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HW Assignment 5 - User Experience Design

Possible Points Due Date
50 pts December 1st - Midnight

Overview

In this homework, you will conduct a think-aloud usability study to identify usability issues with existing web application(s) and then prototype the design of a new interface that addresses these issues.

Step 1: Develop user task

In this step, you will select a user task. You should follow the guidelines for choosing and communicating tasks given in the Week 12 Lecture. Your task may focus on a single web application (e.g., PatriotWeb) or may involve multiple applications. You should choose a task that is challenging for users. Write up a description of your task which you will give to participants. You should aim for a task that will take participants 10-15 minutes.

Step 2: Conduct think-aloud usability evaluation

In this step, you will conduct a short think-aloud usability study with two participants. As users work, you should take notes, identifying and describing any critical incidents as they occur. You are free to recruit participants from any source you'd like, including friends, family, and other students in this class.

Step 3: Identify usability issues and potential fixes

Based on the results from your two study sessions, in this step you will consolidate similar critical incidents that occurred (if any) and reflect on the underlying usability issue each embodies. For each critical incident that you identified, first reflect on if it is similar to any other critical incident. After identifying groups, reflect on what is the underlying potential cause? What caused the user to experience this critical incident? What change might help address this issue?

Step 4: Storyboard a new user experience

Based on what you learned, you will now design a new and improved user experience that supports your user task. Your user experience might take the form of a new version of the web app(s) that the user was using or might consist of an entirely new web app. Your goal in building a storyboard is describe how users will use your web app. Your storyboard should consist of key steps, illustrating how a user will act in these steps to accomplish their task. The sketch does not need to be visually detailed: either a hand-drawn sketch or simple drawing program drawn sketch is fine.

As you are building your storyboard, you should design your user experience so that it follows the principles for designing usable interfaces discussed in lecture. In particular, you should identify at least 5 aspects of your user experience design and explain how each of these follows a 1) heuristic evaluation heuristic or 2) principle for building user interfaces described in the Week 11-14 Lectures. You may only use a single heuristic or principle once.

Requirements

  • Step 1: Task design

    • Follow guidelines given in Lecture 22 to ensure that the 1) goal is specific, 2) a scenario explains the background of what users will be doing, 3) end criterion for task is communicated, and 4) participants have a max time limit.

  • Step 2: Think-aloud usability evaluation

    • Conduct a think-aloud usability evaluation in which 2 participants work for at least 10 minutes each.
    • Identify critical incidents that occurred.

  • Step 3: Usability issues

    • Identify at least 3 separate usability issues that participants experienced, describing the symptoms that occurred as well as a possible underlying cause.

  • Step 4: New User experience storyboard

    • Build a story board describing how users will work in your new web app.
    • Include at least 7 separate steps in the storyboard.
    • Annotate the storyboard with the action that the user or system takes to advance to the next step
    • Describe how the new design follows at least 5 separate heuristic evaluation heuristics or principles given in lecture, clearly identifying the heuristic or principle and briefly describing (in a few sentences) how the design follows the principle.

Submission instructions

Submit your HW through Blackboard. The HW submission should consist of a single document (in pdf or Word format) with separate sections for Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, and Step 4.

Grading Rubric

The grading for this project will be broken down as follows:

Grading Criteria

  • Task Design - 10 points (See breakdown below)
    • Specific Goal - 3 points
    • Explanatory Scenario - 3 points
    • Clear End Criterion - 3 points
    • Max Time Limit - 1 point
  • Critical Incidents from Thank-aloud Study - 10 points (See breakdown below)
    • Critical Incidents are Correctly Identified - 5 points
    • Explanations of Critical Incidents are Numbered & Communicated Clearly - 5 points
  • Usability Issues - 15 points (See breakdown below)
    • Each Usability Issue is Associated with One or More Critical Incidents - 5 points
    • Symptoms of Usability Issues are Described - 5 points
    • Potential Underlying Causes are Described - 5 points
  • New User Experience Storyboard - 15 points (See breakdown below)
    • Storyboard Includes at Least 7 Steps - 2 points
    • Storyboard is Annotated with User Actions - 3 points
    • Description of how Storyboard follows at least 5 separate Evaluation Heuristics or Principles from Lecture - 10 points (2 points each)