RE: Terms for user interface?

["Mike Hiatt" <mhiatt -at- vocaldata -dot- com>]

To build on Geoff's response - you could use icons for a keyboard, mouse,
joystick and microphone (voice) next to commands or feature descriptions to
let them know at a glance which features are accessible through which
device.

Mike Hiatt
Manager, Tech Pubs
VocalData, Inc.
Dallas (yep, that one)
mhiatt -at- vocaldata -dot- com

Julia Land has <<... a software program with three different types of user
interface. A user can issue commands and interact with the program with a
typical graphical user interface and mouse, with a joystick and its buttons,
and by voice. [snipped]>>

Geoff Hart replied:
In a case like this, it's probably more effective to refer to the means by
which the reader accomplishes something rather than overtly referring to the
underlying technology (e.g., GUI). So rather than "you can use the GUI or
with a voice command", say "you can enter a command from the keyboard, with
the mouse, or with the joystick, but not with your voice." In each case, you
refer to the tool the reader would use, in terms that are familiar to the
user.



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