SlideShare uma empresa Scribd logo
1 de 31
Baixar para ler offline
ABC Center User Testing Report

Client:        ABC Center for Research
Website:       http://www.abccenter.org
Contact:       John Walton
Consultants:   Bazler, Jae Kim, Erik Brook, Heather Beery, Lora Ramseier
Date:          January 15, 2007
Table of Contents

ABC CENTER USER TESTING REPORT........................................................................................................... 1
TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................................................... 2
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................................................................... 3
STUDY DETAILS ..................................................................................................................................................... 4
    PURPOSE OF STUDY ................................................................................................................................................. 4
    METHOD .................................................................................................................................................................. 4
    PARTICIPANTS ......................................................................................................................................................... 4
    PROCEDURES ........................................................................................................................................................... 4
    TASKS ...................................................................................................................................................................... 5
    RESULTS .................................................................................................................................................................. 5
TASK PERFORMANCE.......................................................................................................................................... 7
OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS................................................................................................ 9
    SCREEN LAYOUT/DESIGN ........................................................................................................................................ 9
    TERMINOLOGY ...................................................................................................................................................... 11
    CONTENT ORGANIZATION ..................................................................................................................................... 11
    NAVIGATION ......................................................................................................................................................... 12
    OPERATING SYSTEM AND BROWSER ISSUES ......................................................................................................... 15
POST-TEST SATISFACTION RATINGS........................................................................................................... 16
    SITE SATISFACTION RATINGS ................................................................................................................................ 16
    SATISFACTION QUESTIONNAIRE – POST-TEST QUESTIONS ................................................................................... 17
       Question 1 – What do you consider the most valuable aspect of the system? ................................................. 17
       Question 2 – What is the biggest problem with the system?............................................................................ 17
       Question 3 – Additional comments .................................................................................................................. 17
APPENDICES.......................................................................................................................................................... 19
    APPENDIX A – TESTING PROTOCOL SCRIPT........................................................................................................... 19
    APPENDIX B – PARTICIPANT CONSENT FORM ....................................................................................................... 20
    APPENDIX C – VIDEO RELEASE FORM................................................................................................................... 21
    APPENDIX D – SATISFACTION QUESTIONNAIRE .................................................................................................... 22
    APPENDIX E – SPACE UTILIZATION ....................................................................................................................... 23
    APPENDIX F – IMAGE FONTS ................................................................................................................................. 24
    APPENDIX G – CONTRAST BETWEEN TEXT AND BACKGROUND ........................................................................... 25
    APPENDIX H – TERMINOLOGY ............................................................................................................................... 26
    APPENDIX I – LINK FORMAT ................................................................................................................................. 27
    APPENDIX J – MOUSE-OVER EFFECT..................................................................................................................... 28
    APPENDIX K – LINKING TO PREVIOUS PAGE ......................................................................................................... 29
    APPENDIX L – OPERATING SYSTEM AND BROWSER ISSUES .................................................................................. 30
    APPENDIX M – BROWSER COMPATIBILITY ISSUES ................................................................................................ 31




User Experience Group Indiana University                                                                                                             2 of 31
Executive Summary

In March 2005, a usability study of the ABC Center website was conducted with fifteen
participants in the Bloomington, Indiana area. Results showed that users were generally
satisfied with the amount and quality of the content available on the ABC site. However, a
number of usability issues were identified that hindered locating information, and the site was
perceived as being unprofessional in appearance.

One of the greatest concerns for usability in the ABC site was the lack of a consistent, reliable
navigation system. Users were often left without navigation options to return to the previous
page or to the main menu, and were forced to use the browser buttons to navigate the site. This
issue was compounded by the fact that some links took the users unexpectedly out of the site.

The overall unprofessional appearance of the site was another concern. When searching for
scientific research, the perceived credibility of a site will play a large role in whether people are
willing to use the site and trust the information provided. Participants expected the images
used in the site to be of higher quality, page space to be utilized more efficiently, and the
content to be formatted correctly (capitalization, text alignment, etc.). Even though these issues
may seems somewhat minor, the combined effect reduces the sites credibility in the users’ eyes.
Other usability issues included linking to software-specific files without warning and
unpredictable content presentation format.

This report describes the purpose and methods of the study, and provides a summary of the
observations made from each testing session. Recommendations are made for the ABC Center
web development team to consider as they prepare for the redesign of the website.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                            3 of 31
Study Details
Purpose of Study
The ABC Center website is a resource for students to find research studies on the web. The site
provides a variety of features including a research article database, links to other online
research sources, and a directory of researchers. A new site design is going to be introduced in
July, 2005, and the ABC Center web development team wants to explore opportunities to
improve the website by obtaining user feedback. As part of the usability evaluation for the
ABC Center, user testing was conducted in March of 2005, in Bloomington, Indiana.


Method
Usability testing methodology1 was used to evaluate the website. This approach involved
having authentic users perform authentic tasks using the system, while evaluators observed and
recorded their actions and comments. Users were asked to perform a think-aloud protocol2 to
help the evaluators understand their behaviors and gain insight into the design of the website.
Sessions were performed on an individual basis with each session lasting approximately 1 to 1
½ hours. ABC Center provided users with $50 gift certificates in return for their participation.
Following the last session, qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed and
recommendations for redesign were made.

Participants
Participants recruited for the testing sessions were identified and recruited by the UXG team.
An effort was made to target participants who fit a wide range of user profiles due to the
heterogeneity of the site’s potential users. The goal was to recruit a sample of 16 participants
to achieve adequate representation across the following four demographic categories:

    1. Gender – approximate equal split between male and female
    2. Age – three age ranges (20-39, 40-59, 60+)
    3. Computer experience – novice (little to no computer use), intermediate (office
       applications, web), or expert (complex applications and/or programming)
    4. Experience with research websites

A total of 15 participants were tested including 7 men and 8 women. Five participants were in
the 20-39 year age-range, six were in the range of 40-59 years of age, and four participants
were over 60.

Procedures
Participants were read an introductory protocol at the beginning of the testing session (see
Appendix A for script) and asked to read and sign two consent forms. The first consent form
(see Appendix B) is a standard consent form indicating the participants’ understanding of what
will be expected of them during the sessions and their willingness to participate. The second
consent form (see Appendix C) is a video release form indicating the participants’ awareness
that the sessions are videotaped and granting their permission for the video to be used in the

1
 Dumas, J. S., & Redish, J. C. (1993). A practical guide to usability testing. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
2
 Ericsson, K. A., & Simon, H. A. (1993). Protocol analysis: Verbal reports as data (Revised ed.). Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press.

User Experience Group Indiana University                                                      4 of 31
evaluation and reporting of results. Participants were given a copy of the consent forms for
their records.

Each participant completed 10 tasks using the abccenter.org website. Tasks were completed
one at a time and were recorded as either 1) success with ease, 2) success with difficulty, or 3)
failure to complete the task. Success with ease included those tasks that were completed on the
first or second try. Success with difficulty included tasks that participants adequately
completed but more effort and persistence was needed. For example, trying numerous paths to
locate necessary information before finding the correct screen. Failure to complete a task was
given if the participant gave up on the task or failed to locate the correct information. In some
“failure” cases, participants may have been satisfied that they completed the task; however, the
correct information was not located or portions of the task were not completed.

Following the session, the users were asked to rate their satisfaction with the system using the
Survey of User Satisfaction developed by Digital Equipment Corporation (see Appendix D).
Tasks were performed using Internet Explorer 6.0 and the Windows XP operating system on a
Dell, Pentium 4, 3.80 GHz computer.

Tasks
The ABC Center team developed a draft list of 10 tasks for testing based on key site
information and features. UXG consultants reviewed and refined the tasks in order to create
appropriate scenarios for user testing. Tasks were presented in random order to eliminate order
effects from influencing the testing results.


Results
The results of the study have been divided into four sections:
    1. Task performance (e.g. successes and failures)
        Tasks are listed and the number of participants experiencing successes and failures are
        noted.
    2. Observations and recommendations
        The results of the study are presented in a table format. The table includes three
        columns of information: Observations, Interpretations, and Recommendations. Each
        column is described in more detail below:
        •   Observations – an objective description of participants’ actions and comments
            during a session.
        •   Interpretations – a proposed explanation for participants’ observed behaviors and
            justification for recommendations based on known design principles and rules.
        •   Recommendations – suggestions for maintaining aspects of the current design that
            work, changing aspects that are problematic, and considering alternative
            possibilities for presenting information to the user.
        The data within this table are organized into categories that represent the major types of
        issues raised during the study. The categories include:



User Experience Group Indiana University                                          5 of 31
•   Screen Layout/Design – Items concerning the placement of elements on the screen,
            use of screen space and opportunities for modifying items to increase user
            understanding of presented information.
        •   Terminology – Items concerning the user’s understanding of the language used on
            site.
        •   Content Organization – Items concerning the organization of information within the
            site.
        •   Navigation – Items concerning the users’ ability to maneuver throughout the site.
        •   Operating System and Browser Issues – Items concerning compatibility and
            consistency of site presentation across major computer configurations.


    3. Post-test satisfaction ratings and comments
        The results of the SUS (System Usability Scale) questionnaire and a brief description of
        how the overall SUS scores are calculated is presented. Participants’ comments are
        included.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                         6 of 31
Task Performance
     Task                                                                   Success Success with   Fail
                                                                           with Ease Difficulty
  1 You are looking for employment at the ABC Center. Find out if             12         2          1
    there is anything open at this time that you could apply for. Are
    you interested in the position?
  2 You are interested in taking an online course offered by the ABC          11         2          2
    Center. Find a course in “Referencing in APA Style.”
  3 You are writing a research paper, and you realize that you are            7          3          5
    missing the author information for one of your sources. Find the
    author of the research article “Intercultural Discourse.”
  4 You have been asked to contact a researcher by your                       4          7          4
    teacher/professor. Find the contact information for “Ellen Miller.”
  5 You are interested in visiting the ABC Center in person. Where is         13         2          0
    the ABC Center located?
  6 With so many online research databases to choose from, you                4          6          5
    wonder how they compare. Find the discussion forum where the
    users rate them.
  7 After spending some time browsing through the ABC Center                  2          6          7
    research database, you found some articles that you might need in
    the future. After logging in, find and save the research article
    “Benningham DNA Study” in your “Online Bookmarks” for later
    retrieval.
  8 You have heard that ABC Center offers several workshops                   7          5          3
    throughout the year. What are the titles of the two that are offered
    in May (2005)?
  9 ABC Center offers several free research aid software for                  12         1          2
    download. Find and download “Ace Reference Tracker 2”.
 10 Thank you for visiting the ABC Center website. Can you please             10         3          2
    use the online form to rate us?




User Experience Group Indiana University                                                7 of 31
The graph above illustrates the percentage of users who accomplished the tasks with ease
(easy), with difficulty (hard), or failed. The tasks that caused users the most difficulty were
locating the contact information for researchers (task #4) and using the Online Bookmarks
feature (task #7).




