Contextual Design for Mobile Technology

Jennifer Ockerman, Ph.D.Georgia Institute of

TechnologyAtlanta, GA USA

Based on Contextual Design: Defining Customer Centered Systems, byHugh Beyer and Karen Holtzblatt, 1998, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers

Contextual Design Timeline Contextual Inquiry (CI) Modeling Work

Individual Organization

Redesigning Work Designing Technology Usability Studies

Principles of Contextual Inquiry

Chapters 2 & 3

Gathering Customer Data Why?

Many Problems with Software / IT Systems Can Be Traced Back to Problems With Requirements

Also True of Other Types of Systems Theory

Better Customer Contact Better Data Better Design

What Sort of Data Do We Want?

Accurate Data Appropriate Data

Relevant to Design Not Just Averages / Aggregate Data e.g. Marketing Data Not Always Useful:

May Say What People Will BUY,Not How To Design It

Detailed Data Specific Enough to Answer Design Trade-

Offs e.g. Marketing Data Usually Pretty Broad

Why Is GatheringCustomer Data Hard? I

Customers Focused on Current Operations Tend to Suggest Small Fixes May Not Have Ever Thought of Significantly

Different Way of Doing Task Customers Tend to Give Partial Input

Tendency to Focus on Parts of Task They Have to Think About

Aren’t Aware of All the Contextual Factors Aren’t Aware of All Their Skills

Procedural vs Declarative Knowledge

Example of Unnoticed Data“An entire project team hangs out in

the hallway outside their offices every morning and chats over coffee and donuts. Does anyone know that this is a critical project coordination

meeting?” If you don’t catch this essential fact,

your information system to enable telecommuting may be unsuccessful.

Why Is GatheringCustomer Data Hard? II

Customers Don’t Get Very Detailed Tend to Generalize Things Often Can’t Even Explain Them Out of

Context Customers May Not Be Very Accurate

Qualitative Statements Relative Statements (e.g. Too Much

Work!) Inaccurate Estimates of Quantities

Example of Poor Data Try Getting Someone to Explain To You

In a Lecture Hall How They: Fly a Plane Drive a Car Run a Warehouse

Domain Experts Are Not Necessarily Good Communicators.

Communicating Out of Context Is Difficult.

Why Is GatheringCustomer Data Hard? III Surveying All The Customers. Who Is Your Customer? Customers Often Have a ‘Frame of

Reference’ Engineers Will Suggest Technical Fixes... Managers Will Suggest Regulatory Fixes… Workers Will Suggest Procedural Changes…

You Have a ‘Frame of Reference’. You Already Are Biased by Design Ideas.

A Cautionary Note... Don’t Get Ahead of Yourself Your Design Ideas Should Be

Driven By Data -- Not Vice-Versa!

But It’s So Tempting To Sketch Out Some Design Ideas And Show It To Them...

Purpose of Contextual Inquiry Get Data Suitable For Design

Understand Structure of Work Practice…

Get Concrete Understanding of Domain Experts’ Unarticulated Knowledge and Skill

Get Suitably Detailed Data Don’t Accept Generalizations and

Abstractions

‘Textbook’ Contextual Inquiry Each Interview 2-3 Hours 10-20 Interviews (Or More) Follow-Up Design Meetings Practices

Context: Go To Customer’s Workplace Partnership: Talk With Them and Engage Them Interpretation: Develop a Shared Understanding Focus: Direct the Inquiry To Meet Design Needs

Can’t Always Get This! Resource Issues Intrusiveness / Safety Lack of Partnership

So Compensate! Try to Situate Interviewees In Context Use Videotapes and Artifacts Become (Partial) Domain Experts

Conducting an Interview No One Hard-And-Fast Rule No Matter How Curmudgeonly the Interviewee,

Remember That You Are the Interviewer Think About an Appropriate Relationship Model...

Scientist/Subject Interviewer/Interviewee Expert/Novice Guest/Host Master/Apprentice!

They Demonstrate, You Investigate, They Explain… There Will Be Times You Need to Deviate A Bit…

And Play The Part! Won’t Always Work, For Reasons Outside Your Control

No

Yes!

NoNo

No

Note What They Say andWhat They Do Note What They Say

Declarative Knowledge

Note What They Do Ask About It

Create Opportunities To Examine Procedural Knowledge

Create Opportunities To Examine Habitual Behavior

Create Opportunities To Get Greater Detail

An Interesting Observation I“One customer said he would not use a

manual’s index to find the solution to a problem: “It’s never in the index.” He could not say what led him to this conclusion, what he had looked up and failed to find. All his bad experiences were rolled up into one simple abstraction: it’s not there. But when we watched him looking things up, we could see that he was using terms from his work domain, but the index listed parts of the system.”

An Interesting Observation II“A customer was unable to describe

how she made her monthly report. When asked to create it, she pulled out her last report and started filling in the parts.”

