This paper describes research (which is in its early stages) to investigate the best way of designing an interactive problem-solving computer system for people who are not programmers. The research is empirical and involves subjects solving problems on a representative system. Features of interest (which will become experimental treatments) include the means of sign-on and sign-off, the means of communication with the non-programmer, the process of matching a user with the appropriate package, the execution of such packages, and enhancements to such packages. This paper concludes with a description of a pilot experiment using a prototype system in which subjects with written documentation and those with no documentation at all were more productive than subjects with online system documentation. No performance differences were found in the factors of information display and single vs. multiple response capabilities.
['Hubert E. Dunsmore']
Designing an interactive facility for non-programmers