C H A P T E R 1 6

Speech Recognition and Synthesis

Spoken Dialogues and Delegation

The most powerful, successful, and compelling way to use speech technology is to engage users in spoken dialogues. Spoken dialogues are multi-turn conversational interactions in which the computer asks a question, the user speaks an answer, the computer asks another question, and so on. When the computer asks a question, the user automatically knows how to answer, and the speech engine has a better chance of recognizing what was said. For example:

User: Schedule a meeting.

Computer: What day would you like to meet? User: Friday.

Computer: What time? User: 6 P.M.

Computer: Whom do you want to invite?

User: Tom, Jerome, Devang, Kevin, Matthias, and Kim.

Computer: OK. Scheduling a meeting on Friday at 6 P.M. with Tom, Jerome, Devang, Kevin, Matthias, and Kim.

With spoken dialogues of this form, it’s possible to provide users with a means of delegating a goal to the computer (scheduling a meeting, in the previous example), rather than performing a sequence of steps that each involves the keyboard and mouse. The computer can ask the user for any extra information it needs to reach that goal. Speech is an ideal way to delegate a goal to an intelligent assistant.

260Spoken Dialogues and Delegation

Apple Computer, Inc. June 2002

A P P E N D I X A

Checklist for Creating Aqua

Applications

This checklist is designed to help guide you in the process of making a great Aqua application. Use it to remind yourself of important interface-related issues.

Consider the questions in the checklist as you review your software. Answering every question with a “yes” will ensure that your product conforms to the Aqua human interface guidelines. Even if you can’t answer “yes” to every question, this checklist can help your product maintain the spirit of the guidelines and principles.

Although business realities (such as product schedules and budgets) often force you to make design tradeoffs, remember that, for many users and product reviewers, the extent to which you adopt Aqua is the most visible means of measuring how “Mac-like” your product is. (You may also want to refer to “Deciding What to Do First” (page 23).)

General Considerations

■Do you use standard Aqua controls provided by the system, instead of inventing custom ones? Do you avoid assigning new behaviors to existing interface elements?

■Does the application have the Mac OS X “feel,” including window minimization, live scrolling, live window dragging, and sheets?

■If a metaphor is being used, is it suitable for the application? Does the metaphor match a “real” visual and behavioral representation?

■Is the user always able to find an object or action on the screen? In other words, does your interface follow the see-and-point principle of design?

A P P E N D I X A

Checklist for Creating Aqua Applications

■Do document printouts exactly replicate what the user sees on the screen? Do movies, sounds, and other types of data reproduce faithfully regardless of what medium they’re in? In other words, is the application WYSIWYG?

■Is your application forgiving and explorable by supporting Undo? Are there warnings about risky actions? Are users allowed to back away gracefully from risky territory?

■If an operation can be interrupted, do you provide a Cancel or Stop button? Can Escape or Command-period be used to cancel or stop these operations?

■Does the application feel stable?

■Do you respect all of the accessibility features in Mac OS X, such as keyboard navigation and focus?

■Have you made a clear, consistent distinction between basic and advanced features?

■If your application has modes, is there a clear visual indication of the current mode? Does the visual indication of the mode appear near the object most affected by the mode? Are there enough landmarks to remind the user what area of the application he or she is in? For example, many graphics applications change the pointer to an eraser in erase mode.

■Is each mode absolutely necessary? Do the modes within the application properly track the user’s own modes? Do users consistently avoid the kind of errors caused by the program being in a mode other than what the user wants or expects? Making a mode visually apparent is no guarantee that the user will track it: Test the application on users and find out what sorts of mistakes they are making. If the errors are caused by modes, find ways to communicate the modes more clearly, or eliminate them.

■Can the user save a document or quit an application at any time?

■Are the widest possible range of user activities available at any time? The user should spend most of his or her time being able to interact with the application— not waiting for it to complete a process.

■Does your application always use the file’s display name when the filename is visible to users, except in expanded help tags?

■Is your application speech-enabled?

■Has all user-visible text been reviewed by a professional writer?

■Does all user-visible text use “curly” apostrophes and quotation marks rather than straight ones (except for measurements or in code examples)?

262General Considerations

Apple Computer, Inc. June 2002

Installation and File Location

■Can a user install your application by dragging a single file or folder? Did you provide an application bundle so that users can manipulate only certain files? Are you using the Mac OS X interface to handle plug-ins?

■Does your application put application support files—user preference settings, plug-ins, databases, and so on—in the user’s Library folder? Does it avoid putting files in the Documents folder (except for user-created files)?

Graphic Design

■Does the application have the overall Mac OS X “look,” including high-quality Aqua-style icons, controls, anti-aliased text, windows, and menus?

■Do windows, dialogs, and palettes look “clean” and free from clutter?

■Does the user have control over the design of the workspace (location and sizing of windows, toolbar customization), allowing him or her to individualize it?

■Is the information in windows organized so the most important information can be read first?

■Do you use white space and graphics to break up long pieces of text?

Menus

■Are the application, File, Edit, and Window menus present, with at least the standard items?

■Does the application support Undo, Cut, Copy, and Paste, and are these items in the Edit menu?