Talking About WorkWhile Doing It Allows You To Quickly Get Past

Generalizations Allows You To See The Entire Context Allows You To Develop Some Domain

Expertise (and Intuition for Design) Also Makes Customers Happier

Principles of Contextual Inquiry Context Partnership Interpretation Focus

First Principle of CI Context: “Go to the Customer’s Workplace

and See the Work As It Unfolds” Summary vs Ongoing Experience

Get Around Generalizations! See Things From Multiple Frames!

Concrete Data vs Abstract Data Normally Abstraction Is a Valuable Skill…

But Does the Customer Have the Right Abstractions? Get Concrete Data Get Artifacts Don’t Just Aggregate Things

Second Principle of CI Partnership: “Make you and the customer

collaborators in understanding her work.” Use your relationship model to tilt the roles to

one that gets them to give you information Control the interview process -- don’t control

what data is given Play a bit with the relationship model -- you

need data (good apprentice) and also insights into practices (more observant partner, educator)

Withdrawal and return… Describe technology...

Third Principle of CI Interpretation: “giving meaning to

observations” Change ‘data’ into ‘information’ Examine it from many different frames Look for structure, work patterns, etc. From facts, make hypothesizes about

implications, test them out -- and look at implications for design

But don’t bias them -- and listen carefully!“It’s like a travelling office”, you say, looking at how a

salesman has set up his car. “Well -- like a traveling desk,”he responds.

Fourth Principle of CI Focus: “keep the conversation on

useful topics without wresting control entirely away from your customer/expert” Remain objective, on track Like steering a conversation -- gently! Think of it as:

Getting more detail Covering all relevant aspects of the domain

Focus should be pre-specified Capitalize on surprises! Admit ignorance!

Contextual Interview Structure Conventional Interview

Administrative Stuff Transition

Explain the Ground Rules Contextual Interview Proper Wrap-Up

Back-up, Back-out -- What Didn’t You Cover?

More on Contextual Inquiry

Chapters 3 & 4

So What is Contextual Inquiry? A Process by Which To Gather

Customer Data with the Following Objectives:

Get Data About the Structure of Work Practice

Make Unarticulated Knowledge Explicit Capture Details of Habitual, Invisible Work

What We’re Trying to Avoid!

Before Interview: Decide on a Focus Focus: 4th Principle of Contextual Inquiry Should Be Decided Upon Before

Interview(s) Will Change As Project Evolves

Narrower or Broader… Different Reference Frames Different Subject Matter

Look for Metaphors And Use Them as Data Collection Tools

Metaphors E.g. You’re Tasked With Making an

On-Line Search and Retrieval System Examine How People Do Search and

Retrieval In a Number of Domains Physical (e.g. Library) On-Line

Use These Outside Studies to Bring Insights to Topic at Hand

Variations in Focus I Designing a Known Product

i.e. Something Already Known and Accepted in the Workplace Expectations Already Exist Competitive Products for Comparison Customer Feedback on Good-and-Bad Need to Add More:

More Functionality More Usability

Variations in Focus II Addressing a New Work Domain

i.e. A Work Domain Created By New Technology and Practices (e.g. Telecommuting, Word Processing, etc.) More Difficult -- No Current Practice to Study Can Study Current Domains, Though! Much of Results of Your Design Will Be Driven

By: Intent and Goals Inherent Structures to Tasks Information Flow Solutions to Historic Technological Limitations

Variations in Focus III New Technology

i.e. How Can I Apply Technology to New Domain? Look at Fundamental Needs of the Domain

Do They Need Technology? How Could the Technology Be Used to Improve

Things? Look at Metaphors Look at Analogous Situations

Variations in Focus IV Designing Information Technology

i.e. Bring Technology Into Data Flow and Coordination Activities of an Organization Implementing IT Requires Knowledge:

How Activities Can Be Integrated ‘Within’ a Single Job Within an Organization

How Information Can / Should Flow What Technology Already Exists What Work Processes Would Work Well

Before Interview: Who to Interview? Who Is Your Customer? Who Is The Worker? How Much Variation Is There?

Culturally Allowably (e.g. Do Workers Have Much

Freedom?) Think Between and Within Departments

How Much Variation Should You Support?

During Interview: Interview Structure Conventional Interview

Administrative Stuff Transition

Explain the Ground Rules Contextual Interview Proper Wrap-Up

Back-up, Back-out -- What Didn’t You Cover?

Can We Always Follow This Structure?

Uninterruptible Task - NO Intermittent Task - NO Extremely Long Task - NO Internalized Task - NO Extremely Focused Task -

NO ‘Normal’ Task - YES

Fortunately, We Have Other Methods

Video tap and post-hoc protocol

Longitudinal Study Artifact-based verbal

protocol Explanation of the

process Analysis of data Modeling of Processes

Your Interpretation is Key

Factors Impacting Interpretation Frames of Reference

Biasesi.e. HOW You Look At Customer Data(and How Customer Looks At Themselves)

Also Keep Track of the Goals

Modeling Work

Chapters 5, 6 & 7

Building on Contextual Inquiry

“Contextual Inquiry produces huge amounts of detailed knowledge about the customer. This knowledge is critical to system design, but it isn’t amenable to reductive statistical

techniques: you can’t take the average of 20 interviews to identify the ‘typical’ customer.

