Comparison of Mouse and Keyboard Efficiency

Abstract

In many corporate settings, users are required to quickly execute commands. Three methods of issuing commands were compared: 1) selecting a menu item with a mouse (Menu-Mouse condition); 2) selecting a menu item with a keyboard shortcut (Menu-Keyboard condition); and 3) selecting a toolbar item with a mouse (Toolbar-Mouse
condition). Users performed one of the three methods across 90 trials and had their speed assessed in blocks of 30 trials.

Overall, the Toolbar-Mouse method was the fastest, while the Menu-Keyboard condition showed the most improvement. A GOMS-based model is presented that accounts for differences among methods. This work confirms the use of toolbars for common commands, but also suggests that for heavily-used interfaces, keyboard shortcuts can be as efficient as toolbars and have the advantage of providing fast access to all commands.