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Designing for Productivity in the User eXperience

Designing for Productivity in the User eXperience

5.0

Created by   Deborah J. Mayhew, PhD

Category   Information Technology   >   Other

Duration 0 minutes
Audience Employees

Description

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This Designing for Productivity in the User eXperience is course number D15.2 from a comprehensive online curriculum on User eXperience (UX) currently under development by top experts in the field through The Online User eXperience Institute (OUXI).

COURSE CONTENT

This is an in-depth course on a particular aspect of designing for the User eXperience.

Overall user experience with software applications and websites is impacted by five key qualities of their user interface:

·  Utility (is the content/functionality useful to intended users?)

·  Usability (is it easy to learn and accomplish tasks?)

·  Graphic Design (is the visual design aesthetically pleasing?)

·  Persuasiveness (are desired actions supported and motivated?)

·  Functional Integrity (does it work smoothly without bugs or crashes?)

The usability of a user interface can be further subdivided into two separate qualities: 

·  Ease-of-learning (is it easy to learn how to accomplish tasks?)

·  Ease-of-use (can tasks be accomplished quickly and easily once learned?) 

The terms ease-of-learning and ease-of-use are often used interchangeably, but they are not the same thing.  In fact, they often come into direct conflict with one another in user interface design.  That is, a user interface that feels easy-to-learn to novices may soon come to feel tedious and inefficient as they gain expertise, especially if they are high frequency users.  Similarly, a user interface with a steep learning curve may eventually come to feel powerful, flexible and highly efficient once a user is trained and using it frequently.

Ease-of-learning is usually more important to novice, casual or intermittent users.  Ease-of-use is usually more important to trained, high frequency, expert users.  However, even casual, intermittent users, such as users of public websites, will notice – and be frustrated with - designs that limit their efficiency in obvious ways.

Two overall topics are covered in this course:

·  Efficiency design guidelines

·  Efficiency evaluation techniques

The course is a very concrete, "how-to" course.  Both the design guidelines offered and the evaluation techniques taught have been researched, validated and refined by the User eXperience discipline over the past 30 years.

The subset of 24 design guidelines for efficiency offered in this course were selected from the full body of knowledge on software and website usability to be: 

·  Universal (i.e., applicable to most if not all applications and websites)

·  Easy to explain

·  Commonly violated

·  High impact (on user productivity)

·  Easy to implement

They thus represent the "low-hanging fruit" in designing for software and website user efficiency.  The rationale for each guideline is explained, and clear examples are offered to enhance understanding.

Just as with code, usability design guidelines will only take you so far.  In addition, you need evaluation techniques to assess designs for efficiency to insure an application or website will meet its business goals at launch.  Earlier design changes are always easier and cheaper than late design changes. 

The three evaluation techniques taught in this course are:

·  Efficiency heuristic evaluations

·  Keystroke level modeling

·  Efficiency studies

These different techniques can be used at different points in the design and development process to exploit opportunities to improve efficiency in the user interface design when it is most cost effective to do so.  Learning the evaluation techniques also helps deepen the understanding of the design guidelines.

COURSE FORMAT

The course format is a PowerPoint presentation accompanied by a studio-recorded video of the instructor.  

The course includes a little over three hours of video (broken into short lectures) with PowerPoint slides, and roughly 1.5 - 2 hours of optional hands-on exercises, for which sample solutions are provided.

Downloadable course materials include:

·  A set of general instructions for getting the most out of courses

·  The full PowerPoint presentation (in two formats - full slides, and two slides per page)

·  Live, Excel-based templates (used in exercises, and which you can also use as you apply your new skills on real development projects)

·  A handy guidelines checklist (for quick reference during design and evaluation tasks on the job)

Please feel free to contact the instructor with any questions about this course at drdeb@ouxinstitute.com

Dr. Mayhew is also available for coaching/mentoring to people who have completed this course and are putting their new skills to work on real projects. Inquire at: 

drdeb@ouxinstitute.com .

