USER-CENTERED DESIGN OF INTERFACE TOOLKITS

Abstract

Current user interface toolkits unnecessarily complicate the process of creating user interfaces. This paper suggests that the design of these toolkits must be rethought. We advocate a user-centered approach to the design of these development tools, considering the application developer as user and applying principles from interface design to design of interface toolkits. The process of user-centered toolkit design is described, making use of design affordances to influence the developer's use of the toolkit. User-centered design is shown as a useful framework for understanding a number of toolkit issues and their solutions.