Chapter 12/14

Chapter 12 talks about the importance of evaluation. It also states how important it is to get as much evaluations because it is the basis of what the next upgraded or even different design will be. It is also important to understand how to interpret evaluate, especially ones that are more or less based on a emotions. Even though they may seem very bias, they are just as important as well. it is important to also use one of the three approaches, the usability testing, the analytical evaluate, and the field study.

Chapter 14 talks more in depth about the different types of evaluation. How they work and how to apply them to the design eval.

I think that these are key to understanding how to improve your future designs, it helps especially with bias. Because you may make a project bias toward a certain group, and be totally unaware that you were being bias. It also helps you take constructive criticism better as well.

Chapter 12 and 14

chapter 12 talks about the importance on evaluation all contexts of your design. As we learned in class, evaluation should be an iterative process, I truely believe that this is true and also very important to practice when you are designing an idea. you’re design should be evaluated to the point where the form, function, and aesthetic of the design are perfected to fit the target market.

chapter 14 talks about different ways of evaluatings designs. Giveing the design to users so that they can actually use it and give feedback is a great way to test your product for usability. Both chapters are important to understand and keep in mind when going through the design process.

 

Thanks for the great summer.

 

PEACE 

Chapter 12 and 14

Chapter 12 describes why evaluation is important, what we should evaluate, where to evaluate, and when to evaluate. It also teaches different approaches and methods that can be used. It is important to evaluate so that we know if our users can use and enjoy our product. It also helps to evaluate because we can find problems earlier in the production process, making them easier to fix. Different companies that have diverse user groups and motivations will ask very different questions when deciding what to evaluate. Chapter 12 teaches us that “aesthetic, emotional, engaging, and motivating qualities are important too” (588). Where and when we evaluate depends on what we’re designing. We learned there are three approaches: Usability testing is important near the end of the design process, making sure there’s different structure and it responds well to the user. Field studies are carried out in more natural environments to see how people would naturally use the product. Analytical evaluation involves heuristic evaluation where knowledge of users is implied and cognitive walkthroughs try to simulate how the user would fix the problem. You can also combine those approaches.

Chapter 14 focuses on usability testing and field studies. Usability testing wants to make your product usable. We are given an example of how the large website, MedlinePlus, uses usability testing and heuristic evaluation. The designer will sometimes make hypotheses about how they think the user will actually user the interface. Field studies are not conducted in controlled environments and want to see how the user will user their product in their daily lives. They can take anywhere from a short time to a very long period of time. Case study examples are also given in the chapter.

I think that it is very important to evaluate the product we’re designing because it gives us a change to step back and see things we may not have realized. Watching the user actually interact with the product will give you insights that you may not have thought of otherwise. I feel like breaking the process down into steps makes it a lot easier to organize your plans. When evaluating the Medline example, they had specific goals and questions. I think there goal of trying to figure out usability problems was a very good one because they can see what problems the user initially turns into, and then fixe those problems. When selecting participants, they knew they wanted people with a medical background, so I think it was a good idea to place recruitment posters in the reception area of two medical practices. They also could have put one in their break room. Developing tasks and performing the tests are also important. It’s smart they chose to read off scripts in the beginning so that all participants would know the same information. Evaluation is definitely a very important part of design, and following the steps allows us to organize our thoughts and game plan.

Another way to look at HCI 2020

I was looking at a response to what a few of you were writing and I came across the following article: http://www.intel.com/research/exploratory/papr/next10.htm. It is relatively short and presents another way that we can look at how technology is changing by looking at the emerging areas that are beginning to use technology and what are some of the consequences involved?

Take a look at the article (it’s rather short) and let me know how you feel about the article. How does it differ or match the vision of the Being Human reading? What are some of the differences from the way that we usually describe computing that the article talks about?