Work models provide a coherent way of structuring all this detailed data, revealing underlying structure without glossing over

the detail.”

What is Work? Is It Physical Actions? Is It Processing Information? Is It Making Decisions? Is It Communicating Information? Is It Learning New Things?

It May Be All Of The Above -- As Is Appropriate to the Task At Hand

What Is Involved In Work? Flow (Overall Organization and

Coordination) Sequence (Detailed Model of Actions) Artifact (Detailed Model of Artifact Use) Culture (Schematic of Influences on

Workers) Physical Structure of the Environment

Flow Models of Work Purpose:

Capture and Visualize: Roles of Individuals Communication and Coordination Mechanisms That Help and Hinder Strategies

Flow Models of Work Indicates Key Components of Overall Flow:

Individuals (Bubbles with Responsibilities) Groups of Individuals With Common Actions Places Central to Work (Large Box w/

Responsibilities) Responsibilities Flow (Arrows Between Individuals) Artifacts (Small Boxed Label on a Flow) Communication Topic or Action (Label on a Flow) Breakdowns in Communication (Lightning Bolt!)

Sample Flow Model

Field Engineer-- Evaluates equipment

-- Records data-- Completes forms

Customer-- Owns and operates

equipment

Supervisor-- Assigns jobs

-- Oversees work

Field Site-- Contains equip-

ment to be evaluated

Form Database-- Contains all

official companyforms

data

questions

responses

completed equip-ment reports

work statusreportsquestions

assignmentssuggestions

work status reports

official datacollection forms

completed equip-ment reports

Flow Models and CI Flow Models Can Hold A Lot Of Information

Contextual Inquiry Gets A Lot of Information! Beyond the Official Org Chart…

Coordination As It Actually Happens Information Flow As It Actually Happens Strategies and Perceived Contributions Roles -- Assigned and Actual -- and Their Basis Informal Structures

Sequence Models of Work Examines The Actions of Workers, and

How/When They Occur By Examining Their Structure, Can

Identify: Their Strategy Their Intent Important Dynamics of the Task

Related to ‘Procedures’

Basic Sequence Models Useful For Laying

Out Sequence of: Actions Processes

Similar to Process Charts Work Cards

But is Descriptive, Not Normative!

E.g. Flow Chart

Decomposition Chart Shows Different Aspects of the Same

Task Which Contextual Inquiry Should Provide!

Hierarchical Task Analysis Gives More Detail About Important

Steps

Timeline Analysis Allows You to Show Temporal Information

Especially Critical in Time-Critical Situations Useful When Things Need to Occur at Specific

Times

Sample Sequence Model

Print completed form

Leave hardcopy of form with customer

Assigned to do equipment audit

Send electronic form to supervisor

Store electronic form on form database

Retrieve required form from database

Type data into form on computer

Record data onpaper form

Collect data at site

Print form

Artifact Models People Create, Use, Modify Things

During Work Tool or End-Object ‘Official’ or ‘Informal’

Way of Working Can Be Built Right Into Artifact Reveals Strategies, Required

Structures, Information

Distinctions In Artifact Model Usage of Artifact Problems In Using Artifact Information Provided Parts Which Are Distinct In Usage Structure Given To Artifact by Worker Presentation, And How It Supports the Task Annotations!

Tells You What Is Missing From Formal Tools

Annotations Are Important!

Sample Artifact Model

Text entry

Graphics

Examples of what to look for

o Choice 1o Choice 2o Choice 3

Check-offs

Sample Artifact Model

Importance of Cultural Models Your End-Product Might Work Well In

Theory, But In Practice Wouldn’t Be Used Because Of: Differing Expectations Specific Desires Policies Values Changes In Approach at Organizational

Level

Change exampleFor Example, Webvan Works Well For Me! BUT:

Some People Want to Pick Out Their Food Directly

Some People Won’t Plan A Day Ahead Some People Might View Shopping As

a Social Activity or Out-Of-House Event

Cultural Model Distinctions Interview-ee Influencers -- That Which Affects Work

People Policies, Organizational Preferences and Values Points of Pride, Emotion, Personal Preferences

Extent of Influence Specific Topic of Influence, and Direction Breakdowns

Sample Cultural Model

Customers

Legal/GovtCompetitors

Field Engineer

SupervisorCompany

Administration

Company

You need to be accurate and

truthful.

We have perfect records.

No errors allowed!

I’m doing my best!

Hurry up!

We are going to steal your business.

No, we have the best service.

Are you done yet?

I’m working overtime!

We need an audit now!

Almost done.

We will be there tomorrow.

Physical Models Distinctions

Places Where Work Occurs Structures That Limit and Define Space Usage and Movement Infrastructure and Communication Lines Artifacts Breakdowns

Note: Is a Caricature of Workplace -- Not a Floor Plan!

