Unit 23 - P1 - Describe the impact of HCI on society.

P1 - Describe the impact of HCI on society, economy and culture. Society Command line interface is a type of human computer interface which involves using a keyboard in order to write commands i.e. run, for the computer to execute commands. A GUI is a 'graphical user interface and allows people to interact with the computer via icons etc. An example of CLI. An example of a GUI. The change to GUI has improved usability for the average user vastly as you no longer need to execute commands with a keyboard which can be tricky if you don’t know all the commands you need or if you aren't a very good typist. Instead you can use graphics on screen such as program icons to launch applications by clicking on them, which is far easier as you can associate a program to an image, making it far more usable for people who have difficulty reading and typing. This has impacted society by reducing necessary specialised knowledge on computing, and allowing average people to use them. HCI has also changed to improve usability in a variety of other ways, such as the touch screen. A touch screen has allowed people to use more complex pieces of technology whilst on the go, an example of this are tablets, such as the iPad. You could argue that tablets aren't necessary due to laptops already being around, however, the touch screen allows you to pack the same specifications into an even smaller package, the iPad 2 has a 1ghz processor, 512mb RAM, two cameras and has a 10 hour battery life which will be perfectly fine for people on the go and due to it only being 1.3lbs it'll be lighter than a laptop and more convenient as it's thinner. Specialised interfaces are a very important factor that has impacted society greatly. Specialised interfaces come in a variety of ways, for example, voice control. Voice control does exactly what it sounds like, you can interact with a computer using your voice to issue commands, for example, using Siri (an iPhone program) to call someone. Voice commands have impacted society by allowing people to use devices hands free which allows them to do other tasks whilst still having access to their devices, it is also useful for people who have difficulty interacting with computers using conventional means, i.e keyboard and mouse. There are also specialised interfaces for those who are visually impaired, for example Windows 'Narrator' in the ease of access folder, this tool reads what is on the screen aloud, this has impacted society by obviously allowing the visually impaired to use and interact with computers, where they may not have been able before. The 'Ease of access' folder.  Complexity is another factor involved in the impact of HCI on society. Over time the way we interact with computers has become easier and more intuitive for example the GUI. However, some methods are more complex, for example, heads up displays. Heads up displays are a type of computer display which are transparent and shown in front of the users on a screen. They are good as they allow you to interact with a computer without having to break concentration of look away, which is good in settings such as an aircraft. A heads up display.   http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000619.htm , http://www.osnews.com/story/4418 these links contain information of the comparisons of GUI and CLI and what they are.   http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/What-accessibility-features-does-Windows-offer This site shows people what specialised features are available for people.