In the field of human-computer interaction, reports of the involvement of its practitioners in system development projects are rarely available for general scrutiny. The paper draws upon the experience of an HCI team at work within a large collaborative software development project. This experience of four years of HCI practice suggests three key, interdependent, factors that are central to the effectiveness of HCI input. The factors are influence, discretion and time available, and are discussed in the context of other report, of the role of HCI practitioners in the field. A number of issues are identified about the nature and scope of HCI in practice. The experience reported is relevant to software development in general, particularly where there are several groups working, sometimes in different sites, towards a unified outcome.
['Nick Rousseau', 'Linda Candy', 'Ernest A. Edmonds']
Influence, discretion and time available: a case study of HCI practice in software development