Fluent Essays

The heart of this course is a project, in which you will design, implement, and evaluate a user interface. User interface design is an iterative process, so you will build your UI not just once, but three times, as successively higher-fidelity and more complete prototypes.  This project is the first step in the user interface design process.  By the end of Project 2 you will have completed the user research, created user personas, developed wireframes. In Project 3, you will develop a working prototype. In Project 4, you will revisit heuristic analysis and usability testing on the user interface and experience you designed. Focus for this project is on user research and wireframes - understanding who the users are, what are they trying to accomplish, how can your interface design support and delight them. We review several approaches to structuring, performing, and documenting user research, including a special focus on personas of different types and on use cases. This project provides a walk-through planning and analysis stages for UX/UI projects: why the planning matters and methods that can be used. You may choose to design a user interface for any industry. The type of user interface you create is also your choice (i.e. SmartTV, AR, VR, smartphone, app, website). If you need some ideas to get you started, browse these concepts: Project 2: Requirements Complete the requirements listed below: User Research Using Microsoft Word or PowerPoint, complete the steps below for the user research portion of the project: Step 1 User Analysis. Identify the characteristics of your user population. If you have multiple user classes (types of stakeholders), identify each one. Create a persona for each type of primary stakeholder. You need to include at least two user personas. Step 2 Task Analysis. Determine the tasks of the problem you've chosen and analyze their characteristics. Think about other questions you should ask that might be relevant to your particular domain. You should find and analyze at least three tasks. If you can't find that many tasks in your problem, try drilling down to more specific tasks, and consider exceptional and emergency tasks. Write a Hierarchical Task Analysis (as done in class) for each task. At this stage you should be focused on the abstract steps of each task and should not be thinking about what your interface will look like yet. Step 3 Problem Scenario Analysis. For each task, write a paragraph-length problem scenario: a concrete, realistic example of the task. Step 4 Usability Requirements. Think about what usability metrics make sense for your project and specify at least two measurable usability criteria for your final system (e.g., "Users will score satisfaction at least 4.0 on a 1-7 scale following performance of two standardized tasks."). Design and Wireframes Using one of the UI tools, complete the following: Step 1 Sketches: Take time to brainstorm a variety of different interface designs, sketching them by hand on paper or digitally. You should play with many more than two designs, but you only need to record two. Step 2 Storyboards: Using the scenario, generate one preliminary design for your user interface. Explain each design and include a storyboard showing how it works for your scenario. The storyboard should combine words with sketches showing how the interface would look over the course of the scenario.  Step 3 Wireframes: After the storyboard, you should have an analysis that considers the design's good and bad points for learnability, visibility, efficiency, and error prevention. Create a digital wireframe of the UI design. The wireframes should include all screens needed to complete the scenario. Step 4 Presentation: Present the storyboard and wireframes professionally. This could be completed by using Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, etc. Include: describe the design for each of the wireframes - justify your design decisions. Project 2 Reflection Question 1 What issues or challenges did you face completing this project? Question 2 What software programs did you use to create this project? Note 1 You can submit your Project 2 Reflection as a Microsoft Word document or just copy and paste your answers into your Assignments Folder's text box when you submit your assignment along with the rest of the required project files.  Submit your Project Files to LEO Task 1 Submit your completed User Research document to your Project 2 Assignment Folder. Task 2 Submit your completed Wireframes to your Project 2 Assignment Folder. Task 3 Complete a Project 2 Reflection (below) and submit it to your Project 2 Assignments Folder.     