Re: [IxDA Discuss] Usability is more than...
For those who include satisfaction under usability, is there anything you include beyond usability in determining whether a design is good or is usability a synonym for good design? I'll also cast my vote, two if I could, that satisfaction plays a critical role in usability. I've observed many sessions where users aren't thrilled with certain aspects and become reluctant to use it. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Reliability of affinity diagrams
The way I've built them, using the process described in Rapid Contextual Design, has been collaboratively with other designers (and sometimes other stakeholders). This incorporates a degree of reliability into the process, as the understanding of the data evolves towards a sort of consensus. I suppose you could have multiple groups build an affinity diagram off the same dataset and see how they compare if you are really concerned that the multiple groups interpret data in the same way, though I'm not sure you would want or need them to. On Thu, Feb 14, 2008 at 4:41 PM, oliver green [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Hi all, Is there any way to test the reliability of affinity diagrams? Thanks, Oliver Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Evil Datagrids! ( was RE: Fwd: Thoughts on Alan Cooper's Keynote )
It depends on the purpose of the display, but some things to watch out for: Low information density High perceptual/cognitive load to parse the data Data too detailed Sometimes (often?) an alternate view of data, e.g. a graph, conveys more information in less space in a pre-digested format that allows for patterns to be more easily detected. Alternate layouts of data can also reveal relationships between pieces of data that aren't always readily apparent in a grid layout - importance, hierarchy, groupings, etc. On Feb 13, 2008 11:45 AM, Gregor Kiddie [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Datagrids are the evil demonic spawn of feable minds and people of small souls!!! As a part-time UI dev on a Datagrid (and form) heavy Flex app, what exactly is it you guys find so objectionable about Datagrids? What other means would you use to display a potentially massive amount of data in a summarised way? Not being funny, just looking to learn something from folks with way more experience than myself! Gk. Gregor Kiddie Senior Developer INPS Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Evil Datagrids! ( was RE: Fwd: Thoughts on AlanCooper's Keynote )
For a pragmatic take on data viz that draws heavily from Tufte, check out Stephen Few's Information Dashboard Design. I've found it useful for lots of data display scanarios, regardless of whether the data were on a dashboard. He has another book too that I haven't checked out yet but am planning to. Interesting thought experiment Will - I'll have to try that next time I have a data display problem. Todd On Feb 13, 2008 4:41 PM, W Evans [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Tufte is a good place to start - Envisioning Information, Visual Display of Quantitative Data, Beautiful evidence. His examples are old, but the ideas about how to think about the problem are par none! Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Social app popularity begins to decline
I wonder about the extent to which the major social network sites realize they are in the entertainment business. As such, their stickiness is based on novelty, and has an inherent ceiling effect since there is only so much time to devote to entertainment. As the novelty wears off, and there is no answer to the now what question, people will start spending their time elsewhere. It's interesting that the sites seem to have hitched their continued novelty to the 3rd party app bandwagon. Contrast that with another major entertainment platform - game consoles - where the platform providers are also major contributors of novelty (i.e. new games) to help ensure that people stick around. There is also another alternative which Will pointed out - get out of the entertainment business and provide a different kind of value. There is a lot of power locked up in social networks, it's just not being captured right now. Facebook at least seems to realize this and thus is moving in the platform direction, it's just a matter of whether the platform is structured in a way that allows for value extraction. *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Testing for No Flash situation
http://www.browsercam.com I've not used it but it looks like it may do what you need it to do, and has a free trial for at least some of the functionality. On Jan 31, 2008 12:39 PM, Marty DeAngelo [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I'm doing some reviews of a site and I need to be able to test what happens if someone doesn't have Flash Player, has an older version or has it disabled (for whatever reason). I would love to be able to get some SnagIt's of the screens I see, but I need to find a reliable way of simulating the experience, preferably with a Firefox add-on instead of having to turn to Browsercam or a similar service. Removing and reinstalling Flash Player isn't an option, and we don't have any test machines without Flash on them. Anyone know of a plugin or method I could use? Marty DeAngelo Sr. Information Architect - D I G I T A S H E A L T H Email: mdeangel[at]digitashealth[dot]com *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Testing for No Flash situation
Aaand I need to read more carefully since you stated you want a way other than this. On Jan 31, 2008 3:38 PM, Todd Roberts [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: http://www.browsercam.com I've not used it but it looks like it may do what you need it to do, and has a free trial for at least some of the functionality. On Jan 31, 2008 12:39 PM, Marty DeAngelo [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I'm doing some reviews of a site and I need to be able to test what happens if someone doesn't have Flash Player, has an older version or has it disabled (for whatever reason). I would love to be able to get some SnagIt's of the screens I see, but I need to find a reliable way of simulating the experience, preferably with a Firefox add-on instead of having to turn to Browsercam or a similar service. Removing and reinstalling Flash Player isn't an option, and we don't have any test machines without Flash on them. Anyone know of a plugin or method I could use? Marty DeAngelo Sr. Information Architect - D I G I T A S H E A L T H Email: mdeangel[at]digitashealth[dot]com *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] SEO and Usability
To pose a tangential question, if you have a design optimized for the user but nobody comes across it, is the design successful? Assuming that SEO and user optimization won't lead to identical designs, is there a tradeoff that can be made between a design's findability (SEO) and its user optimization? The overall effects would be measurable using whatever success measures the business is interested in - conversions, stickiness, etc. *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] When/Where/How did you decide to be a designer?
My path is somewhat similar to Nick Q from earlier in the thread. Start out as pre-med Biology major Take a psych class and think it's super interesting Switch to psych major w/ a slight focus on cognition and aging, intending to end up as a geriatric psychiatrist Work in a judgment and decision making research lab (Paradox of Choice is old news) Work in a medical/healthcare decision making lab, where I taught myself PHP and built a (pretty decent for a noob) website for the program in addition to the research work Apply to med school Get into med school Realize I am more interested in creating tools to allow people to make better decisions than practice medicine Withdraw med school acceptance on last possible day... now what Enter a master's HCI program Decide that the focus on usability evaluation is less interesting to me than design (no offense intended Jared) Take the few design-y classes offered and read designer's blogs and books voraciously Graduate Work for mental health agency designing their electronic medical record and a personal health record targeted at people with severe mental illness *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Examples where personas are *not* useful
I think there is a danger though that many people/groups are using personas that are poorly constructed because they seem so easy in concept but are not as easy to create/use well. The scenario Alan provides is just one of many misuses. This relates to a comment someone made earlier, that personas are better than nothing. In the case where a persona is poorly constructed or misinterpreted, it may be worse than nothing. (The better than nothing sentiment also ignores the opportunity cost of personas but I don't know how one would estimate that.) On Nov 16, 2007 12:43 AM, Jim Drew [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: On Nov 13, 2007, at 1:24 PM, Alan Cooper wrote: The place where personas would not be useful is where the persona is elaborate camouflage for a designer creating self-referential solutions. In other words, personas help designers design for users. When personas are used to help designers design for themselves instead, that would be bad. That's where poorly created personas aren't useful, not where personas in general aren't useful, no? -- Jim Drew Seattle, WA *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
