This document summarizes Schneiderman's Eight Golden Rules of Interface Design. The rules are: 1) Strive for consistency, 2) Enable frequent users to use shortcuts, 3) Offer informative feedback, 4) Design dialogs to yield closure, 5) Offer error prevention and simple error handling, 6) Permit easy reversal of actions, 7) Support internal locus of control, and 8) Reduce short-term memory load. The document provides a brief explanation of each rule to convey the key principles of interface design according to Schneiderman.

1. Chapter 2
Describe
Schneiderman’s Eight
Golden Rules
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2. LEARNING OUTCOME:
• Organize a various styles of interfaces
interaction of software and hardware
products (P3, PLO2)
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3. Schneiderman’s Eight Golden
Rules of Interface Design

4. Golden rules and heuristics
• Provide a convenient and succinct summary of the key
principles of interface design.
• ‘Broad brush’ design rules – may not always applicable
to every situation.
• There are many sets of rules :
– Nielsen‘s 10 Heuristics (Chapter 3)
– Norman‘s 7 Principles (chapter 1)
– Shneiderman‘s 8 Golden Rules

5. Schneiderman’s Eight
Golden Rules of Interface
1. Strive for consistency
2. Enable frequent users to use shortcuts
3. Offer informative feedback
4. Design dialogs to yield closure
5. Offer error prevention and simple error handling
6. Permit easy reversal of actions
7. Support internal locus of control
8. Reduce short-term memory load

6. Strive for consistency
• Strive for consistency in action sequences, layout, terminology, command
use and so on.
• Identical Terminology (prompts, menus, help)
• Consistent visual layout (fonts, color, etc.)
• Exceptions:
– Confirmation of deletion
– No password echoing
– Limited

7. Enable frequent users to use
shortcuts
• Enable frequent users to use shortcuts, such as abbreviations, special
key sequences and macros, to perform regular, familiar actions more
quickly.

8. Offer Informative Feedback
• Offer informative feedback for every user action, at a level appropriate to
the magnitude of the action.
• For every user action, the system should provide feedback

9. Design Dialogs To Yield Closure
• Design dialogs to yield closure so that the user
knows when they have completed a task.
• Action sequences should have a beginning,
middle, and end.
• Feedback provides sense of accomplishment.
• Ex. Purchasing items via internet has a clearly
defined step-by-step process

10. Offer Error Prevention and Simple
Error Handling
• Offer Error Prevention and Simple Error Handling so
that, ideally, users are prevented from making
mistakes and, if they do, they are offered clear and
informative instructions to enable them to recover.

11. Permit Easy Reversal of Actions
• Permit Easy Reversal of
Actions in order to
relieve anxiety and
encourage exploration,
since the user knows
that he can always
return to the previous
state.

12. Support Internal Locus of Control
• Support Internal Locus of Control so that user is in control of
the system, which responds to his actions.
• Experienced operators want to feel in control.
– User is in charge of the interface
– Interface rapidly responds to the user
• Lack of control builds anxiety and dissatisfaction.
- Surprising interface actions
- Tedious actions
- Difficulty in obtaining necessary ability
- Difficulty in producing action
• Good rules: Avoid a causality, make users initiators rather
than responders

13. Reduce Short Term Memory Load
• Reduce short term memory load by keeping
display simple, consolidating multiple page
displays and providing time for learning action
sequences.

14. Reduce Short-term Memory Load
►Rule of thumb: Humans can remember 7 +/- 2
chunks of information
►Displays kept simple
►Multiple page displays should be consolidated
►Training if using codes, mnemonics, long
sequence of actions
►Online access to command-syntax,
abbreviations, codes, etc.
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15. ACTIVITY
• Based on Shneiderman‘s 8 Golden Rules,
Discuss in Group :
1. www.psp.edu.my
2. www.poliku.edu.my
3. www.ptss.edu.my
4. www.polimas.edu.my
5. www.puo.edu.my
6. www.uthm.edu.my
7. www.unimas.edu.my
• Present Your Finding
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16. Prepared by Mdm PYTan