Human Computer Interfaces and discourse analysis: Addressing audience with engineers

Abstract

User interface designers may, based on the form content binary, emphasize form to the detriment of content. This creates the possibility of creating interfaces that are technically sound but weak in content. Addressing audience, in addition to form and content brings the potential to bridge the divide between form and content. The factor of audience, while considered from different perspectives in the technical sub-discipline of computer science known as Human Computer Interaction (HCI) and traditional composition courses, the blend of this instruction for engineers often leads to complication. Attention to audience in an engineering curriculum has shown to improve the resulting interfaces designed by students. Even though instruction in audience consideration provides for interface design that may not always successfully address the difficulties associated with the form content binary, classroom experience indicates that has reasonable potential to bridge this disconnect.