SIMS 213: User Interface Design & Development Marti Hearst Tues, Jan 17, 2006

Alternative names for this course User Interface Design, Prototyping, and Evaluation Human-computer Interaction

Why is HCI Important? It can determine who becomes president of the USA!

A Related Problem Evaluate the figures in a research paper

A Related Problem What’s wrong with this table? Redesign: add space between the columns.

Palm Beach Phone Book (a joke)

Problems The instructions are misleading –Use of the phrase “vote for group” is misleading Should say “vote for one” –Instructions only on lefthand side Implies righthand side is different The interleaving of holes is misleading –Only the president page has this layout –Other offices are one per page (with appropriate instructions) The sample ballot looks different –No holes – the source of the problem –Did not lead to complaints

Other Issues People vote infrequently –Have to re-learn the system each time Rushed, uncomfortable circumstances Palm Beach Demographics: Elderly

How to know if it will work? Test out the design! –Have real people use it! –Try to match the appropriate demographics –Even a few tries can turn up major problems

An Informal Usability Study Barbara Jacobowitz, CHI-WEB, Nov 10, 2000 “I was able to print 10 different sample ballots from various sources. Last night, I ran them all by my mother (81) and a group of her friends (70-something to 80's). All are bright, literate, and none are legally blind. They did reasonably well on 9 of the ballots. On one, 6 marked it incorrectly and didn't realize it, 2 did it correctly, but very slowly, and 2 had to ask me what to do. Guess which ballot it was?.”

More Formal Refs Electronic voting system usability issues BB Bederson, B Lee, RM Sherman, PS Herrnson, RG., CHI The Unconsidered Ballot : How Design Affects Voting Behavior. SK Roth - Visible Language, eric.ed.gov Visible Language, 28, Disenfranchised by Design : Voting Systems and the Election Process, SK Roth - Information Design Journal, Misvotes, undervotes and overvotes: The 2000 presidential election in Florida,- A Agresti, B Presnell - Statistical Science, 2002 – Law and Data: The Butterfly Ballot Episode, HE Brady, MC Herron, WR Mebane, JS Sekhon, KW … - PS: Political Science and Politics,

Josephine Scott, CHI-Web, Nov 10, 2000 “I spent fifteen years making the voting process accessible and usable for all… Usability standards must be higher for voting than any other function for the most obvious reasons. Users--in this case, voters, share the need for the clearest of design and instruction to cast a vote properly. Many do not speak English well, or see well, or are able to decipher difficult design cognitively, but they may be able to make as informed a choice for president as our snobbish "experts" who don't see a problem. …

Josephine Scott, CHI-Web, Nov 10, 2000 “Bad design like this exacerbates the problem. The glib notion that "there is no problem because you can see the arrow" or that voters who made this mistake must be stupid shows a lack of compassion. Let me suggest that it is simple compassion for the user that informs usability expertise. …”

Blaming the User A huge step backwards: –Cokie Roberts (appearing on David Letterman) “stupidity is not an excuse” Well-designed user interfaces do not present situations in which it is easy to make mistakes Alan Cooper’s mantra: software should not humiliate the user In this class we assume: if the user does something “wrong,” it is usually the fault of the system designer

Administrivia Course TA: –Andrew Fiore Please sign up on list –Use my.sims.berkeley.edu – with the one line Subscribe is213 –Note that you can only to the list successfully from the address(es) you sign up with. Office hours: –Will be twice a week –No need to make appointments, just come –I will the class if I can’t be there

Readings Do indicated readings before the class Required: –Course Reader University Copy 2425 Channing Way, Berkeley, CA –Jakob Nielsen’s Usability Engineering –Johnson’s GUI Bloopers –Norman’s The Design of Everyday Things –Cooper’s The Inmates are Running the Asylum

Course Schedule (Tentative) Intro to HCI UI Design Cycle, User-Centered Design Goals, Personas, Task Analysis, Scenarios Prototyping Design Techniques Heuristic Evaluation Cognitive Issues and Human Abilities Modes Midterm Usability Testing Research Topics

WARNING: THIS CLASS IS A LOT OF WORK!!!!

Project / Assignments Schedule Dates shown are the week the item is due Project proposals (3 rd week) Project personas and goals (5 th week) Scenarios, tasks, and initial sketches (6 th week) Lo-Fi prototype and test (8 th week) Individual Assignment (9 th week) Midterm (10 th week) [Spring Break] First interactive prototype (11 th week) Class presentation (11 th week) Project heuristic evaluation (12th week) Second interactive prototype (13th week) Usability test (15 th week) Class presentations (15 th week) Third prototype and project writeup (Finals week)

Administrivia Grading: –Individual assignment: 20% –Midterm: 30% –Project: Many milestone assignments – required, must be done on time, but not graded – will receive comments/feedback instead. Final project gets a grade at the end – counts 50%

Assignment Start thinking about projects and team members Look at previous years’ projects – – – –