Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!cis.ohio-state.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rpi!uupsi!srchtec.searchtech.com!johnb From: johnb@searchtech.com (John Baldwin) Newsgroups: comp.human-factors Subject: Re: Audio feedback from GUI's Message-ID: <1991Jun14.155107.21918@searchtech.com> Date: 14 Jun 91 15:51:07 GMT References: <1991Jun12.171211.2716@cs.umn.edu> Organization: search technology, inc. Lines: 32 In article steve@arezzo.siemens.com (Steve Giovannetti) writes: > If I am sitting in a room with five other people, each with audio > extensions in their GUI, can you imagine the db level? Five people > typing away on semi-noisy keyboards is bad enough, but all that > popping, clicking, and buzzing would drive me crazy. My first question here would be: "If you're concerned about improving human performance with respect to working with computers (actually, accomplishing any solitary-type work at all!), then why do you have six people working together in a single room with little/no auditory or visual isolation from each other?" > I feel that for the visual feedback will have to do. It is not distracting >to anyone other than persons looking on your screen. I can't think of a >better solution in the multi-person office. Then the solution is better education of the managerial types in charge of alloting funds for the office environment. There is, in fact, an ROI associated with installing dividers and having a large percentage of individual offices. -- John Baldwin | johnb@searchtech.com Search Technology, Inc. | srchtec!johnb@gatech.edu Atlanta, Georgia | johnb%srchtec.uucp@mathcs.emory.edu