managing complex tasks on the web

Our reliance on the Internet for an expanding proportion of our information and communication needs calls into question the design of the applications we use for a growing variety of tasks. That is, not only do we seek information, we plan holidays, conduct research, buy goods and services, provide goods and services, execute financial transactions, have fun, and process our email. How then do we model the user and user tasks in order to incorporate that modeling into the design of tools and functions that improve both user effectiveness and user experience for increasingly complex tasks.In this research we extend previous work on user modeling in the context of the Web browser application. First, we will explore what types of tasks users complete on the web and how they currently perform these tasks to develop behavioral models. Following this analysis we will design new tools and functions based on these models to try to improve not only the effectiveness and efficiency of completing these types of tasks but also to improve the user experience. An examination of subtasks and the use of current tools to "cope" can be used to predict features of tools that can be tailored to task as well as to individual preferences. The methodology of this research includes, analysis of current practices, modeling of behavior, design and implementation of new tools and methods, followed by laboratory and field user experiments to validate hypotheses.