Putting It All Together IAKM-60112-001-201560: Advance Information Architecture Putting It All Together page 1 Overview of the Project The areas of focus Upper Sandusky Community Library site were to: 1. Organize the site’s content that makes sense to the users 2. Easily provide access to current events, on-line tools and applications 3. Help the user find their way to the information they need on the site 4. Provide an organized on-line catalog 5. Create a more attractive landing page 6. Update the site’s technology but also making it easy enough for the current staff to update the site The other issues that were addressed included: 1. No visual breadcrumbs; users should know where they are at all times on the site. 2. No search function for the site itself; user needs quick access to the whole site. 3. Create a better layout for the homepage. Display some information that attracts the user to want to continue their experience of the site. 4. Add an actual footer at the bottom so that the user can access contact information quickly, and also so that users can request additional information. 5. Change some of the label titles to make it more clear and understandable to the user. 6. Keep the navigation types consistent. 7. Use better visual contextual clues so that users knows that an image is just an image, or if its a click-able button. The Research Research Interviews Research was conducted at the South Bowie Branch Library located in Bowie MD. The library is fairly new, and has an area dedicated and designed for the younger readers. The library also has meeting and conference rooms avail- able to rent. Two librarians from the South Bowie Branch Library were asked in person the following questions in order to learn and understand why people are using municipal sites: 1. What type of people most commonly use your website? 2. Why do they come to the site, what are they doing? 3. What challenges do they face when using your website? Research Sources According to PEW Internet and Pew Research Centers, libraries have to shift their focus to add more e-book options because of their customer’s new reading habits. Mothers like that libraries offer service to help educate their young children and also because its a free service. Teens and young adults like new technologies and would most likely use a GPS application to find material at the library, and Redbox like kiosks for books and movies. Labeling, Taxonomy & Navigation Preformed a Treejack study using four participants to assess the information architecture design. Also tested the navigation using Chalkmark using four participants and wireframe sketches. Putting It All Together page 2 Personas Karen Williams is a stay-at-home mother of two children who also has a blog called Free Range Mom for other moms and suggest free activities for small children. Karen stopped working at her 9 to 5 as an editor for an on- line magazine after giving birth to her second child. Her and her husband agreed money would be tight, but it was the best decision because of the rising cost of daycare for two small children. Plus she can spend lots more time with her children while they were young and be a little more hands on in their early development stages. Because Karen’s children are not in a daycare setting she still wants them to interact and gain good social skills with other children. When her children are both ready to enter elementary school, Karen will return to the work- force. Karen visits her local library website to check the schedule for free story time, and has even joined a reading club for her oldest at the library that meets every 2nd and 4th Wednesday. Karen often blogs about the free services at the library and also provides a link to her readers that connects them to the library’s calendar page. Goals: • Attend free literacy programs for her young children • Keep her children engaged and social with their peers • Provide free and useful information to her readers Karen Williams “Busy dot YEAH!!!!” Tina Gray is a nurse practitioner and a single mother of two 12 year old twin girls. She works at a community clinic and some weekends she may pick up a shift working on-call at the local hospital. Her live in mother often helps with caring for the girls when Tina is at work. Raising tween-aged girls is a difficult job for the very busy Tina, because the girls don’t want to do homework, so assignments are often done at the last minute. Also Tina’s mother doesn’t drive, so during Tina’s break at work she logs on to the library’s site and reserves books for her girls and picks them up after her shift. Tina also receives email notification when checked-out books are overdo. If Tina is working an extra shift and doesn’t have time to stop by the library, she simply logs on her library account and renews her daughters books. Goals: • Be