Job Match Coordinator       ** Volunteer Needed **

             Members at Large            ** Suggestions welcome **

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|    CHIFOO News         |        April 1992        |   Volume 1, Number 6  |
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-- 
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Ed Harrison                           | Voice:    +1 (503) 644-0111
Interactive Technology, Inc.          | FAX:      +1 (503) 626-0221
10700 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy #460 | Internet: harrison@inttech.com