Physical Models From CI Organization of Space

Work Efficiency, or Space Efficiency, or Management Efficiency?

Division of Space Does It Help? Hinder? How Is It Dealt With?

Grouping of People By Function, or by Project, or by Random?

Organization of Workspace Indications for Task Structure?

Movement Do People Move Around Much? Why?

Sample Physical Model

Work Site

Maybe outsideLarge area (up to mile2)

Tight spacesClimbing

Awkward positionsCompany Trailer

Computer

Approximately a 5 minute walk and if doing an audit at site under construction then safe path frequently changes over time, and may have to wait for construction equipment to go by

Using and Applying Work Models

Chapters 7 - 12

How Do You CreateWork Models?

As You Are Collecting Data During a Contextual Inquiry Interview?NO - You Don’t Have the Whole Picture Yet

By Yourself After an Interview?NO - You Have a Limited ViewpointNO - Then Only You Know What Is Going On

In a Team ‘Interpretation Session’?YES - If You Are Working With A Team

Why Do It Together? Better Data Creates Written Record Effective Cross-Function Cooperation Multiple Perspectives Development of a Shared Perspective True Involvement In The Data Better Use of Time

Running an Interpretation Session Assign Roles:

The Interviewer Work Modelers The Recorder The Moderator Participants & Rat Hole Watchers

Consolidating Your Models

Chapters 8 - 10

So Where Are We Now? We Know How To Gather Data

(Contextual Inquiry) We Know How To Represent Data

From Individuals(Individual Work Models)

How Do We Model the User Population As a Whole!?

Purpose of Design Design for an Entire Customer Population…

… Meeting Needs of (Most of) the Individuals!

Requires Models of Individual’s Work(Which We Have)

Requires Consolidated Models of Population(Where We Are Now)

Things to Look for in Consolidation How Much Do Users Vary?

Are These ‘Surface’ Differences?Are These ‘Fundamental’ Differences?

Is There a Common Pattern of Work?A Common Mechanism?A Common Artifact?A Common Problem?

Consolidated Models SO, For a General View, Many Models!

Affinity Diagram Consolidated Flow Model Consolidated Sequence Model Consolidated Artifact Model Consolidated Cultural Model Consolidated Physical Model

Like Work Models, These Consolidated Models MUST BE DESCRIPTIVE, Not Normative

Affinity Diagrams First Step in Consolidation Organizes Individual ‘Notes’ From

Interpretation Sessions Into a Hierarchy Intended to Show Common Issues and

Themes Starts ‘Bottom-Up’ From Data

Allows a Quick Survey of Both Issues and Underlying Data

In Industry, Can Be Huge! Starts at 200 Notes, Up To 1500 and More!

Building an Affinity Diagram It’s Fundamentally a Team Process

Someone Puts Up a Note…… Everyone Looks For Notes That Go With It!

As a ‘Group’ of Notes Is Identified, Make a ‘Blue’ Label Summarizing Its Points Don’t Use ‘Familiar’ Terms or Buzzwords!

Leads YOU Astray, Leads CUSTOMER Astray Focus on Underlying Commonality (and Issue)...

...Not a Superficial Categorization! As Diagram Increases, Group the Groups

‘Pink’ and ‘Green’ Labels...

Example: Part of Affinity Diagram

I leave the stuffon my secretary’s

desk

Joe Usually Swings By WhenHe Has Time FreeTo Take On Work

I Send Out An EmailAsking If Anyone

Is Interested InWorking On It

I Let The TeamsDivvy Up The

Work

Somebody’s AlwaysLooking for Over-

Time Pay

I Delegate Informally

We Delegate Our WorkWhy We Delegate

I Don’t Want to Deal With It I Have Too Much Work

How I Choose WhoWhoever Is AvailableThe Person With the Job

How I Go About DelegatingI Delegate, But Am Still ResponsibleI Give It Away at MeetingsI Delegate Informally

Same Diagram, High-Level Could be read as:

“People delegate work either because they don’t have time to do the work themselves, or because they choose not to deal with it. They pick someone else to do it either by who has time, who reports to them, or is otherwise appropriate given the organization. Different ways of delegating have different styles…”

Flow Models Individual Flow Models:

Capture and Visualize: Roles of Individuals Communication and Coordination Mechanisms That Help and Hinder Strategies

Consolidated Flow Models: View Organization As a Whole

Look for Common Patterns Look for Overlap and Redundancies Look for Breakdowns

Making a Consolidated Flow Model

Start With a Few Good, Complex Individual Models that Are Fairly Comprehensive

Identify Roles and Responsibilities Now Add to From All Individual Flow Models Add-To, Correct etc. Roles and

Responsibilities Draw In Artifacts and Communications Add In Breakdowns

From Individual Charts From Differences Between Individual Charts

More on Consolidated Flow Models

If You Just ‘Add-In’ Everything, Might Become Big and Complicated! Consider Showing ‘Important’ Things

Most Common Most Efficient Leading to Breakdowns

Consider Showing ‘Frequencies’ e.g. Thickness of Lines/Arrows

Represents Commonality

Sequence Models Individual Sequence Models:

Examines The Actions of Workers, and How/When They Occur, To Identify:

Their Strategy Their Intent Important Dynamics of the Task

Consolidated Sequence Models: Looks At Common / Shared Sequences Looks At Specific Inter-Changes

e.g. Timing of Placing an Order

Consolidate Sequence Models Think About Important Dynamics

e.g. If you have a ‘decision making’ model of a manager and a ‘procedure’ model of a secretary, how do they match up?

