Difference between revisions of "Usability"

Revision as of 13:24, 30 May 2011

Aims

• provide further information and understanding in the following areas:
  • users ("who?")
  • tasks ("what?", "how?")
  • context ("where, when, why?")

Proposed Method

• Mental Models by Indi Young
  • qualitative method
  • based on open interviews (no questionnaires)
• Further information on this method is available, see:
  • The book (rosenfeld media) Mental Models
  • excerpts available for online reading via paperc (German website, free account required, book in English)
  • The author explaining the method in this Video
  • diagrams from the book on flickr

Recruiting

• The product vision is used as a starting point to find the right partners for the mental models interviews.
• functionality overview will be confronted with users' perspective

Course of Actions

1. define audience (already existing: User Scenarios)
2. recruit participants, set scope and conduct interviews
   • at least 4 interviews per audience segment
   • focus: tasks, behaviours and philosophies of users
   • transcribe interviews
3. analyze results
   • distillation of tasks, behaviours and philosophies into patterns
   • create graphic of patterns in a mental model
   • oppose mental model vs. planned and existing functionality
4. make use
   • gap analysis (planned and existing functionality vs. users' behavior, needs and tasks)
   • adjust user scenarios / audience segments
   • derive stragety for development
   • prioritize features (importance vs. feasability)

pros and cons

• (+) pros
  • fundamental research, broad focus, high-level
  • detailed analysis of users and their tasks
  • research is built on existing findings
  • verification of user scenarios / audience segments
  • based on tasks and behavior
  • adaptable / scalable method
  • supports strategic vision and long-term development
  • revision and clarification of user scenarios

• (-) cons
  • fundamental research, broad focus, high-level
  • no immediate improvements
  • complex method
  • not all existing findings are considered

Deliverables

• primer (20-40 page pdf about users, tasks, context)
• Mental Model Diagram
  • one diagram per audience segment
  • tasks organized in "Mental Spaces" of users
  • justified audience segments based on tasks
  • gap analysis