User Experience Group Indiana University                                           8 of 31
Observations                       Interpretations                            Recommendations

Observations and Recommendations
 Screen Layout/Design
 The copyright information on         Using the same colored text and         1. Use black or other dark
 the homepage is invisible to the     background does not provide any            colored text for this
 users since it is white text on      contrast for the text to be visible,       information.
 white background.                    unless they are drag-selected with
                                      the mouse by accident.
 At least three different font and    When the same information is            2. Standardize the font and
 color schemes are used in the        presented in different formats, it         color format if the
 site to graphically represent the    causes inefficiency in user                organization does not have
 organization’s name.                 behavior because they have to re-          a graphical logo. If it does,
                                      interpret the data. Furthermore, a         replace the current titles
                                      chance to reinforce the                    with the logo.
                                      organization’s image/identity is
                                      lost.
 The organization’s name is           The organization’s name is not          3. Change the layout of the
 difficult to read.                   easy for users read. It looks like a       organization’s name.
                                      list including; “the center,
                                      education, research, retailing”.
 The information currently            The homepage does not help              4. Remove the current home
 displayed on the homepage is         users understand what the site is          page and make the “ABC
 not helpful to users. For            about or where they can navigate.          Center Menu” page the
 example, the organization’s                                                     site’s home page.
 name is shown twice, the
 picture displayed is not
 associated with the center, and
 there is no site menu or
 navigation on this page.
 The “Research Time Line” link        Content should be presented in a        5. Change the font of the link
 is presented in a different font     consistent graphical format,               to be consistent with the
 than the other links in the same     especially if the items belong to the      other links in the list.
 list.                                same list. Any deviation would
                                      suggest that the particular link is
                                      different from the others in content,
                                      importance, etc.
 Too much screen space (80+           The top of a web page is valuable       6. Move the page title image
 pixels) is wasted on the top of      and draws the attention of the             up to reduce the white
 the menu page (see Appendix          users. The current use of the page         space.
 E).                                  layout does not utilize this
                                      potential.
 Many images used in the web          Low quality images degrade the          7. Replace the existing
 site are of low quality and/or       overall look of the web site, making       images with higher quality
 stretched from smaller samples,      the site and its affiliated                images.
 making the overall look of the       organization less credible.             8. Limit the use of images
 site unprofessional.                 Images should enhance the look of          because they increase site
                                      a site without being distracting or        load time and can distract
                                      overwhelming.                              users from more important
                                                                                 content on the site.
 The participants commented           Low quality text images and/or          9. Replace all text images
 that some items were blurred         adjusting image size (shrinking            with normal text, unless
 and difficult to read (see           and stretching) can cause images           specific design
 Appendix F).                         to appear blurry.                          considerations require it
                                                                                 (such as within a logo).

User Experience Group Indiana University                                                    9 of 31
Observations                        Interpretations                            Recommendations
 There is no consistent format         Users have difficulty knowing what      10. Choose a format for page
 for content text, links, and          constitutes a link, a header, plain         layout, title, content text,
 visited links.                        text and imbedded links. Without a          links and visited links and
                                       consistent format, users must               apply the format
                                       explore each item to determine if it        consistently across the
                                       is a link or not. This requires more        site.
                                       time and energy than many users
                                       are willing to spend.
 Every page begins with a title        Providing a clear title on each         11. Choose a font, color, size
 that describes the contents of        page helps users know where they            and position for the title
 the page, but the format is not       are and feel more comfortable               and use the same format
 consistent across the site.           navigating the site. However, an            consistently throughout the
                                       inconsistent format can cause               site.
                                       confusion.
 The repetition of frame at the        The site identification is important.   12. Apply a consistent format
 left hand side could be site          The repetition of screen layout,            to the page layout as well
 identification; however, there is     font size and color contribute to           as the contents.
 no design scheme or stylistic         site identification.
 treatment for the content frame.
 The link on the left frame turned     The purple text on a red                13. Choose a color schemes
 to purple when user clicked on        background does not provide                 that provide good contrast
 the link and used the “Back”          sufficient contrast and is therefore        between the text and
 button on the browser to go           difficult to read.                          background.
 back to the page (see
 Appendix G). Participants were
 not able to read the link.
 Links to external sites are           The main purpose of navigating          14. Replace the links with the
 included in what should be the        the site is to locate information           site navigation structure.
 site’s main navigation.               about the organization instead of       15. Put the external links
                                       linking to other sites. Most-               under the “resources”
                                       frequently used links and the site          category or put them in the
                                       navigation structure should be              footer.
                                       available on every page.
 An empty check box in front of        Inappropriate use of symbols or         16. Remove the empty check
 the “Return to ABC Center             images causes confusion. Users              box and the check box
 Menu” link causes confusion.          may not know whether to click on            animation from the links.
 Participants were unsure              the underlined text or to click the
 whether it was a bullet point or      box.
 something requiring an action.        The check box animation is not
 On some pages, there is a             relevant to the link or its content
 checkbox animation in front of        and is distracting to the user.
 the link.
 The navigation image map              Using large images for navigation       17. Do not use large images
 used on “About Our Center”            is not an efficient way of organizing       unless absolutely
 takes too much screen space           content on a web page.                      necessary. Replace the
 (550 x 413 pixels).                                                               image map with a bulleted
                                                                                   list of links.
 There are no visual cues for          User could easily miss/ignore a         18. Avoid using image maps.
 users to know that the 4 red          link if it does not look like a link.   19. If an image map is
 triangles on the corners of the                                                   necessary, provide visual
 image map on “About Our                                                           cues (underline the text on
 Center” page have imbedded                                                        graphics, for example) to
 links.                                                                            tell the user that there is an


User Experience Group Indiana University                                                     10 of 31
Observations                        Interpretations                              Recommendations
                                                                                     imbedded link.
 Participants clicked on some          There is no visible distinction           20. Choose a font, color and
 texts and then realized that it       between text and embedded links.              style for imbedded links
 was not a link.                       Also, there is no consistent format           and use the format
                                       for imbedded links.                           consistently across the
                                                                                     site.
 Bulleted links do not line up on      Proper item alignment is an               21. Make sure all items are
 the ‘Programs for Students’           important element for professional            properly aligned.
 page.                                 presentation.
 Most, but not all, link text is       A consistent capitalization scheme        22. Change the link text to
 capitalized on the ‘Programs for      is an important element for the               adhere to a consistent
 Students’ page.                       professional appearance of the                capitalization guideline.
                                       site.
 Terminology
 Only the homepage has a               Windows should be given a clear           23. Provide an appropriate title
 window title and it did not           identifiable title that will display in       for every web screen.
 describe the website clearly.         the browser address bar. This will
                                       also help the user bookmark the
                                       page appropriately.
 The “Welcome to the ABC               The sentence is more like a               24. Phrase all the links
 Center” link on the homepage is       greeting instead of a link. User              appropriately. The link text
 vague as it did not tell user         would not be able to tell that it is a        should clearly identify the
 anything about the purpose of         link if the link was not underlined.          purpose of the link.
 the link.
 Participants expected to get          The manner in which the images            25. Change the title to be
 access to an application by           were displayed led the user to                “Screenshots of Software
 clicking on images under              believe they could access the                 Applications” to tell users
 “Software Applications” (see          various applications shown.                   that those images are just
 Appendix H)                                                                         some screenshots from the
                                                                                     applications.
                                                                                 26. A brief description for each
                                                                                     image helps users
                                                                                     understand the content.
 The names of the links to the         Using a consistent word or phrase         27. Make sure the name of a
 menu page are not consistent.         to link to any given page will help           link is identical on every
 On some pages, it is called           the user learn the structure of your          page.
 “ABC Center Welcome Page”;            site and allow them to accurately
 on other pages, it is called          select the appropriate link no
 “ABC Center Menu”.                    matter what screen they are on.
 The menu item and the page            Users are not sure where they are         28. Make sure the link reflects
 title are not the same.               when they click on a link and get a           the title of the target page.
                                       page with a title different from the          Page titles may be longer
                                       link they clicked.                            and more descriptive than
                                                                                     links, but key words should
                                                                                     be the same.
 Content Organization
 Contact information is buried         Users should not need to browse           29. Consider placing basic
 too deep into the web site and        deep into the site in order to find           contact information
 only available after following a      basic contact information. Many               (address, e-mail, and
 narrow navigation route.              users will look for this information          phone number) at the
                                       and become frustrated if it is not            bottom of each page on
                                       easily located.                               the web site, or providing a

User Experience Group Indiana University                                                      11 of 31
Observations                      Interpretations                            Recommendations
                                                                                 top-level link to the contact
                                                                                 information.
 A number of links open an           Users can easily become confused        30. Only contents of the
 external web page within the        about which site they are visiting if       website should display in
 content frame.                      an external site opens within the           the content frame. An
                                     content frame.                              external web page should
                                                                                 open in a new window so
                                                                                 users know that it is
                                                                                 another site.
 A number of links on the site       Users like to be informed before        31. Provide the content in a
 open a PDF file, a word             downloading/opening a file. They            format that users can view
 document, a PowerPoint file or      become frustrated when they click           online. That gives user the
 even a streaming video without      on a link and get unexpected                control to choose to read
 alerting the users beforehand.      results.                                    the document online or
                                                                                 download it.
                                                                             32. Clearly label any links that
                                                                                 will start a download or
                                                                                 attempt to open an
                                                                                 application (such as
                                                                                 Acrobat Reader, Word,
                                                                                 PowerPoint, etc.) so users
                                                                                 know what to expect
                                                                                 before clicking.
 ‘Customer Interface Technology      Users would like to be informed         33. Warn the users that the
 Lab’ opens a Real Media file,       before trying to open a file that           link will open a Real Media
 which requires a media player       requires an application they may            file, and provide a link to a
 that has to be downloaded.          not have.                                   download page where the
                                                                                 required media player is
                                                                                 available.
 Navigation
 Participants spent too much         Users expect to see a clear             34. Remove the current
 time scanning the homepage          navigation scheme that can help             homepage from the site,
 with the mouse to see what          determine the next page to visit.           and establish the main
 links were available.               Time and effort is wasted when the          menu page as the
                                     users have to explore the page to           homepage.
                                     find what navigation options are        35. If the current homepage
                                     available.                                  has to be kept, make sure
                                                                                 that the users know that
                                                                                 there is only one
                                                                                 navigation option available
                                                                                 by moving the “welcome”
                                                                                 link to the center of the
                                                                                 page.
 A clear association between the     The menu page specifically              36. Provide the bulleted list
 top-level navigation                presents a bulleted list of                 content presented in the
 descriptions and sub-level          information that is available in            menu page for the sub-
 content was not apparent to         each of the top sections. This              level pages.
 participants.                       leads users to believe that these
                                     categories will be clearly marked in
                                     their respective sub-pages.
                                     The current layout, however, does
                                     not distinguish these categories.
 A quick, obvious link back to       The current navigation scheme lets      37. Remove the current
 the menu page is not provided       the users go back to the                    homepage from the site,

User Experience Group Indiana University                                                  12 of 31
Observations                        Interpretations                              Recommendations
 throughout the site.                  homepage from most of the site                and establish the main
                                       pages. However, there should be               menu page as the
                                       little need for this, since the               homepage.
                                       homepage only provides a link to          38. If the current homepage
                                       the menu page. It is more logical             has to be kept, replace the
                                       that the users will want to return to         universal link to the
                                       the menu page from their location             homepage with link to the
                                       in order to restart their interaction         menu page.
                                       with the site.
 Participants do not know where        The current site design does not          39. Provide information about
 they are and where they came          indicate where the user is within             current location to facilitate
 from when navigating the site.        the site. Show the user where                 navigation.
                                       they are by using breadcrumbs at
                                       the top of screen or by highlighting
                                       the user’s location within a
                                       persistent navigation structure.
                                       User would feel more confident if
                                       they know exactly where they are
                                       and where they came from when
                                       navigating a site.
 Participants relied on the back       Users frequently miss the link            40. Provide a sound navigation
 button on the browser to              because they would have to scroll             mechanism.
 navigate the site. A ‘go back to      to the bottom of the page to find it.     41. Make the go back to
 the previous page’ link is            In addition, the link is not always           previous page link
 provided at the bottom of some        available on every page. Users                available at the same
 pages, but not all.                   would be frustrated if they scroll            position on every page.
                                       down to the bottom of a page but
                                       cannot get the link they expected.
 Some participants could not           Users normally click on an item’s         42. Make the name/title of an
 locate information on the             name to get more details about the            item a link instead of
 center’s director as they did not     item instead of clicking on the               imbedding the link in a
 know that the link was                bullet.                                       bullet point.
 imbedded in the bullet point          A dark red border around the red          43. Links should be presented
 (see Appendix I).                     rectangular bullet point is a hint to         in an easy to recognize
                                       tell users that it is a link, but it is       and consistent manner.
                                       not easy to tell as the colors are
                                       quite similar.
 Participants did not realize that     The use of fancy technique is not         44. Remove the mouse-over
 the image above the facility lists    always appropriate as users might             effect and allow users to
 would change when the mouse           not know how to use it. They may              get more details of a
 moved over an item of the list.       easily miss the information if they           facility item by clicking on
 Participants clicked on an item       do not know how to get access.                it.
 as the cursor turned to a finger      User would be frustrated as the
 when moving over the item.            cursor turns to be a finger when
                                       moving over an item, but those are
                                       not links and they cannot get more
                                       information by clicking on it.
 On the research on retailing          User would not be able to know            45. Use the title of the study as
 page, links of two study reports      even the title of a report unless             a link and clearly labeled
 have the same title.                  clicking on the link.                         the link to tell user what to
 The image above the sentence          It causes confusion when the site             expect when clicking on
 of “Click for a PDF copy of the       cues the users for action that does           the link.
 study” is not a link although it      not lead to the expected result.          46. Change the image to act
 indicated to be.                                                                    as a link.


