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Tools and Programming

Applying HCI methods to our own field of computing and interactive systems can lead to innovation, best practices, and resources to support future developments.

 

Some HCI + computing projects result in a new tool or enabling contribution – a physical artifact like a code library, data set, browser extension, or AI tool – that can be shared with others to use.  

 

Other HCI research focuses on the field of computer programming. Software development is a difficult task, and the process of making it easier for devs of all skill levels is important for the future of the industry.

 

Students who want to learn more about these application areas might be interested in the following courses or opportunities: 

 

  • image for the "[does] Compute" podcast, presented by the CMU School of Computer Science and Geekwire

    Season Two of 'Does Compute' Now Available

    NEWS

    From Oscar-winning work in computer graphics to solving problems inside the human genome, Carnegie Mellon University's top-ranked School of Computer Science is using computer science to tr...

  • A teacher works with a student while the student engages in tutoring with a remote tutor

    National Tutoring Observatory

    PROJECT

    ...

  • a tic tac toe board during mid-game on a grey background, the pieces are shaped like the pink letter X and a yellow letter 0

    From Code to Commands

    NEWS

    Today's generative artificial intelligence models can create everything from images to computer applications, but the quality of their output depends largely on the prompt a human user pro...

  • blue PolicyCraft logo

    PolicyCraft

    PROJECT

    Community and organizational policies are typically designed in a top-down, centralized fashion, with limited input from impacted stakeholders. This can r...

  • Sketches and AI generated images of 5 fluid chairs and 5 serene lamps with several examples like lava and clouds inspired by nature

    Human-AI Collaboration Can Unlock New Frontiers in Creativity

    NEWS

    Content churned out by generative AI models is surprisingly competent, if not always particularly exciting....

  • screenshot of the browser extension Purpose Mode

    Purpose Mode Helps Social Media Users Stay Focused on Their Desired Tasks

    NEWS

    If you’re an active user of social media platforms, chances are you’ve felt distracted on more than one occasion while staring at your phone or tablet....

  • CHI 2025 logo of a small illustration of a seaside city, complete with a small ferris wheel

    CMU at CHI 2025

    NEWS

    Our halls are abuzz with talk of “CHI” (pronounced “kai”), the nickname for the upcoming conference on computer human interaction (CHI)....

  • screenshot of the Inkspire interface

    Inkspire

    PROJECT

    With recent advancements in the capabilities of Text-to-Image (T2I) AI models, product designers...

  • illustration of the proof-of-concept editing interface with map-inspired elements, like district, path and landmark

    VideoMap

    PROJECT

    Video editing is a creative and complex endeavor and we believe that there is potential for reim...

  • An illustration of a search engine window, including a search bar with a magnifying glass in it, and the results below represented by boxes in various colors.

    New Search Engine Tool Helps Users Make Sense of Unfamiliar Topics

    NEWS

    HCII researchers have developed a prototype Google Chrome extension that helps users avoid information overload and frustration when performing unstructured online searches for new topics ...

  • illustration of NaNcy the Silky Anteater, the NaNoFuzz mascot

    Accelerated Software Testing

    PROJECT

    The United States spends more than $48 billion/year on software testing, and many powerful testing tools have significant usability barriers that limit th...

  • Soundify assists users in matching sound effects (in bold) and ambients (in italics) to video, and helps dynamically adjust panning and volume by localizing "sound emitters".

    Soundify

    PROJECT

    In the art of video editing, sound is really half the story. Through formative interviews with professional editors (N=10), we found that the manual task ...