Different user interfaces – fact file.

Zia Rehman
 WHAT IS A USER INTERFACE?

A user interface is how you interact with a certain computer device, in order for it to
process your requests and fulfil your requirements. There are different types of
interface, complex and simple, which all can be tailored and engineered to create an
easy to use application/software. A way to define how good a user interface is, would
be to see how the system responds to your interactions. If it is fast, and clear, it is a
good interface.
 DIFFERENT TYPES OF USER INTERFACE

There are many different complex and simple types of interface. Firstly, we should look
at how the device can be interacted with. When using a device, it would be interacted
with via touch, motion sensors, menus, speech, etc.

There is the GUI interface (graphical user interface), CLI (command line/text-based
interface) and others.
 GUI (GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE)

The GUI (pronounced gooey) is the regular interface you will see in modern times. It is a
complex interface and is used in windows, macOS, linux, smartphones, etc.

It consists of icons that refer you to certain applications, which you make use of for your
own personal requirements/needs.
 CLI (COMMAND LINE INTERFACE)

The CLI (command line interface) also known as the text based interface, is a simple
interface but is quite complex to an unexperienced user. You enter code in text form in
order for the computer to process the requests.

Being a CLI user would be quite difficult for a novice or inconsistent computer user
since you must know all the different commands, in order for the
computer/software/application, to fulfil your requirement/needs.
 MENU INTERFACE

The menu interface, is an interface that is mainly and commonly used across the younger
generation/s. This is because it is very accessible, so that people with not much
experience such as a 3 year old child would be able to click a button and it would direct
the child to what they want to access.

There could be several options used, and in the case of someone with a visual
impairment, you could add a narrator option in order for that person to hear the options
and select based on that.
 SPEECH INTERFACE.

The speech interface is used for people with a visual impairment also at times. This
would be a better option for those people because they can’t see where the option is on a
menu even with a narrator.

With the speech interface you can speak and tell the device what option you want to
choose. Also during set up, you can choose what language you want to be able to speak
to it in so then it can download the necessary files in order for the device to understand
what the user is saying.
 HOW DO WE USE THESE INTERFACES?

The different ways to use these interfaces are a mouse and keyboard, touchscreen,
motion detectors, sensors, speech, eye recognition, face recognition, and fingerprint
recognition. (last 3 are categorised as biometrics.
 MOUSE AND KEYBOARD

A mouse and keyboard is mainly and commonly used to interact with a GUI (graphical
user interface) but can also be used for a CLI (command line/text-based).

A mouse and keyboard is very straightforward to make use of. If we want to use the
computer to input text (letters and numbers) we click on the button on the keyboard
representing the letter in order for the system/device to process it.