User Experience Group Indiana University                                                       13 of 31
Observations                        Interpretations                            Recommendations
 Participants were confused            Users expect different links to go      47. Either combine the links to
 when the “shopping                    to different pages. Many users will         be “shopping simulations &
 simulations” link and the             not understand that the links point         software applications” or
 “software applications” link took     to different sections on the same           separate the contents into
 them to the same page.                page.                                       two separate pages.
 When the user mouses over a           The list format and position of the     48. Remove the mouse-over
 category in the menu, it popped       pop-up information create                   effect and use available
 up a brief description of the         confusion because it looks like a           screen space to display
 category. Participants regarded       pop-up submenu. Users become                the brief description right
 it as a pop-up submenu and            frustrated trying to click on this          below each category.
 wanted to click on it but the         image that disappears every time        49. Change the format to
 pop-up description disappeared        they move their mouse.                      make it more like a brief
 once the cursor moved away                                                        description of a category in
 from the category. Participants                                                   stead of a list
 moved their cursors back and
 forth between the menu and the
 pop-up information and then
 realized that it was not a
 submenu (see Appendix J).
 The link at the bottom of the         Bad navigation mechanisms force         50. Simplify the link at the
 page always returns the user to       the user to recall where they came          bottom of the page to be
 the previous page (see                from.                                       “back to previous page”.
 Appendix K). However,                 Users have more processing              51. Provide a mechanism that
 participants were confused by         capacity for the contents when              helps users to recognize
 links that contained the title        there is less cognitive load for            where they are in the
 because they did not always           locating their position.                    website instead of recalling
 recognize the names of the                                                        their path.
 previous pages they visited.
 ‘KPMG’ link in the ‘Sponsoring        Dead links damage the credibility       52. Fix the dead link to lead to
 Partners’ page is a dead link.        of the site and frustrates the users        the correct, working site or
                                       who wish to visit the linked page.          if the site no longer exists,
                                                                                   remove the link and
                                                                                   associated text.
 The ‘Marshall Field’s’ and            Link names should always                53. Fix the ‘Marshall Field’s’
 ‘Mervyn’s’ links on the               correctly refer to the site they link       and ‘Mervyns’s’ links to
 ‘Sponsoring Partners’ page do         to. Unexpected behaviors, such as           lead to their respective
 not take the user to the correct      the wrong site opening, lead to             sites. Check all links
 sites. Rather, both of these          user confusion and frustration.             (internal and external) for
 links lead to target.com.                                                         accuracy and periodically
                                                                                   verify that external links
                                                                                   still point to published
                                                                                   sites.
 On the ‘Activities and                Users expect similar behaviors          54. Group links together that
 Programs’ page, various links in      from links that are grouped                 behave in the same
 the same bulleted list behave         together. Furthermore, users’               manner. Provide a
 differently. Some open up new         mental model of the site navigation         distinction or visual
 browser windows, others open          scheme is weakened when                     separation for links that
 PowerPoint-like slides, and           unpredictable links are present.            behave differently.
 others go to pages deeper in
 the hierarchy.
 Clicking any items on the             The users expect the side               55. Fix the links so that the
 “Timeline” page takes the users       navigation bar to be present at all         pages are displayed within
 out of the site navigation frame.     times.                                      the content frame in the
 Clicking on the “Home” link on                                                    browser window, leaving


User Experience Group Indiana University                                                     14 of 31
Observations                        Interpretations                         Recommendations
 the “Timeline” page takes the                                                  the side navigation intact.
 users out of the site navigation
 frame.
 The “Home” link at the upper-         Different links with the same name   56. Rename the link to avoid
 left hand corner of the               causes confusion.                        confusion with the link to
 “Timeline” page is confusing.                                                  the center’s homepage.
 Participants did not know
 whether they would be taken to
 the site’s homepage or the
 center timeline’s homepage.
 Operating System and Browser Issues
 The red rectangle with the            Some operating systems and           57. Test the most popular
 imbedded link on the “About           browsers are more flexible than          browsers and operating
 Our Center” page has a 1 pixel        other in rendering code                  systems to make sure the
 bolder to indicate that a link.                                                site works properly.
 The border does not display
 properly on a Macintosh (see
 Appendix I)
 The checkbox image in front of        Some operation systems and           58. Test the most popular
 the “Return to Research Center        browsers are more flexible than          browsers and operating
 Menu” works on PC, but the            other in rendering code                  systems to make sure the
 image did not display properly                                                 site works properly.
 on a Macintosh (see Appendix
 L).
 The mouse-over link color does        Some operation systems and           59. To increase the likelihood
 not change for Netscape 7.2 on        browsers are more flexible than          that pages will display and
 PC, Netscape 7.01 on                  other in rendering code                  function properly, make
 Macintosh and Firefox 1.0 on                                                   sure that code is formed
 both PC and Macintosh                                                          correctly with proper tags
 computers.                                                                     (always use closing tags),
                                                                                etc.
                                                                            60. Test the most popular
                                                                                browsers and operating
                                                                                systems to make sure the
                                                                                site works properly. If all
                                                                                browsers and operating
                                                                                systems will not be
                                                                                supported, provide text
                                                                                stating which browsers the
                                                                                site supports.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                                 15 of 31
Post-test Satisfaction Ratings
Site Satisfaction Ratings
 Satisfaction User Survey                        1                      5      Median     Mean
                                              strongly              strongly
 (Raw score by SUS question)
                                              disagree                agree
 I think that I would like to use this         5 5 2 4 4 3 3 4 3 5 4 2 3 2 3
 system frequently.                                                               3       3.47
 I found the system more complex than          1 2 5 3 3 5 1 2 3 1 3 5 3 5 1
 necessary                                                                        3       2.87
 I thought the system was easy to use.         4 5 2 2 3 3 4 5 3 5 3 2 2 2 4      3       3.27
 I think that I would need the support of      1 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 2 1 2 1 1 1 1
 an experienced person to be able to use
 this system.                                                                     1       1.33
 I found the system visually appealing         5 5 3 4 2 3 4 4 5 5 3 5 3 3 4      4       3.87
 I thought there was too much                  1 1 3 1 3 2 1 1 3 1 3 3 4 3 1
 inconsistency in this system.                                                    2       2.07
 I would imagine that most people              5 5 1 4 2 2 5 4 3 5 3 2 3 1 5
 would learn to use this system very
 quickly.                                                                         3       3.33
 I found the system very cumbersome to         1 1 4 2 2 2 1 4 4 1 3 5 3 4 1
 use.                                                                             2       2.53
 I felt very confident using the system.       5 4 5 3 2 4 5 5 2 5 3 3 4 5 5      4       4.00
 I needed to learn a lot of things before I    1 1 1 3 3 1 1 1 3 1 4 2 1 1 1
 could get going with this system.                                                1       1.67
 Satisfaction User Survey (total              SUS Score (0-100)
 adjusted SUS scores by participant)
                             Participant 1    97.5
                             Participant 2    95
                             Participant 3    47.5
                             Participant 4    62.5
                             Participant 5    52.5
                             Participant 6    60
                             Participant 7    90
                             Participant 8    80
                             Participant 9    52.5
                            Participant 10    100
                            Participant 11    52.5
                            Participant 12    45
                            Participant 13    57.5
                            Participant 14    47.5
                            Participant 15    90
                                 Median 60
                                  Mean 68.67

Raw SUS scores are adjusted as follows:
* Questions 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9: adjusted score = raw score – 1
* Questions 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10: adjusted score = 5 – raw score
User Experience Group Indiana University                                       16 of 31
Calculating an individual’s total SUS score for an application:
* The sum of the adjusted scores is multiplied by 2.5 to yield an overall score in the range of 0
– 100.
Higher total SUS scores indicate greater overall satisfaction with the website.

The median and mean scores of 60 and 68.67 respectively for the ABC Center website
represent a somewhat lower level of user satisfaction than desired. Correcting the various
usability issues identified in the preceding sections of this report are likely to improve user
satisfaction with the site.

Satisfaction Questionnaire – Post-Test Questions
The table below shows participants responses to the three SUS post-test questions.
Participants wrote their responses on the SUS form and they are included here verbatim.

Question 1 – What do you consider the most valuable aspect of the system?
P1     Easy to use, straight forward.
P2     Access to rich, original research.
P3     Easy to find research based on topic of interest.
P4     Getting information.
P5     There is a lot of information.
P6     Fairly easy to find what I needed.
P7     Wealth of information.
P8     Links to cross references.
P9     Rich information.
P10    Providing easy links for additional research material.
P11
P12    This site has many research materials that are not available anywhere else.
P13    I liked the links to other research resource sites.
P14    Contact information for the research authors is a good resource.
P15    Easy to find the research I am looking for.
Question 2 – What is the biggest problem with the system?
P1     Some of the links took me out of the site completely without warning.
P2     The images that are used are not that good in quality. It makes the site look unprofessional.
P3     Organization is not clear.
P4     Make it user friendly.
P5     There seem to be a lot of space wasted – I would rather have more content than fancy titles and
       graphics.
P6     Did not like the images used.
P7     It was difficult to navigate the site.
P8     The pages in the site looked too different from each other. They don’t look like they belong to the same
       site.
P9     Difficult to navigate.
P10    Lack of professionalism in site presentation.
P11    N/A
P12    Full screen is not utilized.
P13    Site looked unprofessional.
P14    Navigation options are sometimes unavailable.
P15    Many linked files required programs that I did not have on the computer.
Question 3 – Additional comments
P1     Nice site, lots of information.
P2     Change the images to better ones, and the site will look much nicer.
P3
P4     About time! [do not know what the participant was referring to ]
User Experience Group Indiana University                                                      17 of 31
P5
P6     It was frustrating because navigation options would disappear on me at times. Those links should be
       there at all times. Also, there were instances where the links that I clicked took me to an external link. I
       think those should open up new windows.
P7
P8
P9     Needs more organization.
P10
P11    I look forward to using it in the future, nice content.
P12    Overall it was fine, but I think the images should be changed to better ones.
P13
P14    Make the navigation bars available at all times. This will make the site much easier to use. I liked the
       content available on the site, lots of original research.
P15




User Experience Group Indiana University                                                          18 of 31
Appendices
Appendix A – Testing Protocol Script
Participating in Usability Sessions
Thank you for agreeing to participate in the usability study of the ABC Center website.
Before we begin, I will briefly go over what a usability session consists of, what will be
expected of you, and what our goals are in conducting this study.
The first thing that I want to make clear is that we are testing the application, NOT you. If
you find errors or if you have any difficulties with the application, it is very likely that other
people visiting the site will also experience those same difficulties. We will use this
information to better understand how we might improve the site.
During the Session:
     1. Tasks:
         You will be asked to perform a series of tasks using the ABC Center website. The
         tasks are structured to determine if the most important information and features of the
         site are easy to locate and use. We ask that you try to accomplish the tasks without
         assistance, as if you were at home trying to find the information on your own. This
         gives us a better idea of the things that work well or the difficulties people experience.
         Anytime during the session, if you find yourself thinking that you would quit the task,
         use help, contact someone for assistance, or visit another site to accomplish your goal,
         please let us know.
     2. Test Facilitator and Observers:
         One member of the User Experience Group will act as the test facilitator assisting
         you in getting started and answering any questions you may have. Another member
         of the User Experience Group will observe and take notes. Representatives from the
         ABC Center team may also be present to observe the session and take notes.
     3. Think Aloud Protocol:
         To help the observers understand the way you use the application, you will be asked
         to “think aloud” as you complete the tasks. This simply means that we ask you to
         talk about what you are doing, what you are looking for, clicking on, wishing you
         could find, etc. In other words, any task-related thought that comes into your mind
         we would like for you to share aloud. Some people find this easy right away, while
         others need to be reminded a little. It may seem a bit odd to talk about every step that
         you are doing, but it really helps the observers understand how you are interacting
         with the application and how the application is working.
After the Session:
     1. User Satisfaction Questionnaire
         The user satisfaction questionnaire is a short questionnaire that asks you about a few
         general aspects of the system. It will only take a few minutes for you to complete.
     2. Questions
         If you have any further questions for the facilitator or members of the ABC Center
         team, you will have the opportunity to ask them at that time.