able to reserve books on-line and pick-up at the library quickly • Renew books through the website without having to pay late fees • Reserve and then pickup books at a later time Tina Gray “Tween double trouble but twice the fun” Putting It All Together page 3 Personas (continued) Jayden Johnson is a sophomore at Woodson Senior High. He still only 15 so he doesn’t have a car or an after school job, because his parents want him to stay focused on school. Jayden is an honor roll student and gets his home- work done quickly but often gets bored with school. Jayden loves to write fiction stories, and wants to become a writer. He is also working on publish- ing his first e-book. Jayden wants to keep his writing skills, and story-telling fresh, so he reads a lot, and also does a lot a research. Because he doesn’t have a car, when he forgets to return books on-time, his parents get mad at him for having library fines that they have to pay for. To avoid being in trouble, Jayden re- news his books through his library account on the site. Also Jayden tries to find e-book versions of books that he can download also through his library account. If he can’t find an e-book version he then reserves the book and picks it up later. Goals: • Download e-books personal computer • Renew books through the website without having to pay late fees • Reserve and then pickup books at a later time Jayden Johnson “The streets are paved in adverbs” Week Activity 1 2 3 4 5 Project Brief Recruit for Interviews Analysis Content Classification Scheme Site Map Labeling & Taxonomy Wireframes Testing Wireframes X X X X X X X X Persona Table Putting It All Together page 4 Site Map H om e A bo ut U s Re so ur ce s Login in Account H ou rs D ire cti on s (H yp er -li nk ed ) H ol d Bo ok s D ig ita l L ib ra ry Re ne w B oo ks Fe ed ba ck Ev en ts Se rv ic es Fo r Ki ds Fo r Te en s St aff Ro om s Ca le nd ar Ea rl y Le ar ni ng A ft er Sc ho ol TA B N ew sl ett er Vi rt ua l L ib ra ri an Li br ar y Ca rd Bo ok a R oo m Vo te r Ta x Fo rm s Le ar ni ng Ex pr es s Ca ta lo g Se ar ch Jo bs Co m m on Re ad er B oo k Cl ub H er ita ge R oo m El lis on R oo m N ew s D at ab as e Putting It All Together page 5 Navigation Structures The topic classification scheme was the option for picked for the top level of the Upper Sandusky Library site. Similar items are grouped together that make sense for the particular category. Because the current site has a lot of navigation items in the top level, those items can be compiled into groups with the sim- ilar subjects. The top topics can also be turned into sub topics and use simple labels so that the user can understand exactly what they will get when they select that topic or be able to dig deeper by using the subtopics. Also the audience specific scheme was the option for the “Login in Account” section. This would take the user to another section which is dedicated to their library accounts, and the actions they can perform in that area that is for account holders. This scheme was chosen based off the typical users who want to get to items quickly like renewing books, reserve books, downloading digital items, and submitting comments to the library. Wireframes Username Password Log In Mon - Thur: 9 am to 8:30 pm Fri: 9 am to 6pm Sat: 9 am to 1pm Sun: Closed 301 N. Sandusky Ave. Upper Sandusky, OH 43351 Directions Search Search Catalog Search Website GO breadcrumbs Logo Home About Library Events Services For Kids For Teens Resources Footer Content Hold Books Renew Books Digital Library Feedback Sta� Feedback Rooms Calendar Library Card Learning Express Book a Room Jobs Common Reader Book Club Early Learning After School TAB Newsletter Tax Forms Voter Info Ohio Library Database Virtual Librarian News Heritage Room Ellison Room Putting It All Together page 6 Wireframes (continued) Username Password Log In Mon - Thur: 9 am to 8:30 pm Fri: 9 am to 6pm Sat: 9 am to 1pm Sun: Closed 301 N. Sandusky Ave. Upper Sandusky, OH 43351 Directions Search Search Catalog Search Website GO breadcrumbs Logo Home About Library Events Services For Kids For Teens Resources Footer Hold Books Renew Books Digital Library Feedback Feedback Feedback Tell us what you think. Your Name Your email Your Feedback Submit Username Password Log In Mon - Thur: 9 am to 8:30 pm Fri: 9 am to 6pm Sat: 9 am to 1pm Sun: Closed 301 N. Sandusky Ave. Upper Sandusky, OH 43351 Directions Search Search Catalog Search Website GO breadcrumbs Logo Home About Library Events Services For Kids For Teens Resources Footer Feedback Library Card Learning Express Book a Room Jobs Common Reader Book Club Book a Room Location Room A: Large Time to 00:00 AM Date # of Attendees 10 Equipment Request TV DVD Projector Kitchenette 00:00 AM Submit Room Request