creating the best experience: accessibility & usability
DESCRIPTION
Presented to the Cleveland WPF User Group on September 20, 2011.This presentation introduces the concepts of usability and accessibility and provides methods and tools to help create great experiences for users.TRANSCRIPT
Creating the Best Experience: Accessibility & UsabilityPresented by Carol Smith
WPFSeptember 20, 2011
Designing for Everyone is
Impossible
Who will use your product?
What do they need to do?
Understand User’s Experience
User’s Experience
• Interaction with a product, service, or company– Functional – Emotional– Sensorial– Social
Functional
• Able to complete task– Find information– Submit form– Contact someone– Purchase item
Sensorial
• Visual– Layout– Colors– Images
• Auditory– Video– Music– Ads
Emotional
• Bring their life with them• Interface
– Conveys ideas and emotions
– Sets the tone
• Interactions with other people• Social networking• Help features• Chat
Social
Where They Overlap...
X➘Experience
Functional EmotionalSensorialSocial
Usability is an important characteristic
of what makes a good User Experience
Minimize Human Cost
• Tiredness• Discomfort• Embarrassment• Frustration• Effort
Benefits of Good User Experience
• Increased Usefulness• Increased Efficiency ($$$) • Improved Productivity
Benefits (continued)
• Fewer Errors• Reduced Training Time• Improved Acceptance
Happy Users!
Where do I start?
Who are your users?
Same Job Title, May Differ in…
UserExperience
Frequency of use
Priority of tasks Characteristics
Motivations and attitude
Expectations
Which Student?Rick Connie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrjkbh/ via http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/deed.en http://www.flickr.com/photos/caharley72/ (Christopher Alison Photography) via http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/
Small,Iterative
Steps
Interview the Experts
•Customer Service•Marketing (Web statistics)•Training •Sales/Business development
Who Are the Users?
• How many are there?• Common complaints?• Most important/frequent tasks?• Show stoppers?
• Understand:– Assumptions and stereotypes – Differences between users
About Them
• Environment• Experience Level, Knowledge • Technology• Define Primary & Secondary Users
Make User Groups
• Loosely defined at first• Determine what differentiates them
Share What You Learn
Personas
• Help guide decisions about:– Navigation– Features– Design
• Archetype, based on research
“I need help keeping track of all of the assets for each of my projects.”
Anthony Johnson
• Anthony (Tony) is 29 and lives in Centreville, VA in a large apartment complex. He drives a Prius which allows him to use special lanes on the highway and speeds up his commute (still takes about 40 minutes). His girlfriend works for the federal government in Washington, DC.
• He was never interested in teaching, but wants to improve the educational system. When he saw a job opening at an educational company he felt it would be a great opportunity to do just that.
• Despite the frustrations, Tony feels his company is great to work for and the benefits can’t be beat. He isn’t sure what is next for his career.
Editor and Math Specialist - 5 years of experienceDynamic Learning, Fairfax, Virginia
Goal Improve the educational system by making great courses for teachers and students.
Concerns Needs a good tool for tracking all of the assets for each of his projects. Too much time is spent fixing previous projects instead of working on current ones. Resigned to having to go back and forth with the publisher a few times to get everything just right.
Professional Environment Casual work place. Frequently frustrated by work.Has taken training offered. Not currently interested in taking on new responsibilities.
Technology & Education Does personal banking, shopping and email online.BS in Mathematics from George Mason.Took an organizational psychology course in college and enjoys management challenges.
ResponsibilitiesManages many different projects at once.Manages a great group of freelancers allowing him to focus on other things.Tracks many separate assets for each project.
Task Analysis
Example of a Task Analysis by Todd Zaki Warfel from his Agile2010 presentation "Opening the Kimono a look behind the design process."
Gap Analysis
Suggested Solutions
•FAQ on how to make an appointment•Online Request for Appointment•Prominent contact information
(800 number)
Mental States & High Level Tasks
•Make appointment•Plan for future appointments•Coordinate appointments
Are We Confident?
Confirm Assumptions
• Representative users who DO the tasks.• Visionaries, leaders, perhaps.
Observations
Interviews
34http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosenfeldmedia/ via http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/
Card Sorting
Observations
Go to the user
36
Why Observe?
• Great way to understand your user’s situation– “Cheat sheets” and other artifacts– Real processes– Number and type of interruptions– Who are they?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/heygabe/ via http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/Actual Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/heygabe/47206241/
Interviews
Interview to Discover/Confirm…
• Build on what you’ve learned:– Tasks– Attitudes and Opinions– Problems– Goals– Experience level and knowledge – Technology
40
Use Scripts
• Memory tool for facilitator• Don’t have to follow• Promote consistency
– Questions– Order of questions
Questions
• Quality of questions correlates to quality of answers:– Open-ended– Unbiased– Don’t lead or make assumptions– Use participant’s words
Silence is
Golden
User’s Time to Think!
