Can real examples inform human-computer interaction?

Abstract

Accounts of real situations which cause problems for domain users are relatively rare in academic literature because the problems which confound users often occur in a single way. This article argues that while such accounts cannot be based on traditional research methods and the data lack the ability to be easily replicated and verified, such accounts do have value in serving as a guide to the possibility of the problem having wider occurrence. An anecdotal account of a problem encountered in the real domain of train travelling with a bicycle in the UK is given and this is used to illustrate the points made about anecdotal evidence in general.