Does manager get information in time? How does manager use secretary to

implement decision? Important Constructs

Triggering of actions Timing of actions

Reviewing Artifact Models People Create, Use, Modify Things

During Work Tool or End-Object ‘Official’ or ‘Informal’

Way of Working Can Be Built Right Into Artifact Reveals Strategies, Required

Structures, Information Individual Models: Individual’s Needs Consolidated Models: General Needs

Creating ConsolidatedArtifact Models Group Artifacts of ‘Similar Type’

Depending on the Needs of the Project! Identify Common Parts of Artifacts

And Parts That Are Specific Use ‘Common Parts’ to Examine:

Structure of Artifact -- and Of Work! Intent of User Usage by User

Consolidated Physical Model Highlights Common Issues Imposed by

Physical Environment Highlights Breakdowns

e.g. One Type of Worker Not Supported! Shows ‘Smart’ (and ‘Dumb’) Placing of

Tools and Artifacts More Insight Into Strategies and Needs!

Illustrates Movement Including Coordination Capabilities

Creating a ConsolidatedPhysical Model Group Individual Models by Type of Place Label Each Place With Name and Intent.

Identify Different ‘Places’ Identify Common Structure: e.g. Common

Placement of Artifacts and Tools Look at Movement Look for Breakdowns

From Individual Models From Consolidated Model

How Much Is Common? Will Find Many Differences and

Similarities In Culture! Within a ‘Group’ Within a Company Within a Company Between Companies Doing Similar Work Between Companies Doing Different Work

Therefore, Need to Include Everyone Who Is Relevant (don’t just take manager’s viewpoint!)

Therefore, Can’t ‘Re-Use’ Cultural Model From Old Project

Consolidating Cultural Models Using Individual Cultural Models:

Catalog and Group Influencers Catalog and Group Influences

Keep emotional tone! Look for Conflicts and Breakdowns!

From Individual Models From Combination of Models

So Where Are We Now? We Know How To Gather Data

(Contextual Inquiry) We Know How To Represent Data

From Individuals(Individual Work Models)

We Know How to Represent User Population as a Whole(Consolidated Work Models)So What Do We Do With This!?

Many Models Individual View

Flow Model Sequence Model Artifact Model Cultural Model Physical Model

These Models Are DESCRIPTIVE, Not NormativeThey Represent a Great Deal of Data

General View Affinity Diagram Consolidated Flow Model Consolidated Sequence

Model Consolidated Artifact Model Consolidated Cultural

Model Consolidated Physical

Model

So What Do We Do With Them?! Understanding the Work Communicating With Others Redesigning… Work! (Re)Designing Technology

Comes Later...

‘Understanding’ From Work Models

We Can Infer Several Critical Things Once We Have Laid Out Good Work Models: Intent Strategies Structure Concepts Mindset

These Should Be Included In Our Re-Design of Work.These Should Be Communicated.

Ultimately, These Should Be Included In Our Technology.

Communicating With Others With Whom Will You Need to Communicate?

Your Boss Your Customer Marketing Sales Software / Hardware Developers

What Is Your Role In These Communications? To Be The Data-Driven Voice of Truth! To Be The Authority on Work Practices and Its

Implications

More on Communication The Data-Driven Voice of Truth…

Others Will Have Different Viewpoints Others Will Tend to Jump to Conclusions!

e.g. We Must Have a Wearable Computer… If You Don’t Have ‘Data’ To Back Up Your

Opinion, All You Have Is an Argument… How To Present Data?

It Depends! Some Can Be Led Through the Work Models Others Need Different Representation...

Last Bit on Communication Different Portrayals Depending on

Audience Same Underlying Message!

Understanding of Work Processes Places Where Improvements Are Needed Places Where Improvements Are Possible Impact of Improvements

These Message-Bits Come From Work Models! Sometimes Can Be Shown Directly...

Redesign of Work? Common Model:

Has Some Problems! What Will Impact of New Technology

Be? What Do You Want It to DO?!

Collect Data Design Technology

Real ExampleA client was sure that they needed to outfit all their field engineers with a wearable computer with a head mounted display to allow the engineers to view structural drawings while in the field. This is technologically feasible but ignored the fact that the field engineers not only look at the drawings themselves but also use those drawings to explain work to be done to the construction foremen and workers.

A Discussion That Jumps To Technology Misses The Most Important Points!

Work Redesign Book Representation:

Adds An Intermediate Step On Work Processes!

