All interactive systems, whether human or machine, try to communicate effectively in order to impart data, information or knowledge and perhaps even wisdom. The extent to which a system is able to do this successfully depends on the system’s utilisation of a user’s senses and the system’s own ability to adapt and provide feedback to the user.

If we search for good examples of interactivity we need look no further than ourselves; a conversation with friends in the pub, or taking photos of wildlife in a woodland, are highly interactive processes that engage our senses and adapt to our behavior. It is on this basis that a computer must compete for our attention.

Sadly there are few examples of computer interactivity that come anywhere close to a person’s capacity to interact. However there are examples that exhibit some of the mechanisms that lead to good interactive experiences.

Amazon, the popular online book shop, offers its users products based on the theme of their earlier purchases. It also suggests products purchased by other users that have also bought the selected item. Amazon are capturing knowledge, taste and experience from millions of its users and presenting it as a form of interaction with each customer.

In order to achieve a high level of computer interactivity designers must take a deliberate path through all levels of communication by taking in to account information, interaction and sensorial design.

Information design deals with the organisation and presentation of data and its transformation into meaningful information that has value. The publishing industry has been practicing information design for centuries. Sadly however, the skills and experience developed there have not been adopted by the majority of organisations and individuals that utilise the computer to interact with people. Little wonder then that interactive design, with perhaps its roots most embedded in stand-up comedy, is underdeveloped and lacking in most computer interfaces.

For the moment then, if you intend to interact effectively with your audience through a computer, at least make the effort to appeal to their sense of sight and present them with attractive graphics with an engaging dialogue.

Regards,