Evaluation of response time delay of a pen-tablet system in thin-client computing environments: implications for...

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Human-Computer Interaction

Background:

• Healthcare facilities are rapidly adopting computerized patient records (CPR) over traditional paper-based systems.
• Standard input devices like keyboards and mice may not fully meet healthcare professionals' needs for electronic patient records (EPR).
• Pen-tablet systems (PTS) are increasingly used as digital pen interfaces for EPR.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the usability of pen-tablet systems (PTS) within thin-client computing (TCC) environments.
• To identify key factors influencing PTS usability in TCC, specifically focusing on response time delays.
• To provide empirical data for optimizing PTS integration into EPR systems utilizing TCC.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of the relationship between response time delay length and its scattering for PTS in TCC.
• Quantitative assessment of how delay characteristics impact user experience and system usability.
• Focus on the variability (scattering) of response time as a critical usability metric.

Main Results:

• Response time delay scattering significantly impacts PTS usability in TCC environments.
• The length of the delay is less critical than the consistency (scattering) of the delay.
• Optimal usability for PTS with TCC is achieved when delay scattering is maintained within approximately 35 milliseconds.

Conclusions:

• Delay scattering is a more crucial indicator for PTS usability in TCC than average delay length.
• Maintaining low response time delay scattering is essential for effective EPR implementation with PTS and TCC.
• This research offers valuable metrics for evaluating and enhancing PTS usability in modern healthcare IT infrastructures.