CollectData

WorkRe-Design

TechnologyDesign

Work Redesign Extended Extension From My

Own Experience:

CollectData

WorkRe-Design

TrainingDesign

TechnologyDesign

ProcedureDesign

OrganizationDesign

Work Redesign General Principles Target The Customer -- Focus on

Their: Intent Strategies Structures Mindset

Avoid Pitfalls! Think About Whether Your Fixes Create

Problems!

Redesign From Flow Models I Role Switching

Support Movement From Role to Role Eliminate Redundant Actions Support Coherent, Consistent

Interfaces Save ‘State’ to Reduce Negative

Impact of Interruptions

Redesign From Flow Models II Role Strain

Move Roles Onto Other People Automate, Eliminate or Combine

Roles Support and Organize Roles Make Roles Inter-Supporting

Redesign From Flow Models III Role Sharing

Support Communication Between Sharers

Allow for Tailored Interfaces and Fit With the Rest of the Roles Each Person Plays

Redesign From Flow Models IV Role Isolation

Communicate Context and Reasoning Support Communication Present The Information Each Role

Needs Reduce Blocks and Unnecessary

Steps in Communication

Redesign From Flow Models V Process Fixes

Remember You May Need to (re)Design the Organization!

Look at Changes in Process and Procedures

Look At New Roles and Responsibilities Include Business Designers on Team Think of Automation as Filling Roles...

Redesign From Cultural Models I Interpersonal Give-and-Take

Alleviate Problems With Role Allocation

Alleviate Problems With Role Conflicts Increase Communication Address Immediate Complaint

Redesign From Cultural Models II Pervasive Values

Look At Pervasive Values (Are They Good?) Look For Ways to Encourage Individuals To:

Attain Positive Values and Required Constraints Not Achieve Negative Values

See If You Can Align Individual’s Values Structures With The Organizations...

Redesign From Physical Models I Reality Check

Take Advantage of What Is There Don’t Depend on What Isn’t There Account for Movement and Multiple Task

Locations Overcome Communication Problems

Redesign From Physical Models II Work Structure Made Real

Have Physical Environment Complement Task Needs

e.g. Frequently Used Things Close e.g. Things Used In Order Placed In Order e.g. Communicators ‘Close’

Match the Intent of the Place, Not Detailed Appearance

Redesign From Physical Models III Movement and Access

Match or Improve Flow of Artifacts Maintain Conceptual Separation

Between Tasks Support Implicit Intent

Redesign From Sequence Models I What The User Is Up To

If Primary Intent Is Wrong, Fix It! Support ‘Good’ Intents Account For and Support Secondary

Intents

Redesign From Sequence Models II How Users Approach a Task

Identify and Support ‘Good’ Strategies Eliminate ‘Bad’ Strategies -- Carefully!

Redesign From Sequence Models III Unnecessary Steps

Identify Unnecessary Steps and Eliminate Them

Automate Tedious, Mundane, Harmful Steps Eliminate Breakdowns Facilitate Transition Between Roles Don’t Create Work No One Wants To Do Pick Best, Most Efficient, Safest Path to

Intent

Redesign From Sequence Models IV What Gets Them Started

Identify Triggers for Tasks Display Trigger Appropriately

What Keeps Them Going Identify Coordination and Information

Requirements Support Them! Identify and Display Important Constraints

e.g. Time Constraints

Redesign From Artifact Models I Why The Artifact Matters

Identify What Artifact Use Implies About Intent Support Intent Directly! Remember There May Be Multiple Intents…

What It Says Support Communication Created by Artifact Support Data Storage Created by Artifact Share Context and Data Between Roles -

Directly!

Redesign From Artifact Models II How It ‘Chunks’

Identify What Parts of Artifact’s Grouping Are Important

Use Structure to Highlight Structure of Work Maintain Distinctions That Matter

What It Looks Like Determine Which Parts of Appearance Matter Mimic The Parts That Matter Match the Intent of the Presentation

Summary: Using Models to Redesign Work Through Contextual Inquiry and

Development of Work Models, Have Captured Current Work Practices

This Knowledge Is Powerful Asset in Developing New Work Practices Look for What’s Important

Keep It Improve It

Look for What’s Bad Eliminate It

‘System’ Design

Chapters 13 - 16

So Where Are We Now? We Know How To:

Gather Data (Contextual Inquiry) Represent Data From Individuals

(Individual Work Models) Represent User Population as a Whole

(Consolidated Work Models) Identify Good and Bad Things in Current

Practice, and Identify Elements to Keep and Change

So What Do We Do With This!?

We Finally Get to Design! Vision Work Design: Storyboard Individual Tasks

(Specific Product: Storyboards) Environment Design: Layout Elements and

Functions(Specific Product: User Environment Diagram)

Component Design: Automation Interfaces Procedures Training

Test

Vision Lay out what you want the system to

DO Lay out what you want to change Diagram out the parts that are

important to the overall system functioning

Think about the pro’s and con’s In terms of system functioning!

Sample Vision

Wireless network area

Work site

Trailer

Field engineer with mobile device

Company network

Field engineer has access to company network and trailer computer from anywhere around the work site.

