Metaphors

Interface Metaphors

definition:  a conceptual model that has been developed to be similar in some ways to aspects of a physical entity, but that also has its own behaviors and properties

Interface metaphors combine the familiar with new concepts

Benefits:  a good orientation device
Drawbacks:  often the metaphor looks / feels like the physical entity, when they should just map the familiar with the unfamiliar so that users can learn the new (unfamiliar)

There is a growing opposition to metaphors because they can break the rules of the object they represent, they can be too constraining, can conflict with design principles, can cause misunderstanding of system functionality, can limit the designer's imagination, and can have overly literal translation of existing bad design.  See Metaphors description for more information.

2.4 p.55 – Interface metaphors (from Pat's notes):

• A conceptual model that has been developed to be similar in some way to aspects of a physical entity/ties but that also has its own behaviors and properties.
• Based on an activity or object or both (i.e. Search Engine:  searching, an engine, and includes other features than the metaphors)
• Interface metaphors: combine the familiar with new concepts.
• Benefits: Interface metaphors proven successful as familiar orienting device.
• Opposition to metaphors: mistake is often designers make the interface look/feel like its physical entity; metaphors are meant to be used to map familiar to unfamiliar knowledge so users learn the new.
  • BREAK THE RULES (e.g., the Recycle bin which gets used for something else than trash).  A Counter argument – it doesn’t matter because it IS only a metaphor.
  • TOO CONSTRAINING – i.e. file systems. Better to have user instruct system
  • CONFLICTS WITH DESIGN PRINCIPLES – bad design solutions
  • MISUNDERSTANDING SYSTEM FUNCTIONALITY (beyond the metaphor) – users can’t see what other features are there
  • OVERLY LITERAL TRANSLATION OF EXISTING BAD DESIGNS – creating a virtual object like a physical object that is already badly designed (i.e. online calculator)
  • LIMITS DESIGNER’S IMAGINATION – designers get fixated on tired ideas and don’t try new paradigms and models (i.e., Gentner & Nielsen (1996) used a book metaphor for online documentation and found it highly constrained their imagination for better features)
• Badly designed conceptual models does not have to be the case