Showing posts with label HCI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HCI. Show all posts

Saturday, 16 April 2016

Windows Scan

Scanning is one of the most fundamental tools in managing administration and paperwork. Getting familiar with scanning software in Windows is thus a vital tool to effective administration.

The Scan app for Windows is a Windows 8 application preserved usefully in Windows 10. However, learning to use the application it is not super-intuitive, including finding out where you Scan is.

For example, suppose you have clicked Scan and the picture is upside-down. All you want to do is Rotate it and save it in a directory of your choice.

Right clicking on the scanned image yields no results.

On the left hand panel, you will see some basic information about the Scan and Scanner specifically the manufacturer of the scanner, and the file type of the scan, say PNG.

Click on "Show more" and you get more information on the scan such as Colour mode, Resolution in dots per inch (say 200), and Save location.

Click on Save location to select a sensible location for your scan.  You can choose a generic location such as This PC -> Pictures -> Scans.

Now, if you don't see any other options, you may need to rescan.  This should pop up a new window with the Scan, and an array of buttons above it. These buttons are:
  • Three point plug symbol - amazingly, this means "Share"
  • A frame symbol, inside another frame symbol - this means "Slideshow"
  • A pencil set at forty-five degrees - this means "Edit"
  • A circular arrow - this means "Rotate" (and the shortcut is "Control R")
  • A dustbin - which means "Delete"
  • Three dots - that brings a dropdown of other options, including File Info, which shows File size. There are also features you may not want to use with Scans such as "Set As" to "Set as lock screen" and "Set as background"

Tuesday, 24 December 2013

Quality Learning

What is learning? More specifically, what is quality learning in the context of software engineering? According to Kimble (1961), learning is the relatively permanent change  in response resulting from extended practice. Ritter et al. have published a paper on Learning and Retention, retention being one of the key characteristics of "quality learning".

Ritter explains that one of the consequences of "quality learning" is being able to perform a task faster the more times you do it. The task could be computer related, mathematics related or even writing books.

Ritter refers to Rasmussen 1983 for a theory of learning: consisting of declarative knowledge acquisition, proceduralisation followed by "skill tuning" (also known as the "autonomous stage"). At this point, users are considered to be "experts".

It is worth contemplating the work of Rasmussen and what motivated him to develop his theory of learning. Jens Rasmussen was a Danish engineer known for his work in "safety science". His theory of learning was adopted in Reason's book "Human Error". The area of study is sometimes referred to as "human factors" or more colloquially, HCI.