User Experience Group Indiana University                                           19 of 31
Appendix B – Participant Consent Form

Participant Consent Form
The purpose of this usability study is to evaluate the design of the ABC Center
website. We are interested in determining if people can accomplish common
tasks and easily find information using this website. The session will not ‘test’
you or your ability, rather the session will test the website in order to provide
information on areas that might be improved. Please be advised that there are
no foreseeable risks associated with participation in this session.

During this session, you will be asked to complete some tasks using the ABC
Center website and fill out a user satisfaction questionnaire. As you complete
the tasks, members of the User Experience Group and ABC Center will observe
and take notes. In addition, the session will be captured on video for future
review. The session will last no longer than one hour and fifteen minutes.

If for any reason you are uncomfortable during the session and do not want to
complete a task, you may say so and we will move on to the next task. In
addition, if you do not want to continue, you may end the session and leave at
any time.

Approximately 16 people will participate in this study. Results from all sessions
will be included in a usability report to be presented to ABC Center. Your name
will not be included in the report nor will your name be associated with any
session data collected.

If you wish to speak with someone about your participation in this study, or if
you feel you were not treated as described above, please contact the User
Experience Group manager at 812-855-4499.

I, ______________________________________________, have read and fully
understand the extent of the study and any risks involved. All of my questions,
if any, have been answered to my satisfaction. My signature below
acknowledges my understanding of the information provided in this form and
indicates my willingness to participate in this user testing session. I have been
given a blank copy of this consent form for my records.


Signature:______________________________
Date:________________


User Experience Group Indiana University                             20 of 31
Appendix C – Video Release Form

Video Release Form
The signature below indicates my permission for University Information
Technology Services User Experience Group of Indiana University to use video
footage recorded during the usability session conducted for

ABC Center Website on _______________, 2005

in which I served as a participant.

My name will not be reported in association with session results nor will my
name be included on the video footage. This video footage may be used for the
following purposes:

        •   Analysis of research and reporting of results
        •   Conference presentations
        •   Educational presentations
        •   Informational presentations

I will be consulted about the use of the video recording for any purpose other
than those listed above.

There is no time-limit on the validity of this release nor is there any geographic
specification of where these materials may be distributed.

This release applies to video footage collected as part of the usability session
listed on this document only.

I have been given a blank copy of this release form for my records.

Name (please print):                                            Date:              /   /

Signature:

Address:


Phone:                                     E-mail:


User Experience Group Indiana University                                21 of 31
Appendix D – Satisfaction Questionnaire
System Usability Scale
© Digital Equipment Corporation, 1986. w/ Revision by Usability Consulting Services, 2002.
                                          Strongly                             Strongly
                                          disagree                                agree

1. I think that I would like to
  use this system frequently

2. I found the system more
  complex than necessary


3. I thought the system was easy
  to use


4. I think that I would need the
  support of an experienced person to
  be able to use this system


5. I found the system visually appealing


6. I thought there was too much
  inconsistency in this system


7. I would imagine that most people
  would learn to use this system
  very quickly

8. I found the system very
  confusing to navigate


9. I felt very confident using the
  system


10. I needed to learn a lot of
  things before I could get going
  with this system




User Experience Group Indiana University                                   22 of 31
Appendix E – Space Utilization




Too much screen space (80+ pixels) is wasted on the top of the menu page.




Move the location of the page title image up to reduce the white space that occupies the top of
the page.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                        23 of 31
Appendix F – Image Fonts




The participants commented that some items were blurred and difficult to read. Low quality
text images and/or adjusting image size (shrinking and stretching) can cause images to appear
blurry.




Replace all text images with normal text, unless specific design considerations require it.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                         24 of 31
Appendix G – Contrast Between Text and Background




Figure.1                         Figure.2

Figure 1 shows what a link looks like on the red frame. The link turned to purple when user
clicked on the link and used the back button on the browser to go back to the page (Figure 2).
Purple font on a red background does not provide sufficient contrast and many participants
will have difficulty reading the text. Choose a color scheme that provides good contrast
between the background and text, links, and visited links.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                        25 of 31
Appendix H – Terminology




Figure.1 Screenshot of the Virtual Showcase page




Figure.2 A screenshot of an application


 When clicking on an image under the “Software Applications” session (see Figure 1
 above), users expect to get access to the application. Users tried to click on the image
 (Figure 2) to navigate the system and then realized that it was just a screenshot of the
 application.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                         26 of 31
Appendix I – Link Format




The image above shows the current design scheme on the ‘About Our Center’ page. Users
easily miss the links since bullet points are not a common place to locate links. The dark red
border may have been meant to indicate an embedded link, but the border is difficult to see
due to low contrast between the colors.




The image above shows what the rectangular bullet points look like on Macintosh computers
using Internet explore 5.2 or Safari 1.2.4
It is difficult for users to get more details since there is no visual cue (border around the bullet
point) to tell user that the bullet points are links and using bullets as links is not a common
practice. If users notice that links are available, it will likely be due to accidentally mousing
over the bullet point and noticing the cursor change.




The example above uses the name/title of an item as a link instead of the bullet point. Using
the name/title to link to more details of an item is a common method that users are familiar
with, and so they would be less likely to miss the link. In addition, applying a consistent
format (such as underlining) to all links will help users easily distinguish links from other
items on the site.



User Experience Group Indiana University                                            27 of 31
Appendix J – Mouse-Over Effect




Figure.1




Figure.2


 Figure 1 above shows the appearance of the center menu page. When the user moves the
 mouse over a category of the menu, the category was highlighted and it popped up a
 short description about the category (see Figure 2). The short description displayed in
 list format; users regarded it as a pop-up submenu and tried to click on it. They got
 frustrated as the “submenu” disappeared when the mouse moved away from the
 category.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                     28 of 31
Appendix K – Linking to Previous Page




The link at the bottom of the page always returns to the previous page. However, participants
were confused by links that contained the title of the target pages (as shown in the example
above) as they did not always recognize the names of the previous pages they visited.




Simplify the link at the bottom of the page to “back to previous page”.




In addition, provide a mechanism, such as the breadcrumbs shown above, that helps users to
recognize where they are in a website instead of recalling their path.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                       29 of 31
Appendix L – Operating System and Browser Issues



 There is a checkbox image in front of the Return to Research Center Menu link on
 Windows using Internet Explore 6.02, Firefox 1.0.2, and Netscape.




 The checkbox image does not display correctly on Macintosh computers using
 Internet Explorer 5.2




 The checkbox did not show up on the Macintosh computer using Safari 1.2.4




User Experience Group Indiana University                                     30 of 31
Appendix M – Browser Compatibility Issues




Using the most recent version of Internet Explorer on both the Mac and pc, the links change color with mouse-
over to indicate that they are selected and the cursor is changed to indicate a hotspot.




In Netscape 7.2 (pc), Netscape 7.01 (Mac), or Firefox 1.0 (pc and Mac), however, the mouse-over does not
work, and the cursor stays the same.




User Experience Group Indiana University                                                     31 of 31

Mais conteúdo relacionado

Semelhante a eReading Experience

Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....
Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....
Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....Di Zhang
 
NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...
NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...
NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...NYCUXPA
 
User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks
User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks
User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks Shah Alam Sabuj
 
Usability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina Baber
Usability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina BaberUsability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina Baber
Usability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina BaberAlina Baber
 
Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...
Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...
Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...Roman Atachiants
 
Evaluating Perceived Quality of B-School Websites
Evaluating Perceived Quality of B-School WebsitesEvaluating Perceived Quality of B-School Websites
Evaluating Perceived Quality of B-School WebsitesIOSR Journals
 
Critical Analysis Survey Design
Critical Analysis Survey DesignCritical Analysis Survey Design
Critical Analysis Survey DesignNicole Brown
 
Evaluating the Usability of GrantFinder
Evaluating the Usability of GrantFinderEvaluating the Usability of GrantFinder
Evaluating the Usability of GrantFindersoftwaresatish
 
Kelly saleh howey_proposal
Kelly saleh howey_proposalKelly saleh howey_proposal
Kelly saleh howey_proposalPatrick Howey
 
Zomato Crawler & Recommender
Zomato Crawler & RecommenderZomato Crawler & Recommender
Zomato Crawler & RecommenderShoaib Khan
 
Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09
Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09
Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09Martin Bazley
 
Participatory Web Design Presentation Ala Virtual
Participatory Web Design Presentation Ala VirtualParticipatory Web Design Presentation Ala Virtual
Participatory Web Design Presentation Ala Virtualhammills
 
Assignment2 nguyen tankhoi
Assignment2 nguyen tankhoiAssignment2 nguyen tankhoi
Assignment2 nguyen tankhoiVnhTngLPhc
 
Civic 2.0 Training Course Module 2. Online Research Basics
Civic 2.0 Training Course  Module 2.  Online Research BasicsCivic 2.0 Training Course  Module 2.  Online Research Basics
Civic 2.0 Training Course Module 2. Online Research BasicsSmart Chicago Collaborative
 
Software Project Management: Business Case
Software Project Management: Business CaseSoftware Project Management: Business Case
Software Project Management: Business CaseMinhas Kamal
 
CAM_UX_Report
CAM_UX_ReportCAM_UX_Report
CAM_UX_ReportLucy He
 

Semelhante a eReading Experience (20)

Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....
Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....
Web Site Usability Test - Client Report - Victorian Deaf Society (Ver 1....
 
NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...
NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...
NYC UXPA: 2014 - Bringing Together User Experience and Web Analytics (Michael...
 
User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks
User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks
User behavior model & recommendation on basis of social networks
 
Usability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina Baber
Usability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina BaberUsability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina Baber
Usability Evaluation for Museum Web Sites By Alina Baber
 
Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...
Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...
Research: Developing an Interactive Web Information Retrieval and Visualizati...
 
