Software Usability Analysis and Design
SWE 205 Spring 2010 Information

Software Usability Analysis and Design will be taught Spring 2010, Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 3:00 to 4:15. SWE 205 is a new course, offered as part of the Minor in Software Engineering and the BS in Applied Computer Science, concentration in Software Engineering. SWE 205 is also suitable for any student interested in designing usable computing applications, including students in psychology/human factors, computer science, math, physics, and all engineering fields.

The class will not require any programming. It will rely on critical thinking to understand what makes a computer UI usable and not usable. We will look at many specific UIs and discuss what they do right and what they do wrong. Grading will be based on a midterm, a final, and several written usability assessments.

We will read from two books:

• The Design of Everyday Things, Don Norman, 1988 (reprinted 2002), Basic Books, ISBN-10: 0465067107 (An old classic in this field.)
• Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, 2nd Edition, Steve Krug, 2005, New Riders Press, ISBN-10: 0321344758

Please direct any questions to the instructor, Jeff Offutt.

I will replace this with a more detailed syllabus soon ...

Jeff Offutt
5 November

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