Cognitive Ergonomics in Interface Design - Discussion of a Moving Science

Cognitive Ergonomics is discussed as a systematic base for user interface design. The history of the discipline, explicitly existing now for about 25 years, is discussed, from participatory design, through various flavors of user centered design, to contextual design. Several persistent misunderstandings regarding the need for user interface design are analyzed. The concept of activity centered design is proposed as state of the art approach, and several techniques that support this paradigm are mentioned and illustrated.