Reading Summary

This reading was very interesting as it described how are lives are and what they will become in the future using technology. It specifically talked about the year 2020 and how we will live with technology. It made some very interesting points about how we are becoming less social and more technologically dependant. Over the past few years HCI has become a very important aspect of how technology is being developed. With the advance of technology and the constant flow of information at our finger tips it has changed how we all interact. For instance, E-mail has become the main form of communication for business, students and personal use. Additionally, cell phones allows us to always be connected even on the go. The advance in technology has changed the way we even interact with computer. We interacted with the first DOS computers using keyboard commands and no mouse. Now we have a mouse and touch screens. Another important advancement is the Nintendo Wii controller. This new controller changed the way we interact with computer games. This will soon transfer over to computer use. This all goes back to HCI and increasing user friendliness. One of the new advancements that the book talked about was OLED’s Organic light emitting diodes. One of the great things about OLED’s that they are based from organic material and use less energy then LED’s which is what monitors are currently using. Going green is the new wave of the feature. Many different types of companies including non-technology related companies are marketing green. After reading about the different types of touchingly that is being developed and already in practice it makes one think twice about how much information is being published about oneself. The new technology surrounding RFID is scary because everything about you will be stored on a tiny microchip. This chip can be scanned and everything about ones life will be accessible.

Being Human Summary and Response

First off, I would like to say that this was a very interesting reading and gave some great insight as to what the future of HCI might bring to our world.

How will HCI affect us in the future? This is a very difficult question to answer mainly because nobody knows the answer. There are so many things that can happen over the next couple of years and trying to forecast exactly what changes are in store for us 12 years down the road is a difficult task. This reading discusses many different aspects as to what us as individuals can expect and also how our world will adapt and react to the increasing amount of new, amazing technologies. Our relationship with technology has been great in the past because it has enabled us to become more efficient, save many resources, and also make our lives easier and more manageable. Unfortunately, it does have some disadvantages such as breakdowns, loss of physical interaction with other individuals, and many frustrating times. Thankfully, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages and we have been able to implement various forms of technology into our lives.

The reading can be broken down into separate sections, including how technology has evolved over the past couple of decades, and how it has affected us. Another area that was discussed is how humans are becoming more personally involved with emerging technologies, such as the implementation of HCI and its fast growth. The other areas discuss in detail HCI, its significance in our world today, as well as some insight as to where we can expect to see dramatic changes in the years to come. Ever since the introduction to the internet, our lives have been altered drastically, mostly for the good. We have become extremely dependent on email, our main source of electronic communication because it has enabled us to communicate with others all over the world instantly. Consequently, our lives have become so involved with computers, and mainly the internet, gaining knowledge on everything has become virtually impossible. There is simply just so much information to be learned as one can pretty much find anything they want on the internet.

One of the most interesting topics that was discussed was the change over from mouse/keyboard to multi-touch devices. We can see this change happening with the creation of hand held touch devices such as the iPhone, iPOD, Microsoft Surface, touch sensitive TV’s, etc. It has clearly been an impressive couple of years as far as input devices are concerned. One of the most fascinating new devices are OLED displays which are in some cases as thin as a credit card. This is amazing to think that something 0.3mm thick can produce an unbelievably clear image and also consume much less power than a standard LCD monitor, which are considered the standard today. One can only dream of where we will be in 10 years if there are monitors as thin as credit cards getting ready to go into production.

The design and use of robotics is also rapidly growing as well. Since the focus date of this reading is around 2020, many of the statements mentioned will most likely change because it is simply too far down the road to predict where technology will be then. However, it can definitely be argued that it will have a dramatic effect on everyone’s life, no matter who you are. The reading states that by 2020, every individual will have and/or use some sort of technological device from day to day. This isn’t that astounding because almost everyone today has a cell phone or some sort of digital music player.

What might happen is completely up to the designers that are creating these devices. The possibilities are endless and we will definitely be amazed looking back when we are in the year 2020. We might not even be making our own decisions, but instead, letting a computer calculate the best decision for us. It is kind of scary to think but in a way it is really cool. Something like placing an order for food products might be as simple as walking up to your fridge as pressing a few buttons, without having to actually make a trip to the supermarket!

Our basic human value must be taken into consideration when designing new devices and implementing them because devices that are created solely for the purpose of being cool will not succeed. We need to make relevant decisions as to what we need and what we value the most. There are a few stages in which the author discusses which are very similar to the design process we have been talking about in class. These stages include understanding, creating, evaluating, designing, and learning or studying. As all of these points must be touched upon, there are certainly ones that are more important than others. Those being understanding and evaluating. These are the most important because if we don’t understand our problem or where we ultimately want to be, creating a technology product or service is pointless. Also, evaluating is a very difficult and time consuming process which must be taken seriously in order to be successful.

