Optimization Based Touchscreen Graphical User Interface Design

Tablets have been increasing in popularity throughout the past couple years and developers are designing their graphical user interfaces (GUIs) with this trend in mind. This thesis attempts to examine how a process can be designed to automatically create a GUI layout for a menu driven interface based on predetermined criteria. The effectiveness of the system along with a qualitative analysis of GUIs was examined through the use of human subjects testing ATM designs on a tablet. A three-way ANOVA was designed to see if Gender, the type of Form, or if the order they did their testing was a significant factor in how fast a subject was able to complete certain tasks and what they thought of each of these forms. While these results were not able to prove which form could be completed the fastest because of an interaction between blocking and forms, the subject’s ratings were able to demonstrate their high preference towards a system that was more simplified. They felt that a simpler designed interface is more aesthetic and usable. The subjects also had a higher sense of satisfaction while using a simple form. This thesis provides background for future research in designing a process that can automatically determine the layout of a menu driven system