cs 4963: ui design
DESCRIPTION
CS 4963: UI Design. User Research Methods. Summary for Today. What is user research? Why should you learn about this? But isn’t this for professionals? ( Yes.) Methods galore! Things to watch for. First, what is user research ?. personas - scenarios - o pportunities - approach. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
CS 4963: UI Design
User Research Methods
Summary for Today• What is user research?• Why should you learn about this?• But isn’t this for professionals? (Yes.)• Methods galore!• Things to watch for.
First, what is user research?
1. DISCOVERY(gathering
information)2. EVALUATION
(testing designs)
} Make a model of your users.
- personas - scenarios- opportunities- approach
- terminology- feedback- mental models
WHY SHOULD YOU CAREABOUT
USER RESEARCH?
Understand.
image by Kevin Cornell from alistapart.com
Expect.
image by alex yang from photography-on-the.net/forum
Do.
image from amazon.com
CAN JUST ANYONE DO USER RESEARCH?
Wait.
RESEARCHQUANTITATIVE• HOW MUCH• DATA• STATISTICS• SCIENTIFIC
QUALITATIVE• HOW WELL• CONTEXT• HEURISTICS• PRAGMATIC
UX Research Professionals.
(Us.)
HOW?
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
INTERVIEWSDIARY STUDIESDATA LOGGING
EVALUATIONS
(methods)
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
INTERVIEWSDIARY STUDIESDATA LOGGING
EVALUATIONS
observations
image from med.mun.ca 2003-4 annual report
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
INTERVIEWSDIARY STUDIESDATA LOGGING
EVALUATIONS
semi-structured interviews
image from the movie Office Space (1999)
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
INTERVIEWSDIARY STUDIESDATA LOGGING
EVALUATIONS
diary studies
Image from pelikana.se
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
INTERVIEWSDIARY STUDIESDATA LOGGING
EVALUATIONS
data logging
image from normalmodes.com
FIELD OBSERVATIONS
INTERVIEWSDIARY STUDIESDATA LOGGING
EVALUATIONS
usability testing
image from rocketsurgerymadeeasy.com
finding participants
image from phillips.blogs.com
evaluation pointers1. Plan your attack (scenarios of tasks within
boundaries)2. You’re testing SOFTWARE, not
participants(remind them of this)
3. Intro and follow-up questions (optionally)4. Be aware of your bias (and counter it)5. Get them to think aloud6. Observe it7. Record it
after evaluation• Debrief observers to consolidate findings• Write up results and illustrate with
examples• Recordings, if possible
To fix:• Tweak, don’t overhaul• Keep it relevant to what you observed• Subtract
SummaryUser research helps you discover
information and evaluate designs throughout the software design process, using several methods that give you lots of context (how people work and what they need to help them) for your design work.
(Also: professional user researchers are very helpful! Particularly if you’re doing lots of number crunching.)
image from me
For next time…1. Notes from a 15-minute observation
of someone using software that you made.
Make a set of tasks, with boundaries, into a scenario for your test participant, and write up the findings.
2. Readings for next lesson: on the class blog.(The “clog”? groooooooan at the bad portmanteau, yesssss)
