Abstract

A user interface description is an abstract model that is used to describe the structure of a dialogue between a user and an interactive computer system. It forms the basis of notation that are used in user interface management systems. In this paper three classes of description formalisms are investigated. These classes are single-threaded representations (state-transition-diagram and grammar based specifications), multi-threaded representation (events, state charts based specifications) and concurrent dialogue representations (Petri nets and Process Calculus based specifications). Formal definitions of all the models are presented along-with algorithms for converting the notions into executable forms, which are used in various User Interface Management Systems. An evaluation method is presented and the implication of the results for the design and implementation of UIMs are also discussed. i Contents 1 Introduction 1 2 Description Formalisms 1 2.1 Single-threaded description form...

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