Modern applications are complex - why does suddenly style change, images move, menu items become disabled etc.? Why does things happen dynamically in the interface without letting the user know?
The paper is suggesting a framework from improving this understanding for the user. The framework is not for existing applications.
The framework is suggesting adding a "Why" menu to the applications. The CTRL-key can also be held down to get help for the current item. When clicking a menu item, the function can also show the path to the function, for example how to change the setting for automatic capital letter in word. Some of the actions were grouped (typing a word instead of letter), like the Undo-function in most applications. The function is for showing actions not performed.

When people have a question about what happened in the user interface, a why-question is the most common. People do not have to transform their question and look for key-words - the question they have in their head is shown directly on screen.

Study showed that it was faster with the function implemented. A group of users had a list of tasks, and with the function they were able to perform 93% of the tasks within a certain amount of time. Without the function, an average of 70% of the tasks were completed.