Reducing number entry errors:
solving a widespread, serious problem

Supplementary online and interactive material

Harold Thimbleby Swansea University	and	Paul Cairns York University

Original paper

Harold Thimbleby and Paul Cairns, “Reducing number entry errors: solving a widespread, serious problem,” J. R. Soc. Interface published online 7 April 2010 doi: 10.1098/rsif.2010.0112

Demonstrations

• Demonstration error-blocking user interface — HTML
• iPhone example and details — HTML
• Simulation of the Casio HS-8V — HTML+applet

Methodology

• Notes on the methodology — PDF

Data and programs

• Excel spreadsheet for Figure 1; Excel xlsx file
• Fully documented Mathematica code is available:
  • With example output included, as PDF so easy to print even without Mathematica — PDF
  • As a Mathematica source with no output — notebook
• Java code — zip file
• Java run file — Unix run file
• Spreadsheets
  • All headers — Excel .xls file
  • Generated data (.csv format)
    • e = 0.0050, k = 0.5
    • e = 0.0050, k = 1.0
    • e = 0.0050, k = 10.0
    • e = 0.0050, k = 2.0
    • e = 0.0050, k = 5.0
    • e = 0.01, k = 0.5
    • e = 0.01, k = 1.0
    • e = 0.01, k = 10.0
    • e = 0.01, k = 2.0
    • e = 0.01, k = 5.0
    • e = 0.02, k = 0.5
    • e = 0.02, k = 1.0
    • e = 0.02, k = 10.0
    • e = 0.02, k = 2.0
    • e = 0.02, k = 5.0
    • e = 0.05, k = 0.5
    • e = 0.05, k = 1.0
    • e = 0.05, k = 10.0
    • e = 0.05, k = 2.0
    • e = 0.05, k = 5.0
    • e = 0.1, k = 0.5
    • e = 0.1, k = 1.0
    • e = 0.1, k = 10.0
    • e = 0.1, k = 2.0
    • e = 0.1, k = 5.0
    • e = 0.0050, k = 0.5
    • e = 0.0050, k = 1.0
    • e = 0.0050, k = 10.0
    • e = 0.0050, k = 2.0
    • e = 0.0050, k = 5.0

Cited papers by the authors

• H. Thimbleby, Ignorance of interaction programming is killing people, ACM Interactions pp. 52-57 (2008 September+October)
• H. Thimbleby, Calculators are needlessly bad, International Journal of Human-Computer Studies 52, 1031 (2000)
• H. Thimbleby & I. H. Witten, User modelling as machine identification: New design methods for HCI, in Advances in Human Computer Interaction, IV:58-86. Ablex (1993)