Overall, this reading was extremely insightful and is easy to relate to from an HCI perspective. It is interesting to see individuals views as to what the future has in store for us. Of course this was only written by one person and many of the statements can be debated, it was a great overview of where we came from and what we should be expecting as to how technology will be effecting us in the years to come, whether we like it or not. So get ready for a very interesting next couple of years; who knows what will happen by 2020?

When I think about how all of this new technology will affect us in the future I have mixed feelings. I am extremely excited that these new innovations will enable us to be more efficient and effective with what we need to do as well as how interesting and exciting they are. Since I am so interested in technology, it is really cool to surf the web and watch how companies go through the design process; even though the public isn’t exposed to nearly half of what is actually involved. On the other end of the spectrum, it is a little scary to think how we will be constantly watched like a hawk, whether it is through recorded phone conversations or from a security camera. Soon enough, there will be eyes on us at all times and microscopic microphones recording everything we talk about. When will we have privacy? We might never have privacy, but the important thing to realize is that most of these surveillance devices are supposed to help us rather than hinder us.

In addition, when thinking about the creation of all of these new robots that are supposed to be able to do everything a human does, it also is a little scary. Will we be out of jobs by the year 2050? Will a robot and computer be able to make better decisions than me? Just recently I read online that a robot performed brain surgery on a woman in Canada that had a brain tumor. It seems like pretty soon robots will be performing all of the surgeries and surgeons will be essentially out of business. Now, it will save people thousands of dollars, and human error will be reduced to virtually nothing, but is this what we really want to happen?

All of these situations are things to take into consideration when we look at the rapidly growing pace of technology and the future that is in store for us. Yes, it will definitely benefit us in many ways, but will it also hinder us more than we are anticipating? Nobody really knows right now as this questions is unanswerable, so we will just have to go along for the ride and see where it takes us.

I certainly hope that machines don’t make people obsessive over technology, and that we will all have a chance to control the technology and use it to our benefit, and not the other way around.

reading summary

Not only has access to computers vastly increased, but the ways we interact with them and materials used for computer devices have changed too. It hard to believe that in the year 2020 the technology will be completely different from now, but given the way technology has been changing that idea isn’t that far fetched. The binding of computing to our daily activities will in turn affect our values, goals and aspirations. Are all these advances in technology really helpful? i thought this part of the reading was extremely interesting, I  think that technology sometimes causes extra stress and complicates simple tasks.  For example i use my cell phone everyday and wouldn’t even know how to get hold of some people if i didn’t have it but there are times when i wish i didn’t have it. I sometimes feel its more like an electronic lease that i can’t escape without pissing other people off and that gets frustrating.   How we define and think about our relationships with computers is radically changing. Some will be within the remit of Human-Computer Interaction to address and others will not. HCI needs to move forward from concerns about the production/processing of information and more  toward the design and evaluation of systems that enable human values to be achieved.  I think the book is right when it was talking about interaction design and how user experience goals can help lead to the design of good interactive products. Understanding the intended audience of  any  design  is a must . At first it seem pretty simple to understand the user but as we started talking about things in class and working in groups on designing things. I realized its a lot harder than i expected it to be . i guess i just never thought about why things are designed the way they are and i think HCI is leading the way in how technology and how it  will be presented in society . the relationship between technology and us is one of love and hate , but its not going to go away so i guess we will just have to make it work

Chapter 11 Summary and Review

Chapter 11 continues to cover design, and introduces prototyping and the construction of prototypes. The chapter begins by explaining what a prototype is and why they are used. Later, prototypes are broken up into two different categories and explained. These include both low-fidelity and high-fidelity prototypes.

Low-fidelity prototypes are very basic. They are usually relatively cheap to create and take little time and effort to do some. Some examples of low-fidelity prototypes include storyboarding, sketching, prototyping with index cards, and the Wizard of Oz approach. Using these methods allows for further exploration in the initial stages of development. High-fidelity prototypes are generally more expensive, time consuming, and closer to the finished product. Because of this, they are typically created after low-fidelity prototypes have been created and used.