Evaluating Perceived Quality of B-School Websites
Evaluating Perceived Quality of B-School WebsitesEvaluating Perceived Quality of B-School Websites
Evaluating Perceived Quality of B-School Websites
 
Critical Analysis Survey Design
Critical Analysis Survey DesignCritical Analysis Survey Design
Critical Analysis Survey Design
 
Evaluating the Usability of GrantFinder
Evaluating the Usability of GrantFinderEvaluating the Usability of GrantFinder
Evaluating the Usability of GrantFinder
 
Kelly saleh howey_proposal
Kelly saleh howey_proposalKelly saleh howey_proposal
Kelly saleh howey_proposal
 
Usability Final Paper
Usability Final PaperUsability Final Paper
Usability Final Paper
 
Zomato Crawler & Recommender
Zomato Crawler & RecommenderZomato Crawler & Recommender
Zomato Crawler & Recommender
 
Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09
Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09
Understanding Online Audiences Bazley Ma Wonder Web 10 Jun09
 
Participatory Web Design Presentation Ala Virtual
Participatory Web Design Presentation Ala VirtualParticipatory Web Design Presentation Ala Virtual
Participatory Web Design Presentation Ala Virtual
 
Assignment2 nguyen tankhoi
Assignment2 nguyen tankhoiAssignment2 nguyen tankhoi
Assignment2 nguyen tankhoi
 
Data Analysis Method
Data Analysis MethodData Analysis Method
Data Analysis Method
 
Civic 2.0 Training Course Module 2. Online Research Basics
Civic 2.0 Training Course  Module 2.  Online Research BasicsCivic 2.0 Training Course  Module 2.  Online Research Basics
Civic 2.0 Training Course Module 2. Online Research Basics
 
Software Project Management: Business Case
Software Project Management: Business CaseSoftware Project Management: Business Case
Software Project Management: Business Case
 
Main
MainMain
Main
 
Soft performance
Soft performanceSoft performance
Soft performance
 
CAM_UX_Report
CAM_UX_ReportCAM_UX_Report
CAM_UX_Report
 

Mais de Sean Connolly

Searching the Web is like Searching Your Own Mind
Searching the Web is like Searching Your Own MindSearching the Web is like Searching Your Own Mind
Searching the Web is like Searching Your Own MindSean Connolly
 
Design research into search interactions
Design research into search interactionsDesign research into search interactions
Design research into search interactionsSean Connolly
 
Monument to Homelessness
Monument to HomelessnessMonument to Homelessness
Monument to HomelessnessSean Connolly
 
Global Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a client
Global Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a clientGlobal Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a client
Global Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a clientSean Connolly
 
iPhone (iPod Touch) Interface Development
iPhone (iPod Touch) Interface DevelopmentiPhone (iPod Touch) Interface Development
iPhone (iPod Touch) Interface DevelopmentSean Connolly
 
The User Experience Group: Making I.T. Easier
The User Experience Group: Making I.T. EasierThe User Experience Group: Making I.T. Easier
The User Experience Group: Making I.T. EasierSean Connolly
 
Apple iReader Presentation
Apple iReader PresentationApple iReader Presentation
Apple iReader PresentationSean Connolly
 

Mais de Sean Connolly (9)

Searching the Web is like Searching Your Own Mind
Searching the Web is like Searching Your Own MindSearching the Web is like Searching Your Own Mind
Searching the Web is like Searching Your Own Mind
 
Design research into search interactions
Design research into search interactionsDesign research into search interactions
Design research into search interactions
 
Monument to Homelessness
Monument to HomelessnessMonument to Homelessness
Monument to Homelessness
 
Global Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a client
Global Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a clientGlobal Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a client
Global Redirective Practices: an online workshop for a client
 
eReading Experience
eReading ExperienceeReading Experience
eReading Experience
 
iPhone (iPod Touch) Interface Development
iPhone (iPod Touch) Interface DevelopmentiPhone (iPod Touch) Interface Development
iPhone (iPod Touch) Interface Development
 
UXG Example Report
UXG Example ReportUXG Example Report
UXG Example Report
 
The User Experience Group: Making I.T. Easier
The User Experience Group: Making I.T. EasierThe User Experience Group: Making I.T. Easier
The User Experience Group: Making I.T. Easier
 
Apple iReader Presentation
Apple iReader PresentationApple iReader Presentation
Apple iReader Presentation
 

Último

The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...
The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...
The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...Aggregage
 
UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...
UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...
UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...UbiTrack UK
 
Empowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership Blueprint
Empowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership BlueprintEmpowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership Blueprint
Empowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership BlueprintMahmoud Rabie
 
COMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online Collaboration
COMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online CollaborationCOMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online Collaboration
COMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online Collaborationbruanjhuli
 
Igniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration Workflows
Igniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration WorkflowsIgniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration Workflows
Igniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration WorkflowsSafe Software
 
OpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability Adventure
OpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability AdventureOpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability Adventure
OpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability AdventureEric D. Schabell
 
Computer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and Hazards
Computer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and HazardsComputer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and Hazards
Computer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and HazardsSeth Reyes
 
Bird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystem
Bird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystemBird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystem
Bird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystemAsko Soukka
 
Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1
Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1
Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1DianaGray10
 
Nanopower In Semiconductor Industry.pdf
Nanopower  In Semiconductor Industry.pdfNanopower  In Semiconductor Industry.pdf
Nanopower In Semiconductor Industry.pdfPedro Manuel
 
Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)
Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)
Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)Commit University
 
UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8
UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8
UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8DianaGray10
 
KubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCost
KubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCostKubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCost
KubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCostMatt Ray
 
20230202 - Introduction to tis-py
20230202 - Introduction to tis-py20230202 - Introduction to tis-py
20230202 - Introduction to tis-pyJamie (Taka) Wang
 
UiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation Developers
UiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation DevelopersUiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation Developers
UiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation DevelopersUiPathCommunity
 
Using IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve Decarbonization
Using IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve DecarbonizationUsing IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve Decarbonization
Using IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve DecarbonizationIES VE
 
IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019
IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019
IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019IES VE
 
AI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just Minutes
AI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just MinutesAI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just Minutes
AI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just MinutesMd Hossain Ali
 
activity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdf
activity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdf
activity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfJamie (Taka) Wang
 

Último (20)

The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...
The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...
The Data Metaverse: Unpacking the Roles, Use Cases, and Tech Trends in Data a...
 
UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...
UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...
UWB Technology for Enhanced Indoor and Outdoor Positioning in Physiological M...
 
Empowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership Blueprint
Empowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership BlueprintEmpowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership Blueprint
Empowering Africa's Next Generation: The AI Leadership Blueprint
 
COMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online Collaboration
COMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online CollaborationCOMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online Collaboration
COMPUTER 10: Lesson 7 - File Storage and Online Collaboration
 
Igniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration Workflows
Igniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration WorkflowsIgniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration Workflows
Igniting Next Level Productivity with AI-Infused Data Integration Workflows
 
OpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability Adventure
OpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability AdventureOpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability Adventure
OpenShift Commons Paris - Choose Your Own Observability Adventure
 
Computer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and Hazards
Computer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and HazardsComputer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and Hazards
Computer 10: Lesson 10 - Online Crimes and Hazards
 
Bird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystem
Bird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystemBird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystem
Bird eye's view on Camunda open source ecosystem
 
Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1
Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1
Secure your environment with UiPath and CyberArk technologies - Session 1
 
Nanopower In Semiconductor Industry.pdf
Nanopower  In Semiconductor Industry.pdfNanopower  In Semiconductor Industry.pdf
Nanopower In Semiconductor Industry.pdf
 
Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)
Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)
Crea il tuo assistente AI con lo Stregatto (open source python framework)
 
UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8
UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8
UiPath Studio Web workshop series - Day 8
 
KubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCost
KubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCostKubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCost
KubeConEU24-Monitoring Kubernetes and Cloud Spend with OpenCost
 
20230202 - Introduction to tis-py
20230202 - Introduction to tis-py20230202 - Introduction to tis-py
20230202 - Introduction to tis-py
 
UiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation Developers
UiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation DevelopersUiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation Developers
UiPath Community: AI for UiPath Automation Developers
 
Using IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve Decarbonization
Using IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve DecarbonizationUsing IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve Decarbonization
Using IESVE for Loads, Sizing and Heat Pump Modeling to Achieve Decarbonization
 
IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019
IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019
IESVE Software for Florida Code Compliance Using ASHRAE 90.1-2019
 
AI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just Minutes
AI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just MinutesAI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just Minutes
AI Fame Rush Review – Virtual Influencer Creation In Just Minutes
 
activity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdf
activity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdf
activity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdfactivity_diagram_combine_v4_20190827.pdf
 
201610817 - edge part1
201610817 - edge part1201610817 - edge part1
201610817 - edge part1
 

