This is a simple test environment for logging cyclical pointing task trials, as described in the ISO 9241-9 standard. The provided configuration file sets up a reciprocal (cyclical) task with nine targets. Mouse movement and clicks as well as information about the used (randomized) test setup are logged in a timestamped, uniquely named log file.

All targets in the trial are drawn on screen at the beginning of the trial. Targets are highlighted in succession. The next target always highlights after a mouseclick.

(Written for a research project at Helsinki Institute for Information Technology.)

• Python 2.7
• installed libraries: Tkinter, pygame
• should work on Linux, Windows and OS X (Ubuntu and Windows 7 tested)

Usage: run main.py (e.g. python main.py on Linux)

Test setups are pre-defined in config. The comment lines in the config file assist in editing test setups if required. The test environment passes through all D, W combinations in a randomized order. After all combinations have been used, the test setups are randomized again.

A trial with nine targets always ends after 27 left mouseclicks (three rounds are done). Logging only starts after the first mouseclick is registered.

(D values approximate and ID values calculated using the MacKenzie formulation.)

Log files will be written into a subdirectory named logs. Test setup data and the name of the test subject (filled in at the startup prompt) are logged at the beginning of the file. The rest of the lines consist of a timestamp (in seconds after the start of logging), x and y coordinates of the mouse cursor and x and y coordinates of the center of the current target. Current target gets updated after a mouseclick. Mouseclick lines are otherwise identical to normal position lines but have a CLICK identifier at the end of the line. The sampling rate is roughly 100 fps.

# Subject name: Test Subject
# Target width: 20
# Target distance: 689

0.0000	636	48	520	729
0.0102	636	48	520	729
0.0204	636	48	520	729
0.0306	635	49	520	729
0.0408	635	49	520	729
0.0510	635	49	520	729
...
1.2612	516	731	520	729
1.2714	515	731	520	729
1.2815	515	731	520	729
1.2917	515	731	520	729
1.2918	515	731	520	729	CLICK
1.3019	515	731	865	132
1.3121	515	731	865	132
...

On OS X and Linux systems filenames are timestamps in the following format:

yyyy-mm-dd-hh:mm:ss.microsec.log

On Windows systems, colon symbols (:) are replaced with full stops (.):

yyyy-mm-dd-hh.mm.ss.microsec.log

On Windows, log files also use CR + LF newlines instead of the simple LF newlines used on Unix based systems.