New approaches on human-computer issues are required in designing user interfaces for skilled professionals in specific domains. By including domain knowledge earlier in the development process applications development can be simplified. The advantages of a domain specific design are obvious; 1. Increased efficiency in the development process and in the final application. 2. Enhanced possibilities for effective user participation. 3. Reduced development time and cost. Domain specific design requires a careful analysis of information utilisation. The analysis results in a design specified in a special design language interpretable by the construction tool.
This paper outlines a framework for a domain specific design and development process. Design was earlier supported mainly by cognitive theories on human computer interaction and user modelling. In the domain specific approach design issues are concentrated on efficient development of effective human-computer interfaces. Our purpose is to identify the main steps of the process – analysis of information utilisation, design and construction – with special emphasis on their documentation. The different documentations can be seen as interfaces or bridges between preceding and succeeding steps in the development process, and are to be specified in some kind of formal or semiformal language. We are currently working on the specification of these languages. Our development process is compared to development using traditional UIMS, with emphasis on the possible benefits; cost and time savings, increased possibilities for effective user participation and increased modularity. The domain of case handling accentuates the domain specific development as a general approach on a large number of administrative work situations where case administrators interact with customers or clients. Case handling is an important domain with many end-users using their skills for complex information retrieval and decision making. This domain is described from the case administrators perspective on customer interaction, information retrieval, decision support and information systems. We stress some general aspects on case handling, important for the design of efficient computer support for personnel working in this domain. Some basic work flow entities, to describe and categorise the case handling domain, are presented, like e. g. the initialisation phase, the information retrieval process, the case administrators decision process, and the documentation and information services.