Conclusion

The work of defining patterns for human-computer interaction is far from complete. A first step has been taken -- an initial set of patterns has been defined and validated to the extent that the patterns identified seem to be consistent with subject perceptions of valid patterns. The following conclusions appear justified at this point:

1. Principles can be clustered into groups of related principles. Placing the related principles on a matrix revealed that:
   1. Many principles can be footnoted into a more general statement.
   2. Principles can often be easily identified for empty matrix cells based on the principles in adjacent cells of the matrix,.
   3. Patterns can be identified from clusters of principles.
2. We found that patterns span three aspects of the human-computer interaction: the interface itself, the interaction across the interface, frequently referred to as the dialog, and the information presented both in the interface and in the dialog.
3. In line with the operational definition, we found it possible to describe the pattern by a simple phrase and also to give them a descriptive name.

In the second part of, the research we tried to validate empirically the findings from the initial studies, from this we can conclude that:

1. Patterns are seen as more general than principles.
2. Subjects found clusters of principles. Both the initial groups created by the researcher and the results from test 2 show that principles can be clustered into groups of related principles. The grouping might vary some, depending on the focus of attention.
3. The study showed that the patterns defined as a part of this research subsume the principles that were used in the discovery of the pattern.
4. Half of the patterns identified in this study show some intersubject validity. These are ``consistent interface'', ``meaningful interface'', ``informative interface'', ``ordered information'' and ``appropriate information''. The other 50 generality, and content. These are ``universal commands'', ``meaningful sequence'', ``accommodating dialog'', ``recognizable objects'' and ``consistent information''.