UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS: 2020/2021
EXAMINATION FOR THE DIPLOMA IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
DIT 406: HUMAN COMPUTER INTERACTION
FULLTIME/ PART TIME
DATE: NOVEMBER, 2021 TIME: 2 HOURS
INSTRUCTIONS: QUESTION ONE IS COMPULSORY, CHOOSE TWO OTHER
QUESTIONS
QUESTION ONE (20 Marks) Compulsory
a. Using examples describe the stages of Donald Norman’s model of Interaction
[5 Marks]
b. List and discuss briefly Nielsen’s ten heuristics [5 Marks]
c. The focal point of Gestalt theory is the idea of “grouping,” or how we tend to interpret a visual
field or problem in a certain way. Explain briefly the four main factors that determine grouping.
[4 Marks]
d. Interface evaluation is the process of assessing the usability of an interface and checking
whether it meets user requirements. Briefly explain any two evaluation technique.
[4 Marks]
e. Discuss four characteristics of a usable system [ 2 Marks]
QUESTION TW0 (15 Marks)
a) List and discuss any three interaction styles [3 Marks]
b) List and briefly explain any three Principles of Flexibility that support usability.
(3 Marks)
c) Describe the steps in the Usability Engineering Life cycle (5 Marks)
d) Explain the principles of GOMS [4 Marks]
QESTION THREE (15 Marks)
a) Explain any four facilities included in an interactive system that allows users to recover
from their mistakes (4 Marks)
b) Explain the concept of “user experience” in design (2 Marks)
c) Describe any three approaches to user support (6 Marks)
d) Discuss the principles affecting learnability of a system [3 Marks]
QUESTION FOUR (15 Marks)
a) Differentiate between:
i. Low-fidelity and High-fidelity prototypes [2 Marks]
ii. Standards and guidelines as used in design rules [2 Marks]
iii. “Affordance” and “visibility” as used in usability principle [2 Marks]
b) List and briefly describe any four techniques which can be used to guide the user’s attention
(focussing attention). [4 Marks]
c) Compare and contrast the concepts of Formative Evaluation and Summative Evaluation
(5 Marks)