43
Card Sorting
Card Sorting
• Maximize probability of users finding content• Explore how people are likely to group items• Identify content likely to be:
– Difficult to categorize– Difficult to find– Misunderstood
Gaffney, Gerry. (2000) What is Card Sorting? Usability Techniques Series, Information & Design. http://www.infodesign.com.au/usabilityresources/design/cardsorting.aspImage: http://www.flickr.com/photos/richtpt via http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/
Benefits of Card Sorting
• Easy and inexpensive• Use to determine:
– Order of information– Relationships between info– Labels for navigation– Verify correct audience
Gaffney, Gerry. (2000) What is Card Sorting? Usability Techniques Series, Information & Design. Image: http://www.infodesign.com.au/usabilityresources/design/cardsorting.asp
Online Tools
• Moderated• Un-moderated
Optimal Sort, Optimal Workshop - http://www.optimalworkshop.com/
Demo: https://livedemo.optimalworkshop.com/optimalsort/supermarketdemo
Usability Testing
Do I need a lab?
Rubin, Jeffrey. Handbook of Usability Testing. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.; 1994.
Computer / Concept
Facilitator
Participant
Observer
Timer Logger
Software*
UserlyticsLoop 11UserZoomChalkMark
GoToMeetingSkypeMoraeSilverback
Keynote
ModeratedUn-Moderated
Complex
Simple
*Incomplete list with subjective ratings
"The biggest waste of all is building something no one wants"
- @ericries #LeanStartupMI via @MelBugai
Break Time!
Accessibility
Overview of Terminology
• Disability– any condition that impedes the completion of
daily tasks using traditional methods (Wikipedia)• “People with Disabilities”
– Not “disabled” or “handicapped”
What is Accessibility?
• Accessibility is designing products so that people can use them regardless
of disability or environment.
Everyone can…
• Perceive• Understand• Navigate• Interact• Create & Contribute effectively
Disabilities vary by…
• Time of Onset • Course of the disability• Degree of Severity• Single or Multiple Disabilities
Disabilities Vary
• Visual – Blindness– forgot glasses
• Auditory• Physical• Speech
• Cognitive• Neurological• Language• Literacy
Environmental Factors
• Imposed limiting conditions include:– Manufacturing system – loud warehouse– Wireless device – on public transportation– Slow internet connection
Accessible and Usable by Everyone
Curb Cuts Universally Accessible Packaging
Curb Cut Image http://4sbccfaculty.org/lecture/2000s/lectures/Jan_Shapiro.html
Usability & Accessibility
• Increase– people who can effectively use a product– situations in which the product can be used– usability of a product – user satisfaction
• Estimated 650 million disabled people worldwide (Wikipedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disability - September 2011
Benefits to Organizations
• Demonstrate corporate responsibility• Cost savings and return on investment• Reduced possibility of legal issues
– Target– Jet Blue
Getting Started
• Institutionalize Accessibility with Usability– Plan for inclusion in all levels
• Support developers and discuss accessibility with your team– Standards, guidelines and laws– Inspection technology
Research
• Include people – with disabilities – People working under limiting conditions
Standards
• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)
• Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG)
• Section 508 in USA
Evaluating for Accessibility
• Make code good and valid• Clear, understandable, content• Organized information
Become Familiar with
• Functional and situational limitations• Standards, guidelines and laws• Inspection technology• Assistive Technologies
Accessible, Usable and Beautiful
Accessible and visually stimulating
Wrap Up
Do UX Early & Often
• Put it on the Wall as information radiators– Test findings– Artifacts– Competitor info– Update information
Recommended Readings
References• Cato, John. User-Centered Web Design. Addison Wesley Longman; 2001. • Hackos, JoAnn T., PhD and Redish, Janice C. User and Task Analysis for Interface Design. Wiley;
1998. • Henry, Shawn Lawton. Just Ask: Integrating Accessibility Throughout Design.• Henry, S.L. and Grossnickle, M. Accessibility in the User-Centered Design Process. Georgia Tech
Research Corporation, Inc; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; 2004. http://uiaccess.com/accessucd/personas.html
• Kuniavsky, Mike. Observing the User Experience: a Practitioner's Guide to User Research. Morgan Kaufmann, 2003.
• Mandel, Theo. The Elements of User Interface Design. Wiley; 1997.• Nielsen, Jakob and Robert L. Mack. Usability Inspection Methods. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1994.• Powell, Thomas A. The Complete Reference: Web Design. Osborne/McGraw-Hill; 2000.• Rubin, Jeffrey & Dana Chisnell. Handbook of Usability Testing.• Schaffer, Eric. Institutionalization of Usability: A Step by Step Guide. Human Factors
International, 2004.• Slatin, John M. and Sharron Rush Maximum Accessibility: Making Your Web Site More Usable for
Everyone. Addison-Wesley Pub Co., 2002.• W3C, Web Accessibility Initiative - http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/accessibility
References (cont)