Usability and Open Source Software

Speaker: Dr Dave Nichols, University of Waikato
When: 03.00PM, Fri 29 Jul 2005
Venue: 78-420
Host: Dr Stephen Viller
Abstract: 

  The usability of open source software is often regarded as one
  reason for its limited visibility on the desktop of the average
  user.  In this talk I will review the existing evidence of the
  usability of open source software and discuss how the
  characteristics of open source development influence usability (with
  examples from Mozilla and GNOME). I'll discuss how existing
  human-computer interaction techniques can be used to leverage
  distributed networked communities, of developers and users, to
  address issues of usability.

Biography: 

  Dr David Nichols
  Department of Computer Science
  University of Waikato
  Hamilton, New Zealand
  http://www.cs.waikato.ac.nz/~daven/