Reading Seminar 2- Group Discussion

Reading seminar group discussion notes

We were interested in how we could apply the theory supplied to our project. We were thinking of having an application with a simple interface. Our methods of evaluation are yet to be determined but we were thinking of applying a heuristic approach and possibly using the walkthrough-approach. Fitts' Law is something we could consider doing, but it could be to complex and/or not applicable, so we'll see about that. 

In general we discussed the different methods of application, and we determined a user-based evaluation to be too resource-consuming for a school project. Regarding inspection methods, that is something we could consider doing, but as to how and when, that can only be determined when the design is complete. 

So in conclusion, our framework will consist of inspection methods, possible walkthrough, and most importantly using a heuristic approach.

QUESTIONS

In which industries is heuristic testing not a viable option, if there are any?

The deal with this question was to see if there were any products that were hard to test before launch, and we thought that the possible products that are affected by this are mostly hardware products such as cars, or something that takes a lot time to test. But certainly most products can't be tested to 100%, but most software products are easier to test due to the computer doing a lot of the work.

How can we assemble a feasible evaluation framework that will highlight and give us a richer understanding of the problems and flaws in our prototype?

This is something we discussed in our group discussion, so see above for answer.

What are benefits of focus groups?

Focus groups are something used by companies and institutions to evaluate products in a discussion-type setting, where often a designer is leading the discussion and the key is to obtain genuine input from users. The benefits are being able to lead the discussion, ask direct questions to participants, and it is a cheap way and qualitative method of measuring a products characteristics. If one doesn't have the time to conduct studies at a large scale, focus groups are a viable option.

Why is involving users seen as too expensive? If a product does not have users as its main focus how can it hope to succeed?

Involving users is often a hassle, partly due to secrecy, but also resource allocation. It can be expensive to involve to many users, and there is always a lot at stake. Imagine a top-secret product such as the new iPhone, it is hard to keep information as such concealed and thus a lot is at stake if involving users. Also in general, if you are to produce a lot of copies of a device, and pay participants at a large scale, it will simply cost a lot. As for the second part of the question, users are a key priority but sometimes a lot is at stake, and one important thing to note is to think that designers can also be users, and there are alternative methods of evaluation.