Practical Usability Engineering

Motorola RAZR
 Usability

 Usability is most easily

defined as “ease of
use.”
 If a user has a problem
using the device, it’s a
usability problem.
 To summarize…
Users who encounter
difficulty are not
“stupid”—bad design
is.
Types of Usability Problems
Product does not match job or task
Product does not work as expected
Poor mapping of controls
Function not evident
Requires the use of memory
Inconsistent screens, messages, and
terminology
Similar terms
Cluttered design
Poor feedback
Conflicting feedback
Help is not helpful
How do we integrate usability into
products and process?
 Think of the user

How the
How the How the Project How the How the
analyst Programmer
Business
wrote
customer Leader understood
designed it it consultant
explained itit
described it

How the Project

What How the How it wasWhat the customer
was documented
operationscustomer wassupported really needed
installed
Nielsen’s Usability Heuristics
 Simple and natural dialogue
 Speak the user’s language
 Minimize user’s memory load
 Be consistent
 Provide feedback
 Provide clearly marked exits
 Provide shortcuts
 Good error messages
 Prevent errors
Site geared toward adults
www.dti.gov.ph
Site geared toward children
Simple and natural dialogue
Speak the user’s language
Minimize user’s memory load
Provide feedback
Consistency
Provide good error messages