Languages

English

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Designing for Productivity in the User eXperience

Promotional Video
Promotional Video
Introduction
Introduction
  • The origins of the field of User eXperience
  • Description of downloadable course materials
Infrequently Asked Questions
Infrequently Asked Questions
  • Optional lecture, just for fun
  • Interesting questions to ponder on the origins of the human brain and mind
  • Answers offered in the last video lecture
Basic Definitions
Basic Definitions
  • Definition of terms:  Usability, Efficiency
Computer-Human Interaction: A Model
Computer-Human Interaction: A Model
  • A model of computer-human interaction
  • A useful framework for thinking about designing for efficiency
Strengths and Weaknesses:  Human vs. Computer
Strengths and Weaknesses: Human vs. Computer
  • A model of the relative strengths and weaknesses of users vs. computer systems
  • Another useful framework for thinking about designing for efficiency
Possible vs. Actual Efficiency
Possible vs. Actual Efficiency
  • An important distinction between the efficiency made possible by a user interface design, and the actual efficiency of users when using it
  • A discussion of the factors other than user interface design that may impact actual efficiency
When Efficiency is Key
When Efficiency is Key

Learn when efficiency is a key usability goal and when its a secondary goal.

Why Efficiency is Important
Why Efficiency is Important
  • A cost benefit analysis demonstrating how designing for efficiency will result in a significant, bottom line return on  investment
  • A useful reference for learning more about cost justifying usability in general
Measuring Efficiency: An Overview
Measuring Efficiency: An Overview
  • I high level overview of the three efficiency evaluation techniques to be covered
  • A discussion of where in the development lifecycle these techniques can be applied
Modeling: Intro
Modeling: Intro
  • A high level introduction to the keystroke level modeling technique
  • Useful references to the modeling literature
  • A sample level of effort for the modeling technique
Modeling: Human Operators
Modeling: Human Operators
  • Definition of the basic human operators used in the keystroke level modeling technique
Modeling: System Operators
Modeling: System Operators
  • Definition of some sample system operators that can be used in the keystroke level modeling technique
Modeling: Other Operators
Modeling: Other Operators
  • Description of some additional human operators that may be included in the keystroke level modeling technique
Modeling: Task Breakdown
Modeling: Task Breakdown
  • Structuring a model by breaking a task down into a hierarchy of steps, substeps and interactions
Modeling: Assigning Operators
Modeling: Assigning Operators
  • Building a model by assigning operators to interactions and capturing each instance of each operator as a tally
Modeling: Calculations
Modeling: Calculations
  • Calculating the total task time in a model by adding up operator tallies, computing total times for each operator, and then summing across all operators for the total predicted task time
Modeling: Comparisons
Modeling: Comparisons
  • Calculations for comparing models of the same task on two different user interface designs
Modeling: Analyses
Modeling: Analyses
  • Analyzing the sources of productivity losses predicted by models of two different user interfaces for the same task
Modeling: Project Summary
Modeling: Project Summary
  • Summarizing modeling data across tasks for a single development project
Modeling: Example 1
Modeling: Example 1
  • A demonstration of modeling a simple step in an ecommerce shopping task:  traditional checkout 
Modeling: Example 2
Modeling: Example 2
  • A demonstration of modeling a simple step in an ecommerce shopping task: checkout shortcut
Modeling Exercise: Introduction
Modeling Exercise: Introduction
Modeling Exercise:  Website 1
Modeling Exercise: Website 1
  • Hands on Modeling exercise:  description of website user interface #1
Modeling Exercise:  Website 2
Modeling Exercise: Website 2

Hands on Modeling exercise: description of website user interface #2

Modeling Exercise: Solution
Modeling Exercise: Solution
  • Hands on Modeling exercise: solution
Design Goals
Design Goals
  • Setting efficiency design goals for a development project
Design Guidelines Categories
Design Guidelines Categories
  • Categorizing efficiency design guidelines according to type and level
Information Architecture Guidelines
Information Architecture Guidelines
  • Design guidelines at the information architecture level (motor and cognitive)
Conceptual Model Design Guidelines
Conceptual Model Design Guidelines
  • Design guidelines at the conceptual model design level (motor and perceptual)
Page Design Guidelines: Motor 1
Page Design Guidelines: Motor 1
  • Design guidelines at the page design standards level (motor)
Page Design Guidelines: Motor 2
Page Design Guidelines: Motor 2
  • Design guidelines at the page design standards level (motor)
Page Design Guidelines: Motor 3
Page Design Guidelines: Motor 3
  • Design guidelines at the page design standards level (motor)
Page Design Guidelines: Cognitive 1
Page Design Guidelines: Cognitive 1

