The Object-Action (or visa-versa) model and its applications

From Computing and Software Wiki

Contents 1 Background 1.1 Object Action Interface 1.2 Action Object Interface 2 Scope 3 Principles 3.1 OAI Model 3.2 Syntactic Knowledge 4 Task hierarchies of objects and actions 4.1 User 4.2 Designer 5 Interface hierarchies of objects and actions 5.1 Interface Objects 5.2 Interface Actions 5.3 User 5.4 Designer 6 Limitations and Challenges 7 References

Background

Object Action Interface

Action Object Interface

Scope

Principles

OAI Model

Syntactic Knowledge

Task hierarchies of objects and actions

Tasks are composed of objects and actions at high and low levels. Not all users will find these hierarchies to be perfect, but since they are comprehensible, a great deal of usefulness is provided.

User

Dividing complex tasks into sub-tasks and solving the sub-tasks independently has been shown to be a successful way to solve larger complex problems.

Designer

Three steps are suggested by Ben Shneiderman, the creator of the 8 golden rules for interface design, for designers to correctly build a task hierarchy.

   1. Know about the users and their tasks (Interviewing users, reading workbooks and taking training sessions)
   2. Generate hierarchies of tasks and objects to model the users' tasks
   3. Design interface objects and actions that metaphorically map to the real world universe

Interface hierarchies of objects and actions

Interface Objects

Interface Actions

User

Designer

Limitations and Challenges

Each user's way of performing a task may vary. Defining steps completely with metaphors creates risk in the varying interpretations of metaphors amongst different users.

References

• Amir Khella, Object Action Interface Model