SigniFYI-CDN: merged communicability and usability methods to evaluate notation-intensive interaction

TL;DR

SigniFYI-CDN is a simplified inspection method that merges communicability and usability approaches, aiding analysis of notation-based interactions in complex data applications.

Contribution

It introduces a streamlined, scaffold-supported method combining semiotic and cognitive analysis for evaluating notation-intensive interactions.

Findings

Effective in analyzing complex data interactions

Simplifies existing evaluation procedures

Supports diverse notation purposes

Abstract

We present SigniFYI-CDN, an inspection method built from previously proposed methods combining Semiotic Engineering and the Cognitive Dimensions of Notations. Compared to its predecessors, SigniFYI-CDN simplifies procedural steps and supports them with more analytic scaffolds. It is especially fit for the study of interaction with technologies where notations are created and used by various people, or by a single person in various, and potentially distant, occasions. In such cases, notations may serve several purposes, like (mutual) comprehension, recall, coordination, negotiation, and documentation. We illustrate SigniFYI-CDN with highlights from the evaluation of a computer tool that supports qualitative data analysis. Our contribution is a simpler tool for researchers and practitioners to probe the power of combined communicability and usability analysis of interaction with increasingly complex data-intensive applications.