Anticipating the Future of HCI by Understanding Its Past and Present

This course is for students, practitioners, and academics who are interested in planning their careers. The rapid pace of change leaves some tools and technologies behind. We must focus our attention primarily on current developments. Why look in the rear-view mirror? Some topics that are being actively explored now will soon be of less interest, so career planning benefits from thoughtfully identifying trajectories. To make use of relevant information in other fields you must understand how their terminologies, priorities, and methods evolved. We will cover the history of several HCI fields and discuss opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. Software evolved from passively reacting to human input to today's dynamic partnership. In some areas HCI advanced steadily, elsewhere it reached dead ends or seemed to go in circles. Understanding these patterns will prepare you to respond to unexpected developments in years to come. The forces that shaped HCI in computer science, human factors, information systems, information science, and design are covered, with examples and implications for our new era.