eReading Experience

  • 1. ABC Center User Testing Report Client: ABC Center for Research Website: http://www.abccenter.org Contact: John Walton Consultants: Bazler, Jae Kim, Erik Brook, Heather Beery, Lora Ramseier Date: January 15, 2007
  • 2. Table of Contents ABC CENTER USER TESTING REPORT........................................................................................................... 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................................................... 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................................................................... 3 STUDY DETAILS ..................................................................................................................................................... 4 PURPOSE OF STUDY ................................................................................................................................................. 4 METHOD .................................................................................................................................................................. 4 PARTICIPANTS ......................................................................................................................................................... 4 PROCEDURES ........................................................................................................................................................... 4 TASKS ...................................................................................................................................................................... 5 RESULTS .................................................................................................................................................................. 5 TASK PERFORMANCE.......................................................................................................................................... 7 OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS................................................................................................ 9 SCREEN LAYOUT/DESIGN ........................................................................................................................................ 9 TERMINOLOGY ...................................................................................................................................................... 11 CONTENT ORGANIZATION ..................................................................................................................................... 11 NAVIGATION ......................................................................................................................................................... 12 OPERATING SYSTEM AND BROWSER ISSUES ......................................................................................................... 15 POST-TEST SATISFACTION RATINGS........................................................................................................... 16 SITE SATISFACTION RATINGS ................................................................................................................................ 16 SATISFACTION QUESTIONNAIRE – POST-TEST QUESTIONS ................................................................................... 17 Question 1 – What do you consider the most valuable aspect of the system? ................................................. 17 Question 2 – What is the biggest problem with the system?............................................................................ 17 Question 3 – Additional comments .................................................................................................................. 17 APPENDICES.......................................................................................................................................................... 19 APPENDIX A – TESTING PROTOCOL SCRIPT........................................................................................................... 19 APPENDIX B – PARTICIPANT CONSENT FORM ....................................................................................................... 20 APPENDIX C – VIDEO RELEASE FORM................................................................................................................... 21 APPENDIX D – SATISFACTION QUESTIONNAIRE .................................................................................................... 22 APPENDIX E – SPACE UTILIZATION ....................................................................................................................... 23 APPENDIX F – IMAGE FONTS ................................................................................................................................. 24 APPENDIX G – CONTRAST BETWEEN TEXT AND BACKGROUND ........................................................................... 25 APPENDIX H – TERMINOLOGY ............................................................................................................................... 26 APPENDIX I – LINK FORMAT ................................................................................................................................. 27 APPENDIX J – MOUSE-OVER EFFECT..................................................................................................................... 28 APPENDIX K – LINKING TO PREVIOUS PAGE ......................................................................................................... 29 APPENDIX L – OPERATING SYSTEM AND BROWSER ISSUES .................................................................................. 30 APPENDIX M – BROWSER COMPATIBILITY ISSUES ................................................................................................ 31 User Experience Group Indiana University 2 of 31
  • 3. Executive Summary In March 2005, a usability study of the ABC Center website was conducted with fifteen participants in the Bloomington, Indiana area. Results showed that users were generally satisfied with the amount and quality of the content available on the ABC site. However, a number of usability issues were identified that hindered locating information, and the site was perceived as being unprofessional in appearance. One of the greatest concerns for usability in the ABC site was the lack of a consistent, reliable navigation system. Users were often left without navigation options to return to the previous page or to the main menu, and were forced to use the browser buttons to navigate the site. This issue was compounded by the fact that some links took the users unexpectedly out of the site. The overall unprofessional appearance of the site was another concern. When searching for scientific research, the perceived credibility of a site will play a large role in whether people are willing to use the site and trust the information provided. Participants expected the images used in the site to be of higher quality, page space to be utilized more efficiently, and the content to be formatted correctly (capitalization, text alignment, etc.). Even though these issues may seems somewhat minor, the combined effect reduces the sites credibility in the users’ eyes. Other usability issues included linking to software-specific files without warning and unpredictable content presentation format. This report describes the purpose and methods of the study, and provides a summary of the observations made from each testing session. Recommendations are made for the ABC Center web development team to consider as they prepare for the redesign of the website. User Experience Group Indiana University 3 of 31
  • 4. Study Details Purpose of Study The ABC Center website is a resource for students to find research studies on the web. The site provides a variety of features including a research article database, links to other online research sources, and a directory of researchers. A new site design is going to be introduced in July, 2005, and the ABC Center web development team wants to explore opportunities to improve the website by obtaining user feedback. As part of the usability evaluation for the ABC Center, user testing was conducted in March of 2005, in Bloomington, Indiana. Method Usability testing methodology1 was used to evaluate the website. This approach involved having authentic users perform authentic tasks using the system, while evaluators observed and recorded their actions and comments. Users were asked to perform a think-aloud protocol2 to help the evaluators understand their behaviors and gain insight into the design of the website. Sessions were performed on an individual basis with each session lasting approximately 1 to 1 ½ hours. ABC Center provided users with $50 gift certificates in return for their participation. Following the last session, qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed and recommendations for redesign were made. Participants Participants recruited for the testing sessions were identified and recruited by the UXG team. An effort was made to target participants who fit a wide range of user profiles due to the heterogeneity of the site’s potential users. The goal was to recruit a sample of 16 participants to achieve adequate representation across the following four demographic categories: 1. Gender – approximate equal split between male and female 2. Age – three age ranges (20-39, 40-59, 60+) 3. Computer experience – novice (little to no computer use), intermediate (office applications, web), or expert (complex applications and/or programming) 4. Experience with research websites A total of 15 participants were tested including 7 men and 8 women. Five participants were in the 20-39 year age-range, six were in the range of 40-59 years of age, and four participants were over 60. Procedures Participants were read an introductory protocol at the beginning of the testing session (see Appendix A for script) and asked to read and sign two consent forms. The first consent form (see Appendix B) is a standard consent form indicating the participants’ understanding of what will be expected of them during the sessions and their willingness to participate. The second consent form (see Appendix C) is a video release form indicating the participants’ awareness that the sessions are videotaped and granting their permission for the video to be used in the 1 Dumas, J. S., & Redish, J. C. (1993). A practical guide to usability testing. Norwood, NJ: Ablex. 2 Ericsson, K. A., & Simon, H. A. (1993). Protocol analysis: Verbal reports as data (Revised ed.). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. User Experience Group Indiana University 4 of 31
  • 5. evaluation and reporting of results. Participants were given a copy of the consent forms for their records. Each participant completed 10 tasks using the abccenter.org website. Tasks were completed one at a time and were recorded as either 1) success with ease, 2) success with difficulty, or 3) failure to complete the task. Success with ease included those tasks that were completed on the first or second try. Success with difficulty included tasks that participants adequately completed but more effort and persistence was needed. For example, trying numerous paths to locate necessary information before finding the correct screen. Failure to complete a task was given if the participant gave up on the task or failed to locate the correct information. In some “failure” cases, participants may have been satisfied that they completed the task; however, the correct information was not located or portions of the task were not completed. Following the session, the users were asked to rate their satisfaction with the system using the Survey of User Satisfaction developed by Digital Equipment Corporation (see Appendix D). Tasks were performed using Internet Explorer 6.0 and the Windows XP operating system on a Dell, Pentium 4, 3.80 GHz computer. Tasks The ABC Center team developed a draft list of 10 tasks for testing based on key site information and features. UXG consultants reviewed and refined the tasks in order to create appropriate scenarios for user testing. Tasks were presented in random order to eliminate order effects from influencing the testing results. Results The results of the study have been divided into four sections: 1. Task performance (e.g. successes and failures) Tasks are listed and the number of participants experiencing successes and failures are noted. 2. Observations and recommendations The results of the study are presented in a table format. The table includes three columns of information: Observations, Interpretations, and Recommendations. Each column is described in more detail below: • Observations – an objective description of participants’ actions and comments during a session. • Interpretations – a proposed explanation for participants’ observed behaviors and justification for recommendations based on known design principles and rules. • Recommendations – suggestions for maintaining aspects of the current design that work, changing aspects that are problematic, and considering alternative possibilities for presenting information to the user. The data within this table are organized into categories that represent the major types of issues raised during the study. The categories include: User Experience Group Indiana University 5 of 31
  • 6. Screen Layout/Design – Items concerning the placement of elements on the screen, use of screen space and opportunities for modifying items to increase user understanding of presented information. • Terminology – Items concerning the user’s understanding of the language used on site. • Content Organization – Items concerning the organization of information within the site. • Navigation – Items concerning the users’ ability to maneuver throughout the site. • Operating System and Browser Issues – Items concerning compatibility and consistency of site presentation across major computer configurations. 3. Post-test satisfaction ratings and comments The results of the SUS (System Usability Scale) questionnaire and a brief description of how the overall SUS scores are calculated is presented. Participants’ comments are included. User Experience Group Indiana University 6 of 31
  • 7. Task Performance Task Success Success with Fail with Ease Difficulty 1 You are looking for employment at the ABC Center. Find out if 12 2 1 there is anything open at this time that you could apply for. Are you interested in the position? 2 You are interested in taking an online course offered by the ABC 11 2 2 Center. Find a course in “Referencing in APA Style.” 3 You are writing a research paper, and you realize that you are 7 3 5 missing the author information for one of your sources. Find the author of the research article “Intercultural Discourse.” 4 You have been asked to contact a researcher by your 4 7 4 teacher/professor. Find the contact information for “Ellen Miller.” 5 You are interested in visiting the ABC Center in person. Where is 13 2 0 the ABC Center located? 6 With so many online research databases to choose from, you 4 6 5 wonder how they compare. Find the discussion forum where the users rate them. 7 After spending some time browsing through the ABC Center 2 6 7 research database, you found some articles that you might need in the future. After logging in, find and save the research article “Benningham DNA Study” in your “Online Bookmarks” for later retrieval. 8 You have heard that ABC Center offers several workshops 7 5 3 throughout the year. What are the titles of the two that are offered in May (2005)? 9 ABC Center offers several free research aid software for 12 1 2 download. Find and download “Ace Reference Tracker 2”. 10 Thank you for visiting the ABC Center website. Can you please 10 3 2 use the online form to rate us? User Experience Group Indiana University 7 of 31
  • 8. The graph above illustrates the percentage of users who accomplished the tasks with ease (easy), with difficulty (hard), or failed. The tasks that caused users the most difficulty were locating the contact information for researchers (task #4) and using the Online Bookmarks feature (task #7). User Experience Group Indiana University 8 of 31
  • 9. Observations Interpretations Recommendations Observations and Recommendations Screen Layout/Design The copyright information on Using the same colored text and 1. Use black or other dark the homepage is invisible to the background does not provide any colored text for this users since it is white text on contrast for the text to be visible, information. white background. unless they are drag-selected with the mouse by accident. At least three different font and When the same information is 2. Standardize the font and color schemes are used in the presented in different formats, it color format if the site to graphically represent the causes inefficiency in user organization does not have organization’s name. behavior because they have to re- a graphical logo. If it does, interpret the data. Furthermore, a replace the current titles chance to reinforce the with the logo. organization’s image/identity is lost. The organization’s name is The organization’s name is not 3. Change the layout of the difficult to read. easy for users read. It looks like a organization’s name. list including; “the center, education, research, retailing”. The information currently The homepage does not help 4. Remove the current home displayed on the homepage is users understand what the site is page and make the “ABC not helpful to users. For about or where they can navigate. Center Menu” page the example, the organization’s site’s home page. name is shown twice, the picture displayed is not associated with the center, and there is no site menu or navigation on this page. The “Research Time Line” link Content should be presented in a 5. Change the font of the link is presented in a different font consistent graphical format, to be consistent with the than the other links in the same especially if the items belong to the other links in the list. list. same list. Any deviation would suggest that the particular link is different from the others in content, importance, etc. Too much screen space (80+ The top of a web page is valuable 6. Move the page title image pixels) is wasted on the top of and draws the attention of the up to reduce the white the menu page (see Appendix users. The current use of the page space. E). layout does not utilize this potential. Many images used in the web Low quality images degrade the 7. Replace the existing site are of low quality and/or overall look of the web site, making images with higher quality stretched from smaller samples, the site and its affiliated images. making the overall look of the organization less credible. 8. Limit the use of images site unprofessional. Images should enhance the look of because they increase site a site without being distracting or load time and can distract overwhelming. users from more important content on the site. The participants commented Low quality text images and/or 9. Replace all text images that some items were blurred adjusting image size (shrinking with normal text, unless and difficult to read (see and stretching) can cause images specific design Appendix F). to appear blurry. considerations require it (such as within a logo). User Experience Group Indiana University 9 of 31