What Is Brainstorming? A Creative, ‘Blue Skies’ Thought Process

Think About New Creative Things! Look For ‘Out-of-the-Box’ Thinking!

Ways to Kill Brainstorming Evaluate Ideas for Feasibility At the Start

Leave That Till Later Later, Look For Ways to Make Good Concepts

Feasible Think About Design In Terms of Interface /

Machine Won’t Recognize New, Novel Solutions

Storyboarding Individual Tasks Purpose: Shows How Specific Tasks Will

Be Accomplished in the ‘New World’(A Technique Stolen From Movie Industry!)

Product: A Storyboard! Uses:

Help Create User Environment Diagram Good Communication Mechanism

Storyboard Form Same Form as Consolidated Sequence Models

How to Pick Specific Sequence Model to Mimic? IT DEPENDS!

Should Show Whatever Is Important to Task If Individual’s Actions Are Important, Show Them! If Information Flow is Important, Show It! If Machine Actions Are Important, Show Them!

Is a Chance for You to Brainstorm!

Thoughts on Storyboarding... Can Reference Your Descriptive Work

Models Difference Between Intent and Action

Help People Achieve Their (Good) Intents Don’t Have to Use Same Actions to Get

There! Consider All Work Models

Look for Structures to Capitalize On Look for Constraints that Limit How Can

Work

Sample Storyboard

Field engineer goes out to work site with wireless connected mobile

device

Field engineer calls up correct

form

Field engineer enters data

directly into form on mobile device

Field engineer sends the form to

supervisor

Field engineer stores the form in

the form database

Field engineer prints form at work trailer

User Environment Design So Now You Have Storyboards

For Lots of Individual Tasks! Need to Put Them Together Into One Big

View of the: System, if You Are Only Designing a System Environment, if Changing Whole Environment

This Process is ‘User Environment Design’ Should Also Involve Brainstorming!

The User Environment Diagram

Represents the New System Work Model Identifies Key Distinctions

Focus Areas: Coherent Places That Support Work

Purpose of Function Area Functions Within Focus Areas ‘Objects’ Used in Focus Area Constraints and Issues Movement Between Areas Specific Links:

Single Link Double Link

Does NOT Specify:• What Interface Looks Like• What Features Are Automated• How Software Works• etc…Still a Behavioral Specification

Sample User Environment Diagram

Interact with NetworkPurpose: To retrieve fromand store to the formdatabase Functions: Retrieve formsStore formsLinks:>Interact with FormObjects:Empty formsCompleted formsIssues: Who can edit which forms?

Interact with FormPurpose: View and edit content of formFunctions: View content of formEnter collected dataEdit previous dataLinks:>Interact with Network>EmailObjects:Electronic formIssues: How is dataentered while moving around?

EmailPurpose: Distribution of completed forms Functions: Send formsSend other commentsObjects:Electronic formsNotes

Spell-CheckPurpose: View spellingerrors and suggest fixes

RecognitionPurpose: Recognize inputsIssues: Handwriting and Voice?

Building From Storyboards Can Create UED By Looking at Storyboards

What Are Common Focus Areas? What Are Required Functions? What Are Likely Transitions

Just Remember that UED Must Account for ALL Tasks Either Need Storyboard for All Tasks OR Fill In the Gaps

The Two Models Serve Different Purposes...

Building From Current System Can Also Make a UED of Current

System What Focus Areas Does System Have? What Functions Are Done In Each? What Issues Are There In Each?

Is a Good Reality Check! Can See If There Are Breakdowns, Issues Can See How Different Your System

Are Differences Good? Necessary?

Traits of Good UED Focus Areas Make Sense

Few Unnecessary Transitions ‘Like’ Functions Grouped Together

No Unneeded Distinctions Between Focus Areas e.g. Can’t Edit Slide Contents on Slide

Notes Page Minimize Multi-Step Transitions! Coherence!

Coherency: A Guiding Principle Coherence Is So Important It Deserves

It’s Own Viewgraph A Coherent Environments Means:

Similar Functions Are Done in Similar Ways

Even In Different Focus Areas! Arbitrary Distinctions Between Functions

and Between Focus Areas Are Eliminated! Is Good To Keep Number of Focus Areas

Reasonably Low...

Partitioning the Work Coherence Is Good…

And Dividing the Design Work Up Means Parts of Design Will Not Be Coherent

But for Practicality’s Sake, Need to Partition Work

There Are Some (Partial) Solutions Look For Focus Areas Serving ‘Like’

Purposes e.g. Edit Slides, Edit Slide Notes, Edit Slide

Outline… And Have Same Team Work On Those!