Design guidelines at the page design standards level (cognitive)

Page Design Guidelines: Cognitive 2
Page Design Guidelines: Cognitive 2
  • Design guidelines at the page design standards level (cognitive)
Page Design Guidelines: Cognitive 3
Page Design Guidelines: Cognitive 3
  • Design guidelines at the page design standards level (cognitive)
Page Design Guidelines: Perceptual and Summary
Page Design Guidelines: Perceptual and Summary
  • Design guidelines at the page design standards level (perceptual)
  • Design guidelines summary
Applying Unique Requirements Analyses
Applying Unique Requirements Analyses
  • Integrating general efficiency design guidelines with unique requirements analysis data
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Description
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Description
  • A high level introduction to the efficiency heuristic evaluation technique
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Template
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Template
  • A walk through of a template for documenting an efficiency heuristic evaluation
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Examples
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Examples
  • An example of an efficiency heuristic evaluation with a simplified documentation technique
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Exercise
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Exercise
  • Hands on efficiency heuristic evaluation exercise:  description of the exercise
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Exercise Solution
Efficiency Heuristic Evaluation: Exercise Solution
  • Hands on efficiency heuristic evaluation exercise: a sample solution
Efficiency Studies: Overview
Efficiency Studies: Overview
  • A high level overview and description of the efficiency studies technique
Efficiency Studies: Steps
Efficiency Studies: Steps
  • A breakdown of the steps for conducting efficiency studies
  • Includes a sample level of effort
Efficiency Studies: Examples
Efficiency Studies: Examples
  • A example of the data generated from an efficiency study
  • Includes an example of how to document efficiency study data
Summary
Summary
  • A sample of results from a project involving both keystroke level modeling and efficiency studies for multiple key tasks supported by an application under development
Infrequently Asked Questions - Answers
Infrequently Asked Questions - Answers
  • Optional and just for fun
  • Answers to the Infrequently Asked Question posed at the beginning of the course

Attachments:

Handouts  (4.4 MB) This pdf file contains the PowerPoint slides for the course in handout format (two slides per page).
Slides  (4.8 MB) This pdf file contains the PowerPoint slides for the course in full slide format (one slide per page).
Guidelines Checklist  (13 KB) This Excel file contains a convenient checklist of all guidelines discussed in the course.
Modeling Exercise  (28 KB) This Excel file contains materials for conducting the Modeling exercise.
Modeling Exercise Solution  (31 KB) This Excel file contains solutions to the Modeling exercise.
Heuristic Evaluation Template  (37 KB) This Excel file contains a template for documenting an efficiency heuristic evaluation and can also optionally be used to conduct the efficiency heuristic evaluation exercise.

Deborah J. Mayhew, PhD

Deborah J. Mayhew, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of The Online User eXperience Institute (OUXI) is an internationally recognized consultant, author, teacher and speaker on engineering and designing for the User eXperience.

Deborah was one of the earliest pioneers of the field of software and web user experience. She has been Owner and Principal Consultant at Deborah J. Mayhew & Associates, a consulting firm offering a wide variety of services related to designing and engineering for the User eXperience, since 1986, when she became one of the first independent consultantsin her field. 

Deborah's clients have included IBM, AT&T, The World Bank, Hewlett-Packard, Ford Motor Company, American Express, The New York City Police Department, Apple Computer, American Airlines, Texas Instruments, NASA, JP Morgan Chase, The National Cancer Institute, Computer Science Corporation, Siemens, Cisco Systems, the IRS and many others.  Deborah has designed user experiences not only for web sites, but also for traditional desktop software applications, medical technology, scientific instruments, and robots.  She has taught courses in many of her client organizations as well as at many professional conferences.

Deborah holds a B. A. in Psychology from Brown University, an M. A. in Experimental Psychology from the University of Denver and a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from Tufts University. She has authored or co-authored four books on topics in User eXperience engineering, and has contributed chapters to many other books in the field. One popular book is The Usability Engineering Lifecycle. Another recent book is Cost Justifying Usability: An Update for the Internet Age, co-edited with Randolph G. Bias.

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