  • 10. Observations Interpretations Recommendations There is no consistent format Users have difficulty knowing what 10. Choose a format for page for content text, links, and constitutes a link, a header, plain layout, title, content text, visited links. text and imbedded links. Without a links and visited links and consistent format, users must apply the format explore each item to determine if it consistently across the is a link or not. This requires more site. time and energy than many users are willing to spend. Every page begins with a title Providing a clear title on each 11. Choose a font, color, size that describes the contents of page helps users know where they and position for the title the page, but the format is not are and feel more comfortable and use the same format consistent across the site. navigating the site. However, an consistently throughout the inconsistent format can cause site. confusion. The repetition of frame at the The site identification is important. 12. Apply a consistent format left hand side could be site The repetition of screen layout, to the page layout as well identification; however, there is font size and color contribute to as the contents. no design scheme or stylistic site identification. treatment for the content frame. The link on the left frame turned The purple text on a red 13. Choose a color schemes to purple when user clicked on background does not provide that provide good contrast the link and used the “Back” sufficient contrast and is therefore between the text and button on the browser to go difficult to read. background. back to the page (see Appendix G). Participants were not able to read the link. Links to external sites are The main purpose of navigating 14. Replace the links with the included in what should be the the site is to locate information site navigation structure. site’s main navigation. about the organization instead of 15. Put the external links linking to other sites. Most- under the “resources” frequently used links and the site category or put them in the navigation structure should be footer. available on every page. An empty check box in front of Inappropriate use of symbols or 16. Remove the empty check the “Return to ABC Center images causes confusion. Users box and the check box Menu” link causes confusion. may not know whether to click on animation from the links. Participants were unsure the underlined text or to click the whether it was a bullet point or box. something requiring an action. The check box animation is not On some pages, there is a relevant to the link or its content checkbox animation in front of and is distracting to the user. the link. The navigation image map Using large images for navigation 17. Do not use large images used on “About Our Center” is not an efficient way of organizing unless absolutely takes too much screen space content on a web page. necessary. Replace the (550 x 413 pixels). image map with a bulleted list of links. There are no visual cues for User could easily miss/ignore a 18. Avoid using image maps. users to know that the 4 red link if it does not look like a link. 19. If an image map is triangles on the corners of the necessary, provide visual image map on “About Our cues (underline the text on Center” page have imbedded graphics, for example) to links. tell the user that there is an User Experience Group Indiana University 10 of 31
  • 11. Observations Interpretations Recommendations imbedded link. Participants clicked on some There is no visible distinction 20. Choose a font, color and texts and then realized that it between text and embedded links. style for imbedded links was not a link. Also, there is no consistent format and use the format for imbedded links. consistently across the site. Bulleted links do not line up on Proper item alignment is an 21. Make sure all items are the ‘Programs for Students’ important element for professional properly aligned. page. presentation. Most, but not all, link text is A consistent capitalization scheme 22. Change the link text to capitalized on the ‘Programs for is an important element for the adhere to a consistent Students’ page. professional appearance of the capitalization guideline. site. Terminology Only the homepage has a Windows should be given a clear 23. Provide an appropriate title window title and it did not identifiable title that will display in for every web screen. describe the website clearly. the browser address bar. This will also help the user bookmark the page appropriately. The “Welcome to the ABC The sentence is more like a 24. Phrase all the links Center” link on the homepage is greeting instead of a link. User appropriately. The link text vague as it did not tell user would not be able to tell that it is a should clearly identify the anything about the purpose of link if the link was not underlined. purpose of the link. the link. Participants expected to get The manner in which the images 25. Change the title to be access to an application by were displayed led the user to “Screenshots of Software clicking on images under believe they could access the Applications” to tell users “Software Applications” (see various applications shown. that those images are just Appendix H) some screenshots from the applications. 26. A brief description for each image helps users understand the content. The names of the links to the Using a consistent word or phrase 27. Make sure the name of a menu page are not consistent. to link to any given page will help link is identical on every On some pages, it is called the user learn the structure of your page. “ABC Center Welcome Page”; site and allow them to accurately on other pages, it is called select the appropriate link no “ABC Center Menu”. matter what screen they are on. The menu item and the page Users are not sure where they are 28. Make sure the link reflects title are not the same. when they click on a link and get a the title of the target page. page with a title different from the Page titles may be longer link they clicked. and more descriptive than links, but key words should be the same. Content Organization Contact information is buried Users should not need to browse 29. Consider placing basic too deep into the web site and deep into the site in order to find contact information only available after following a basic contact information. Many (address, e-mail, and narrow navigation route. users will look for this information phone number) at the and become frustrated if it is not bottom of each page on easily located. the web site, or providing a User Experience Group Indiana University 11 of 31
  • 12. Observations Interpretations Recommendations top-level link to the contact information. A number of links open an Users can easily become confused 30. Only contents of the external web page within the about which site they are visiting if website should display in content frame. an external site opens within the the content frame. An content frame. external web page should open in a new window so users know that it is another site. A number of links on the site Users like to be informed before 31. Provide the content in a open a PDF file, a word downloading/opening a file. They format that users can view document, a PowerPoint file or become frustrated when they click online. That gives user the even a streaming video without on a link and get unexpected control to choose to read alerting the users beforehand. results. the document online or download it. 32. Clearly label any links that will start a download or attempt to open an application (such as Acrobat Reader, Word, PowerPoint, etc.) so users know what to expect before clicking. ‘Customer Interface Technology Users would like to be informed 33. Warn the users that the Lab’ opens a Real Media file, before trying to open a file that link will open a Real Media which requires a media player requires an application they may file, and provide a link to a that has to be downloaded. not have. download page where the required media player is available. Navigation Participants spent too much Users expect to see a clear 34. Remove the current time scanning the homepage navigation scheme that can help homepage from the site, with the mouse to see what determine the next page to visit. and establish the main links were available. Time and effort is wasted when the menu page as the users have to explore the page to homepage. find what navigation options are 35. If the current homepage available. has to be kept, make sure that the users know that there is only one navigation option available by moving the “welcome” link to the center of the page. A clear association between the The menu page specifically 36. Provide the bulleted list top-level navigation presents a bulleted list of content presented in the descriptions and sub-level information that is available in menu page for the sub- content was not apparent to each of the top sections. This level pages. participants. leads users to believe that these categories will be clearly marked in their respective sub-pages. The current layout, however, does not distinguish these categories. A quick, obvious link back to The current navigation scheme lets 37. Remove the current the menu page is not provided the users go back to the homepage from the site, User Experience Group Indiana University 12 of 31
  • 13. Observations Interpretations Recommendations throughout the site. homepage from most of the site and establish the main pages. However, there should be menu page as the little need for this, since the homepage. homepage only provides a link to 38. If the current homepage the menu page. It is more logical has to be kept, replace the that the users will want to return to universal link to the the menu page from their location homepage with link to the in order to restart their interaction menu page. with the site. Participants do not know where The current site design does not 39. Provide information about they are and where they came indicate where the user is within current location to facilitate from when navigating the site. the site. Show the user where navigation. they are by using breadcrumbs at the top of screen or by highlighting the user’s location within a persistent navigation structure. User would feel more confident if they know exactly where they are and where they came from when navigating a site. Participants relied on the back Users frequently miss the link 40. Provide a sound navigation button on the browser to because they would have to scroll mechanism. navigate the site. A ‘go back to to the bottom of the page to find it. 41. Make the go back to the previous page’ link is In addition, the link is not always previous page link provided at the bottom of some available on every page. Users available at the same pages, but not all. would be frustrated if they scroll position on every page. down to the bottom of a page but cannot get the link they expected. Some participants could not Users normally click on an item’s 42. Make the name/title of an locate information on the name to get more details about the item a link instead of center’s director as they did not item instead of clicking on the imbedding the link in a know that the link was bullet. bullet point. imbedded in the bullet point A dark red border around the red 43. Links should be presented (see Appendix I). rectangular bullet point is a hint to in an easy to recognize tell users that it is a link, but it is and consistent manner. not easy to tell as the colors are quite similar. Participants did not realize that The use of fancy technique is not 44. Remove the mouse-over the image above the facility lists always appropriate as users might effect and allow users to would change when the mouse not know how to use it. They may get more details of a moved over an item of the list. easily miss the information if they facility item by clicking on Participants clicked on an item do not know how to get access. it. as the cursor turned to a finger User would be frustrated as the when moving over the item. cursor turns to be a finger when moving over an item, but those are not links and they cannot get more information by clicking on it. On the research on retailing User would not be able to know 45. Use the title of the study as page, links of two study reports even the title of a report unless a link and clearly labeled have the same title. clicking on the link. the link to tell user what to The image above the sentence It causes confusion when the site expect when clicking on of “Click for a PDF copy of the cues the users for action that does the link. study” is not a link although it not lead to the expected result. 46. Change the image to act indicated to be. as a link. User Experience Group Indiana University 13 of 31
  • 14. Observations Interpretations Recommendations Participants were confused Users expect different links to go 47. Either combine the links to when the “shopping to different pages. Many users will be “shopping simulations & simulations” link and the not understand that the links point software applications” or “software applications” link took to different sections on the same separate the contents into them to the same page. page. two separate pages. When the user mouses over a The list format and position of the 48. Remove the mouse-over category in the menu, it popped pop-up information create effect and use available up a brief description of the confusion because it looks like a screen space to display category. Participants regarded pop-up submenu. Users become the brief description right it as a pop-up submenu and frustrated trying to click on this below each category. wanted to click on it but the image that disappears every time 49. Change the format to pop-up description disappeared they move their mouse. make it more like a brief once the cursor moved away description of a category in from the category. Participants stead of a list moved their cursors back and forth between the menu and the pop-up information and then realized that it was not a submenu (see Appendix J). The link at the bottom of the Bad navigation mechanisms force 50. Simplify the link at the page always returns the user to the user to recall where they came bottom of the page to be the previous page (see from. “back to previous page”. Appendix K). However, Users have more processing 51. Provide a mechanism that participants were confused by capacity for the contents when helps users to recognize links that contained the title there is less cognitive load for where they are in the because they did not always locating their position. website instead of recalling recognize the names of the their path. previous pages they visited. ‘KPMG’ link in the ‘Sponsoring Dead links damage the credibility 52. Fix the dead link to lead to Partners’ page is a dead link. of the site and frustrates the users the correct, working site or who wish to visit the linked page. if the site no longer exists, remove the link and associated text. The ‘Marshall Field’s’ and Link names should always 53. Fix the ‘Marshall Field’s’ ‘Mervyn’s’ links on the correctly refer to the site they link and ‘Mervyns’s’ links to ‘Sponsoring Partners’ page do to. Unexpected behaviors, such as lead to their respective not take the user to the correct the wrong site opening, lead to sites. Check all links sites. Rather, both of these user confusion and frustration. (internal and external) for links lead to target.com. accuracy and periodically verify that external links still point to published sites. On the ‘Activities and Users expect similar behaviors 54. Group links together that Programs’ page, various links in from links that are grouped behave in the same the same bulleted list behave together. Furthermore, users’ manner. Provide a differently. Some open up new mental model of the site navigation distinction or visual browser windows, others open scheme is weakened when separation for links that PowerPoint-like slides, and unpredictable links are present. behave differently. others go to pages deeper in the hierarchy. Clicking any items on the The users expect the side 55. Fix the links so that the “Timeline” page takes the users navigation bar to be present at all pages are displayed within out of the site navigation frame. times. the content frame in the Clicking on the “Home” link on browser window, leaving User Experience Group Indiana University 14 of 31
