HCI, the study of human-computer interaction that began with the invention of the mouse, has revolutionized the user experience with technologies such as multi-touch, eye recognition, and virtual reality, and will continue to have a profound impact on our lives.
We take the computer mouse for granted. When was the mouse invented? The mouse was invented in 1963 by Douglas Engelbart. It’s surprising to realize that the mouse was invented 26 years later than the computer. Why was there a mouse in the first place? Before the invention of the mouse, computers were very unwieldy unless you were an expert. Despite the power of computers, the lack of ease of use was a major obstacle to their popularization. “Douglas Engelbart invented the mouse to solve this problem, and it fundamentally changed human-computer interaction.
When computers first appeared, many people were both excited and afraid of the impact these giant machines would have on human life. At the time, computers were mainly used for military purposes or large-scale scientific calculations, and very few people had access to them. As time went on, however, computers began to be used in a wide variety of fields, and people realized that they desperately needed a tool that would make it easier to operate them. The invention of the mouse was a revolutionary tool that answered the need of the hour, and it was a crucial step in the democratization of computers.
From then on, it was not only about improving the performance of computers, but also about how humans interact with them, and it wasn’t until 1983 that a discipline called Human Computer Interaction (HCI) was created to study this. HCI is literally the study of human-computer interaction. In other words, it’s the study of how to make it easier and more comfortable for people to use computers. The main focus of HCI is on effective and efficient user interfaces. A user interface is a physical or virtual medium created for temporary or permanent access that allows communication between a user and a machine (computer). In other words, it acts as a medium between the user and the computer.
Ever since the invention of the mouse, HCI has been trying to provide users with more advanced convenience. Long after the invention of the mouse, a technology called multi-touch was developed that went beyond physical devices such as keyboards and mice to allow touchscreens and touchpads to recognize multiple touch points simultaneously. This technology made input much more efficient than the traditional one-touch method of clicking a mouse or touching a touchscreen, and also made it possible to realize various functions such as zooming and rotating the screen with two hands. And it created a huge buzz as a replacement for the mouse and keyboard.
When multi-touch technology first became commercially available, it was a magical experience for users. The rapid proliferation of smartphones and tablets in particular played a huge role in the evolution of this technology. Users could now freely manipulate the screen with their fingertips, which made interaction much more intuitive and natural than traditional input methods. This change was more than just a technological advancement; it redefined the relationship between humans and computers.
Today, this technology has evolved even further to include technologies such as eye recognition. For example, when a user is watching a video, eye recognition can pause playback when the user looks away from the screen or closes their eyes, and resume playback when they look back at the screen. From the mouse to multi-touch to eye recognition, HCI is constantly creating new technologies to make life easier for users.
The future of HCI will likely go beyond just interacting with computers and impact every aspect of human life. For example, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies are already an important part of HCI research, bringing new levels of experience to people. As these technologies evolve, interactions with computers will become more immersive and immersive.
As mentioned earlier, HCI is the study of everything that makes computers more useful for users. Starting with the invention of the mouse, HCI is all about making design beautiful and making it practical and convenient for users. To do this, HCI requires a good understanding of users and is closely related to the aforementioned design. This is why people from different disciplines, such as psychology and design, work together to create more efficient ways for users to interact with computers. In the future, when computers will become more and more integral to our lives, HCI will continue to evolve rapidly and become even more important.
At the end of the day, HCI is not just about technological advancements, but about how to improve human life. As technology evolves, so do human needs and expectations, and the field of HCI will continue to expand. How will we interact with computers in the future? This is a challenge that HCI researchers are constantly exploring, and the future they create will have a profound impact on us all.
