Publication | ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2021
Think-Aloud Computing
Supporting Rich and Low-Effort Knowledge Capture
This paper presents an entirely new way to capture what people are doing while using a computer – simply by speaking.
Download publicationAbstract
Think-Aloud Computing: Supporting Rich and Low-Effort Knowledge Capture
Rebecca Krosnick, Fraser Anderson, Justin Matejka, Steve Oney, Walter S. Lasecki, Tovi Grossman, George Fitzmaurice
ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2021
When users complete tasks on the computer, the knowledge they leverage and their intent is often lost because it is tedious or challenging to capture. This makes it harder to understand why a colleague designed a component a certain way or to remember requirements for software you wrote a year ago. We introduce think-aloud computing, a novel application of the think-aloud protocol where computer users are encouraged to speak while working to capture rich knowledge with relatively low effort. Through a formative study we find people shared information about design intent, work processes, problems encountered, to-do items, and other useful information. We developed a prototype that supports think-aloud computing by prompting users to speak and contextualizing speech with labels and application context. Our evaluation shows more subtle design decisions and process explanations were captured in think-aloud than via traditional documentation. Participants reported that think-aloud required similar effort as traditional documentation.
Associated Researchers
Rebecca Krosnick
University of Michigan
Steve Oney
University of Michigan
Walter S. Lasecki
University of Michigan
Related Resources
See what’s new.
2024
TimeTunnel Live: Recording and Editing Character Motion in Virtual RealityAn animation authoring interface for recording and editing motion in…
2020
MicroMentor: Peer-to-Peer Software Help Sessions in Three Minutes or LessWhile synchronous one-on-one help for software learning is rich and…
2022
MoodCubes: Immersive Spaces for Collecting, Discovering and Envisioning Inspiration MaterialsIn early stages of creative processes, practitioners externalize and…
2017
Same Stats, Different Graphs: Generating Datasets with Varied Appearance and Identical Statistics through Simulated AnnealingWhy graphical representation and visualization are so important to…
Get in touch
Something pique your interest? Get in touch if you’d like to learn more about Autodesk Research, our projects, people, and potential collaboration opportunities.
Contact us