  • 15. Observations Interpretations Recommendations the “Timeline” page takes the the side navigation intact. users out of the site navigation frame. The “Home” link at the upper- Different links with the same name 56. Rename the link to avoid left hand corner of the causes confusion. confusion with the link to “Timeline” page is confusing. the center’s homepage. Participants did not know whether they would be taken to the site’s homepage or the center timeline’s homepage. Operating System and Browser Issues The red rectangle with the Some operating systems and 57. Test the most popular imbedded link on the “About browsers are more flexible than browsers and operating Our Center” page has a 1 pixel other in rendering code systems to make sure the bolder to indicate that a link. site works properly. The border does not display properly on a Macintosh (see Appendix I) The checkbox image in front of Some operation systems and 58. Test the most popular the “Return to Research Center browsers are more flexible than browsers and operating Menu” works on PC, but the other in rendering code systems to make sure the image did not display properly site works properly. on a Macintosh (see Appendix L). The mouse-over link color does Some operation systems and 59. To increase the likelihood not change for Netscape 7.2 on browsers are more flexible than that pages will display and PC, Netscape 7.01 on other in rendering code function properly, make Macintosh and Firefox 1.0 on sure that code is formed both PC and Macintosh correctly with proper tags computers. (always use closing tags), etc. 60. Test the most popular browsers and operating systems to make sure the site works properly. If all browsers and operating systems will not be supported, provide text stating which browsers the site supports. User Experience Group Indiana University 15 of 31
  • 16. Post-test Satisfaction Ratings Site Satisfaction Ratings Satisfaction User Survey 1 5 Median Mean strongly strongly (Raw score by SUS question) disagree agree I think that I would like to use this 5 5 2 4 4 3 3 4 3 5 4 2 3 2 3 system frequently. 3 3.47 I found the system more complex than 1 2 5 3 3 5 1 2 3 1 3 5 3 5 1 necessary 3 2.87 I thought the system was easy to use. 4 5 2 2 3 3 4 5 3 5 3 2 2 2 4 3 3.27 I think that I would need the support of 1 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 an experienced person to be able to use this system. 1 1.33 I found the system visually appealing 5 5 3 4 2 3 4 4 5 5 3 5 3 3 4 4 3.87 I thought there was too much 1 1 3 1 3 2 1 1 3 1 3 3 4 3 1 inconsistency in this system. 2 2.07 I would imagine that most people 5 5 1 4 2 2 5 4 3 5 3 2 3 1 5 would learn to use this system very quickly. 3 3.33 I found the system very cumbersome to 1 1 4 2 2 2 1 4 4 1 3 5 3 4 1 use. 2 2.53 I felt very confident using the system. 5 4 5 3 2 4 5 5 2 5 3 3 4 5 5 4 4.00 I needed to learn a lot of things before I 1 1 1 3 3 1 1 1 3 1 4 2 1 1 1 could get going with this system. 1 1.67 Satisfaction User Survey (total SUS Score (0-100) adjusted SUS scores by participant) Participant 1 97.5 Participant 2 95 Participant 3 47.5 Participant 4 62.5 Participant 5 52.5 Participant 6 60 Participant 7 90 Participant 8 80 Participant 9 52.5 Participant 10 100 Participant 11 52.5 Participant 12 45 Participant 13 57.5 Participant 14 47.5 Participant 15 90 Median 60 Mean 68.67 Raw SUS scores are adjusted as follows: * Questions 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9: adjusted score = raw score – 1 * Questions 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10: adjusted score = 5 – raw score User Experience Group Indiana University 16 of 31
  • 17. Calculating an individual’s total SUS score for an application: * The sum of the adjusted scores is multiplied by 2.5 to yield an overall score in the range of 0 – 100. Higher total SUS scores indicate greater overall satisfaction with the website. The median and mean scores of 60 and 68.67 respectively for the ABC Center website represent a somewhat lower level of user satisfaction than desired. Correcting the various usability issues identified in the preceding sections of this report are likely to improve user satisfaction with the site. Satisfaction Questionnaire – Post-Test Questions The table below shows participants responses to the three SUS post-test questions. Participants wrote their responses on the SUS form and they are included here verbatim. Question 1 – What do you consider the most valuable aspect of the system? P1 Easy to use, straight forward. P2 Access to rich, original research. P3 Easy to find research based on topic of interest. P4 Getting information. P5 There is a lot of information. P6 Fairly easy to find what I needed. P7 Wealth of information. P8 Links to cross references. P9 Rich information. P10 Providing easy links for additional research material. P11 P12 This site has many research materials that are not available anywhere else. P13 I liked the links to other research resource sites. P14 Contact information for the research authors is a good resource. P15 Easy to find the research I am looking for. Question 2 – What is the biggest problem with the system? P1 Some of the links took me out of the site completely without warning. P2 The images that are used are not that good in quality. It makes the site look unprofessional. P3 Organization is not clear. P4 Make it user friendly. P5 There seem to be a lot of space wasted – I would rather have more content than fancy titles and graphics. P6 Did not like the images used. P7 It was difficult to navigate the site. P8 The pages in the site looked too different from each other. They don’t look like they belong to the same site. P9 Difficult to navigate. P10 Lack of professionalism in site presentation. P11 N/A P12 Full screen is not utilized. P13 Site looked unprofessional. P14 Navigation options are sometimes unavailable. P15 Many linked files required programs that I did not have on the computer. Question 3 – Additional comments P1 Nice site, lots of information. P2 Change the images to better ones, and the site will look much nicer. P3 P4 About time! [do not know what the participant was referring to ] User Experience Group Indiana University 17 of 31
  • 18. P5 P6 It was frustrating because navigation options would disappear on me at times. Those links should be there at all times. Also, there were instances where the links that I clicked took me to an external link. I think those should open up new windows. P7 P8 P9 Needs more organization. P10 P11 I look forward to using it in the future, nice content. P12 Overall it was fine, but I think the images should be changed to better ones. P13 P14 Make the navigation bars available at all times. This will make the site much easier to use. I liked the content available on the site, lots of original research. P15 User Experience Group Indiana University 18 of 31
  • 19. Appendices Appendix A – Testing Protocol Script Participating in Usability Sessions Thank you for agreeing to participate in the usability study of the ABC Center website. Before we begin, I will briefly go over what a usability session consists of, what will be expected of you, and what our goals are in conducting this study. The first thing that I want to make clear is that we are testing the application, NOT you. If you find errors or if you have any difficulties with the application, it is very likely that other people visiting the site will also experience those same difficulties. We will use this information to better understand how we might improve the site. During the Session: 1. Tasks: You will be asked to perform a series of tasks using the ABC Center website. The tasks are structured to determine if the most important information and features of the site are easy to locate and use. We ask that you try to accomplish the tasks without assistance, as if you were at home trying to find the information on your own. This gives us a better idea of the things that work well or the difficulties people experience. Anytime during the session, if you find yourself thinking that you would quit the task, use help, contact someone for assistance, or visit another site to accomplish your goal, please let us know. 2. Test Facilitator and Observers: One member of the User Experience Group will act as the test facilitator assisting you in getting started and answering any questions you may have. Another member of the User Experience Group will observe and take notes. Representatives from the ABC Center team may also be present to observe the session and take notes. 3. Think Aloud Protocol: To help the observers understand the way you use the application, you will be asked to “think aloud” as you complete the tasks. This simply means that we ask you to talk about what you are doing, what you are looking for, clicking on, wishing you could find, etc. In other words, any task-related thought that comes into your mind we would like for you to share aloud. Some people find this easy right away, while others need to be reminded a little. It may seem a bit odd to talk about every step that you are doing, but it really helps the observers understand how you are interacting with the application and how the application is working. After the Session: 1. User Satisfaction Questionnaire The user satisfaction questionnaire is a short questionnaire that asks you about a few general aspects of the system. It will only take a few minutes for you to complete. 2. Questions If you have any further questions for the facilitator or members of the ABC Center team, you will have the opportunity to ask them at that time. User Experience Group Indiana University 19 of 31
  • 20. Appendix B – Participant Consent Form Participant Consent Form The purpose of this usability study is to evaluate the design of the ABC Center website. We are interested in determining if people can accomplish common tasks and easily find information using this website. The session will not ‘test’ you or your ability, rather the session will test the website in order to provide information on areas that might be improved. Please be advised that there are no foreseeable risks associated with participation in this session. During this session, you will be asked to complete some tasks using the ABC Center website and fill out a user satisfaction questionnaire. As you complete the tasks, members of the User Experience Group and ABC Center will observe and take notes. In addition, the session will be captured on video for future review. The session will last no longer than one hour and fifteen minutes. If for any reason you are uncomfortable during the session and do not want to complete a task, you may say so and we will move on to the next task. In addition, if you do not want to continue, you may end the session and leave at any time. Approximately 16 people will participate in this study. Results from all sessions will be included in a usability report to be presented to ABC Center. Your name will not be included in the report nor will your name be associated with any session data collected. If you wish to speak with someone about your participation in this study, or if you feel you were not treated as described above, please contact the User Experience Group manager at 812-855-4499. I, ______________________________________________, have read and fully understand the extent of the study and any risks involved. All of my questions, if any, have been answered to my satisfaction. My signature below acknowledges my understanding of the information provided in this form and indicates my willingness to participate in this user testing session. I have been given a blank copy of this consent form for my records. Signature:______________________________ Date:________________ User Experience Group Indiana University 20 of 31
  • 21. Appendix C – Video Release Form Video Release Form The signature below indicates my permission for University Information Technology Services User Experience Group of Indiana University to use video footage recorded during the usability session conducted for ABC Center Website on _______________, 2005 in which I served as a participant. My name will not be reported in association with session results nor will my name be included on the video footage. This video footage may be used for the following purposes: • Analysis of research and reporting of results • Conference presentations • Educational presentations • Informational presentations I will be consulted about the use of the video recording for any purpose other than those listed above. There is no time-limit on the validity of this release nor is there any geographic specification of where these materials may be distributed. This release applies to video footage collected as part of the usability session listed on this document only. I have been given a blank copy of this release form for my records. Name (please print): Date: / / Signature: Address: Phone: E-mail: User Experience Group Indiana University 21 of 31
  • 22. Appendix D – Satisfaction Questionnaire System Usability Scale © Digital Equipment Corporation, 1986. w/ Revision by Usability Consulting Services, 2002. Strongly Strongly disagree agree 1. I think that I would like to use this system frequently 2. I found the system more complex than necessary 3. I thought the system was easy to use 4. I think that I would need the support of an experienced person to be able to use this system 5. I found the system visually appealing 6. I thought there was too much inconsistency in this system 7. I would imagine that most people would learn to use this system very quickly 8. I found the system very confusing to navigate 9. I felt very confident using the system 10. I needed to learn a lot of things before I could get going with this system User Experience Group Indiana University 22 of 31
  • 23. Appendix E – Space Utilization Too much screen space (80+ pixels) is wasted on the top of the menu page. Move the location of the page title image up to reduce the white space that occupies the top of the page. User Experience Group Indiana University 23 of 31
  • 24. Appendix F – Image Fonts The participants commented that some items were blurred and difficult to read. Low quality text images and/or adjusting image size (shrinking and stretching) can cause images to appear blurry. Replace all text images with normal text, unless specific design considerations require it. User Experience Group Indiana University 24 of 31
  • 25. Appendix G – Contrast Between Text and Background Figure.1 Figure.2 Figure 1 shows what a link looks like on the red frame. The link turned to purple when user clicked on the link and used the back button on the browser to go back to the page (Figure 2). Purple font on a red background does not provide sufficient contrast and many participants will have difficulty reading the text. Choose a color scheme that provides good contrast between the background and text, links, and visited links. User Experience Group Indiana University 25 of 31
  • 26. Appendix H – Terminology Figure.1 Screenshot of the Virtual Showcase page Figure.2 A screenshot of an application When clicking on an image under the “Software Applications” session (see Figure 1 above), users expect to get access to the application. Users tried to click on the image (Figure 2) to navigate the system and then realized that it was just a screenshot of the application. User Experience Group Indiana University 26 of 31
  • 27. Appendix I – Link Format The image above shows the current design scheme on the ‘About Our Center’ page. Users easily miss the links since bullet points are not a common place to locate links. The dark red border may have been meant to indicate an embedded link, but the border is difficult to see due to low contrast between the colors. The image above shows what the rectangular bullet points look like on Macintosh computers using Internet explore 5.2 or Safari 1.2.4 It is difficult for users to get more details since there is no visual cue (border around the bullet point) to tell user that the bullet points are links and using bullets as links is not a common practice. If users notice that links are available, it will likely be due to accidentally mousing over the bullet point and noticing the cursor change. The example above uses the name/title of an item as a link instead of the bullet point. Using the name/title to link to more details of an item is a common method that users are familiar with, and so they would be less likely to miss the link. In addition, applying a consistent format (such as underlining) to all links will help users easily distinguish links from other items on the site. User Experience Group Indiana University 27 of 31
  • 28. Appendix J – Mouse-Over Effect Figure.1 Figure.2 Figure 1 above shows the appearance of the center menu page. When the user moves the mouse over a category of the menu, the category was highlighted and it popped up a short description about the category (see Figure 2). The short description displayed in list format; users regarded it as a pop-up submenu and tried to click on it. They got frustrated as the “submenu” disappeared when the mouse moved away from the category. User Experience Group Indiana University 28 of 31
  • 29. Appendix K – Linking to Previous Page The link at the bottom of the page always returns to the previous page. However, participants were confused by links that contained the title of the target pages (as shown in the example above) as they did not always recognize the names of the previous pages they visited. Simplify the link at the bottom of the page to “back to previous page”. In addition, provide a mechanism, such as the breadcrumbs shown above, that helps users to recognize where they are in a website instead of recalling their path. User Experience Group Indiana University 29 of 31
  • 30. Appendix L – Operating System and Browser Issues There is a checkbox image in front of the Return to Research Center Menu link on Windows using Internet Explore 6.02, Firefox 1.0.2, and Netscape. The checkbox image does not display correctly on Macintosh computers using Internet Explorer 5.2 The checkbox did not show up on the Macintosh computer using Safari 1.2.4 User Experience Group Indiana University 30 of 31
  • 31. Appendix M – Browser Compatibility Issues Using the most recent version of Internet Explorer on both the Mac and pc, the links change color with mouse- over to indicate that they are selected and the cursor is changed to indicate a hotspot. In Netscape 7.2 (pc), Netscape 7.01 (Mac), or Firefox 1.0 (pc and Mac), however, the mouse-over does not work, and the cursor stays the same. User Experience Group Indiana University 31 of 31