doom as an interface for process management
This paper explores a novel interface to a system administration task. Instead of creating an interface de novo for the task, the author modified a popular computer game, Doom, to perform useful work. The game was chosen for its appeal to the target audience of system administrators. The implementation described is not a mature application, but it illustrates important points about user interfaces and our relationship with computers. The applications relies on a computer game vernacular rather than the simulations of physical reality found in typical navigable virtual environments. Using a computer game vocabulary may broaden an application's audience by providing sn intuitive environment for children and non-technical users. In addition, the application highlights the adversarial relationships that exist in a computer and suggests a new resource allocation scheme.
doom interfaces process management paper systems system administration administrator task author computer games computation game game implementation applications point users user interface relationships vernacular simulation physical virtual environment environments children resource allocation scheme metaphors operating systems cyberspace 3d user interfaces games visualization video games first-person shooter post-modernism