Take a position on whether you feel user interfaces for work will remain isolated or if they will become more collaborative. Present evidence to support your argument.

I believe that interfaces for work will remain more isolated because direct interaction is the simplest. Take conference calls for example, even when they work perfectly, they still do not allow you the same level of interaction as in person interaction and are therefore inferior.

Describe your opinion of why collaborative interfaces, such as email, are much more popular than others, such as video-conferencing.

Email replaces its successor “pen and paper” in a way that feels exactly the same and then brings added benefits such as faster speed. video-conferencing however, does not replace its successor in a way that feels just the same. In real life, you never have to worry about losing connection or someone’s hardware malfunctioning. Video-conferencing is a bandaid for not being able to meet; it is not more beneficial than meeting in person.

Differentiate the roles of face-to-face encounters and collaborative interfaces. Explain the limitations and benefits of each type of communication.

Collaborative interfaces are mostly only meant to bridge the gap when you are in a different location from your collaborator. Face-to-face encounters allow for way more straight-forward, easy interaction. Collaborative interfaces are useful because without them you’d have no way to communicate.

Below is 7 dimensions of the Model of Coordinated Action (MoCA) model (Lee and Paine, 2015). Cite examples of each and how you feel it might influence a successful collaboration.

Explain how collaborative interfaces can improve or harm teamwork.

Collaborative interfaces can improve teamwork when all the users understand the limitations of the interface and take pains to make sure they make it work before connecting to their partners. They are harmful, however, when users spend more time trying to get the interface to work than actually collaborating.

Explain how an interface designer can protect users of a collaborative interface from hostile or malicious behavior.