Presentation Overview
• My.SIMS refresher• Heuristic feedback• Current design compared
with 1st interactive prototype• Demo of current design• Usability test results• Plans for final iteration• Lessons learned
Heuristic Feedback
• Channel metaphor confusing and inconsistent• Make navigation very explicit• Layout irregular, busy• Most important tasks at top • Dragging and dropping more difficult than clicking
Courtesy of:
Now – Explicit Navigation• Added help and registration for
guest user• Changed color to make current
location more explicit
Then – Channel metaphor
• Introduction described purpose of my.SIMS not how to use
• Users did not read the block of text
Second Interactive Prototype Demo
Link to demo
Pilot Usability Study
• Testing Goals• Do users complete tasks
successfully? • What paths do they take in
trying?• Is terminology and help
intuitive?
• Participants• 2 – 2nd year masters students• 1 – 1st year masters student
Pilot Usability Findings
• Channel metaphor clearer, but still needs work– Users looked at new help
section, but did not find information they were seeking
– Usage of What’s This links based on user profile
• Navigation and icons much more intuitive– Users easily navigated through
tasks
Pilot Usability Findings
• Link between Interests and Content needs to be more transparent– User’s want to see what ‘channels’
are available for each interest• Users like the functionality of
application– One place to go for course
information• Calendar Display more
important than ‘Quick Add’
Next Iteration
• Clarify Channel metaphor– Alter Help according to feedback– Explicitly highlight ‘What’s This’
information on profile page• Clarify link between Interests
and Content– Ability to preview or sub-select
the channels available in an interest area.
• Display Calendar in Channel, make ‘Quick Add’ a link
Lessons Learned
• Medium used for testing influences feedback
• No one is a ‘blank slate’; everyone comes with some expectations and preferred vocabulary
• Even if users reject at first, a metaphor can be massaged into acceptance