The infrastructure problem in HCI

HCI endeavors to create human-centered computer systems, but underlying technological infrastructures often stymie these efforts. We outline three specific classes of user experience difficulties caused by underlying technical infrastructures, which we term constrained possibilities, ed interaction, and interjected abstractions. We explore how prior approaches in HCI have addressed these issues, and discuss new approaches that will be required for future progress. We argue that the HCI community must become more deeply involved with the creation of technical infrastructures. Doing so, however, requires a substantial expansion to the methodological toolbox of HCI. Author Keywords Infrastructure, human-centered design, toolkits ACM Classification Keywords H5.m. Information interfaces and presentation (e.g., HCI): Miscellaneous.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2010
• Where: CHI
• Authors: W. Keith Edwards, Mark W. Newman, Erika Shehan Poole
• Keywords: CHI 2010, HCI Community, Human Computer Interaction, Technical Infrastructures, Technological Infrastructures