Some other types of prototypes include horizontal and vertical prototyping, evolutionary prototyping, and throwaway prototyping. Horizontal prototyping provides a variety of functions with little detail, whereas, vertical prototyping has a great deal of detail only for a few functions. Evolutionary prototyping involves taking a prototype and changing it until it eventually becomes the final product. Throwaway prototyping, as the name implies, involves throwing away prototypes and building the final product from the beginning.

The rest of the chapter deals with methods for implementing prototypes and ideas in order to achieve the final product. In doing this, requirements are implemented first, and then the design is created. Using interface metaphors is a popular methods that is used in order to help users relate the a new product. Determining the best interaction type for introducing a new system can be very valuable for research and development. Scenarios are also covered in order to capture either the most positive or negative aspects of a proposed design.

I greatly enjoyed reading this chapter because it focuses on the “hands-on” aspect of design, which I find to be most interesting. Learning about the different types of prototypes available and the applications that they are used in is fascinating to me. What I found to be most interesting was the difference between the high and low-fidelity prototypes. Before reading this chapter, I felt like it would be difficult in certain circumstances to determine how high or low a designer should go in various stages of development. I suppose it depends of the circumstances, but this chapter was able to answer a great deal of my questions are far as to when and why to prototype and what manner to go about when doing so.

Low and High Fidelity Prototypes

This chapter was mainly about prototyping and how there are many different ways of doing it. Prototyping in itself is a very useful way of getting idea across to not only the stakeholders that are thinking about investing in your project, but it is also a good way to get the idea out to your users. They also test if the actual project would be a feasible one, rather than putting to much money into just making it and it doesn’t even work! There are two different types of prototyping, there are low-fidelity and high fidelity. Low fidelity, is mainly just storyboards, draw outs, or rather crude representations of the final product that is in mind. High fidelity, mainly uses materials that will more than likely be a part of the actual final product.  This is the more expensive approach and is not usually started until most of the kinks are worked out with the product as well as there is  agreement to actually start producing the product.

I think that these are a essential part of the design process, especially for me because i would like to get into video game design and production. So I will have to make or look at many storyboards as well as come up with very basic game play to acutally see how it could turn out. It is also important because this would be the perfect time for me to test it with random users to see if there are any major or noticable bugs that may be in the game as well!

Summary of Chapters 9 and 10

As we have discussed in class, when designing a product or service specifically for the user, it is extremely important to probe them with numerous questions and to make sure you completely understand their requirements, needs, wants, and desires. One of the most important things to remember is that you, the developer have much more knowledge about emerging technologies that can benefit them significantly. That is why you need to focus on asking them very specific questions as to what they ultimately want to accomplish. When focusing a product using a User-Centric design, it is important that all areas of the design process are covered completely. This is why market research is such an imperative part of the process because the more you know about your user, the better the finished product or service will be.

Also, understanding that iteration is necessary in any design application is extremely important as well, because the first design will never be the best design. By creating a starting point, you can then consult the user to ask them if they agree with what you are doing. Going back and making alterations will be an ongoing process, until the best design is agreed upon, which usually occurs after many sketches and meetings with the end user. Also, by creating surveys and other forms of user feedback are other great ways to gain knowledge of what your target market is looking for. Since the process of design is an intensive and time-consuming process, structuring the process by using models to make the operation flow smoothly is an extremely beneficial tool.

In Chapter 10, it is further discussed how important the user is in the process of design. When the user comes to a developer and provides them with wants, needs, and desires, the goal of the developer is to address each and every one of those requirements in full detail. If you create a product or service that doesn’t satisfy the user, it is pointless, and a waste of time and money. This is why market research is so important because you can never have too much information about your user and target market. When structuring the design, it is necessary to implement all of the gathered data from your user. Each design will incorporate functional data, user characteristics data, environmental data, and usability requirements and goals. As we discussed in class, there are many ways to gather this data, but it may be a time-intensive process. Also, we need to take into account that some of the data may be inaccurate, because some users receiving the surveys, questionnaires, etc may not answer the questions honestly or completely. Although this is discouraging, it does happen and needs to be accounted for when designing the product or service.

Since these two chapters focuses so much on the user, it is important to remember that you cannot focus on solely one group or market when designing the product. There are many factors effecting the ultimate design and use that need to be considered. Like the previous reading, it is interesting to see how current products and services were designed to best fit the requirements and application. I enjoyed reading it because it was extremely detailed and gave us good insight as to how extremely important the user is when designing a product.