What To Do With UED? I Go Design Things Yourself

Figure Out Who Does What: Roles of People vis-à-vis Functions and Focus

Areas Automated Roles

Design Hardware / Software Underneath Design Interfaces Design Procedures Design Training

What To Do With UED? II Write Specifications Document for Others

Specific Parts: Overview: Basic structure, purpose Supporting Data: Well-written analysis of your data

collection, analysis and modeling, including diagrams Functional Requirements:

Subdivided by Focus Area: What focus area is, work done there

Subdivided by Functions: Full description of function, what inputs are, what outputs are, how system should behave

Non-Functional Requirements: Performance, Reliability…

Objects Manipulated in Focus Areas External Interfaces From Other Systems

Measuring Usability

Chapter 19

Goals

Task Analysis and Functional Specifications

Release

The Design Process

Design

Test

Time Line With every iteration,

Fewer changes should be required Smaller changes should be required More subjects may be required in

testing for significant results Iteration stopped when:

System is perfect No time is left No money is left

What is Usability? “How Easily and Effectively the

System Can Be Used by the Intended User” Note: The System Must Be Easy to Use

ANDThe User Must Be Able to Use It To Do the Task

AND‘Usability’ Must Be From the Point of View of the Intended User, Not the Designer

Usability from the User’s Perspective

Usability from the User’s Perspective

Measuring Usability (In General)

Your Results Will Only Be as Comprehensive as Your Measures of Usability!

Your Results Will Only Have as Much Depth as Your Measures of Usability!

MORAL: Think Your Test Through Well! Consider the Possible GOOD Things About Your

System Consider the Possible BAD Things About Your

System Leave Space for the Unexpected

Starting to Measure Usability Definite Starting Point:

Know the Functional Specifications of Your System (What You Want it to Do; What Tasks the System Should Make Possible for the User )

Think About Possible Problems With the System

Start Early Informal Interviews With Paper Prototypes Cognitive Walkthroughs Heuristic evaluation by usability expert

What/How to Measure Quantitative - Objective

Speed - reaction time Accuracy - number and types of errors Learning Curve - change over time Process - how they did task

Qualitative - Subjective Attitude - like/dislike Opinions - what is good/bad?

Bias in Measures Quantitative

Bias from experimenter what tasks examined what measurements used how measurements taken what subjects covered

Qualitative Bias from experimenter AND subjects

Difficulties with Quantitative/Objective Measures Measures Actions But Not

Thoughts – Thoughts Must Be Inferred

Time spent on task Time spent looking at displays Errors made

Statistical Issues Sample Bias

Size of group OR Volunteer Bias For statistical tests

Use 5 point scale (very bad, bad, neutral, good, very good)

Can perform t-tests (e.g., “Is the response to question X significantly higher/lower than ‘neutral?’”)

Can perform correlation analysis (e.g., “Does the opinion of X go up when the opinion of Y goes up?”)

Difficulties with Qualitative/Subjective Measures

May Be Intrusive -- interrupts task May Add Bias -- may indicate to subject

changes in task by when you ask the question Subjects tend to correlate their usability

ratings with their perceived performance -- say ‘It’s easy’ if they think they are doing well -- say ‘It’s too hard’ if they are not doing well.

Subjects may have given up or shedded a portion of the task because of poor usability, but give a high usability rating

Generating a Survey I

Generating a Survey II Numeric Answers

Gives You Data You Can Tabulate, Analyze, Test for Statistical Significance, Compare Features

Allows You To Get Specific Answers to Specific Questions

Free-Response Questions Gives You Answers You Might Not Have

Thought To Ask For

Considerations in Questioning and Surveying Some People Tend to Answer ‘Yes’ to

Everything -- Others Answer ‘No’ to Everything

Use Unbiased Wording -- Don’t Lead Your Subjects to an Answer

Consider Your Wording VERY CLOSELY -- Does It Ask What You Want To Know?

For Rating Scales, Allow Both Good, Neutral and Bad Ratings.

Don’t Waste Space on Lots of Demographics

Phases of Evaluation Formative Evaluation

During design phase (e.g. with paper prototypes) Informal Done with designers, don’t involve users

necessarily Checks against usability knowledge

Summative Evaluation During test phase Formal Must involve users

Formative Evaluation: Check Heuristics Simple and Natural Dialogue Speak the User’s Language Minimize the User’s Memory Load Be Consistent Provide Feedback Provide Clearly Marked Exits Provide Shortcuts Provide Good Error Messages Error Prevention (from Molich & Nielsen, 1990, p. 339)

Summative Evaluation Laboratory Experiments

Easily isolate effects Hard to scale up Representativeness?

Quasi-Experiment Simulators/Microworlds

Field Study (Case Study) Representativeness! Too complex to isolate effects Easily becomes messy

Controlled

Real-World

Comparison Evaluation Want to compare:

New vs. Old system or method Two different new designs Two different groups of users Interface characteristics (vary semantics

and syntax): menu structure color coding organization of information direct manipulation vs. keyboard input

Moral: Measuring Usability Concepts Can Be Hard!

Subjective Measures May Add Bias or Be Intrusive

Objective Measures Don’t Necessarily Measure Amount of Thought Required to Use Interface

There are Trade-Offs With Each Type -- These Trade-Offs Must Be Considered in the Selection of Measurements, and in Data Analysis