This book examines human-computer interaction (HCI), with a focus on designing computer technology to be more usable by people. The book provides a multi-disciplinary approach to the subject through a synthesis of computer science, cognitive science, psychology, and sociology, and stresses a principled approach to interactive systems design that fits a software engineering environment. The book is structured in three parts. Part 1, "Foundations," covers the basic foundations of HCI in terms of human psychology, computer systems, and the implications of the interaction between them. Chapter 1, "The Human," looks at human perception, cognition, and problem-solving as factors which influence the usability of a design. Chapter 2, "The Computer," discusses available design technology. Chapter 3, "The Interaction," discusses interaction between human and computer. Part 2, "Design Practice," concentrates on the integration of HCI into design practice. Chapter 4, "Usability Paradigms and Principles," looks at the history of interactive system design and identifies principles which support usability. Chapter 5, "The Design Process," discusses software engineering and how it is influenced by the insistence of user-centered design. Chapter 6, "Models of the User in Design," chapter 7, "Task Analysis," chapter 8, "Dialog Notations and Design," and chapter 9, "Models of the System," discuss modeling techniques that can ensure usability principles are not violated. Chapter 10, "Implementation Support," looks at the support tools and environments available to interactive system programmers. Chapter 11, "Evaluation Techniques," looks at analytic and empirical methods for evaluating systems to see if they meet user requirements. Chapter 12, "Help and Documentation," discusses the design of user support systems. Part 3, "Application Areas," includes chapter 13 "Groupware"; chapter 14, "CSCW and Social Issues"; chapter 15, "Out of the Glass Box"; and chapter 16 "Hypertext, Multimedia and the World Wide Web." Contains 266 references and an index. (JAK)