5 posts tagged “user”

    How many times have you suddenly "discovered" a feature about a certain software that could of possibly saved you hours of time had you known that feature before? It's all too typical to find hidden features in software these days. The problem isn't that designers intend to keep you from using such a feature, it's that the design limits them from "trying to put everything in front of the user". There's the first mistake - don't.

    There are some products that will put everything in front of the user while other products will only put a few things while hiding the rest from perspective. Users will either find themselves searching and searching for something that they need to get to or slow down the confusion and filter through all the unnecessary, even still - distracting - garbage in front of them.

    To avoid this scenario, designers can equip themselves with learning about what tasks are important to their users in addition to creating workflows. Most users can only get one thing done at a time. It's usually best to follow this idea of presenting things one at a time - wherever appropriate. For instance, instead of providing the textbox to post a new blog post, there is a Create button at the top of the page. I can see that when I need to accomplish that task, it's right there in front of me to get to it - without distractions.

    As a user we can be prone to wanting everything in front of us at every possible moment, but what we tend to forget is that we don't always need to get everything - everywhere - done at the same time. So, in supplement we complete tasks according to the context or point of focus we are in. At the same time, with respect to the designer, we need to understand that users need to be able to get out of context quickly - without seeking it out, which can lead to frustration. Simple things like - "I'm done", "Save", "Ready", "Back", "Previous" help users understand that they can navigate to other points of focus not only fast but very simply.

    Interaction design not only requires a bundle of testing but it requires a lot of personal experience. As a developer, it would be incredibly difficult to design a product without any familiarity to the end result. Without personal experience to the end product, emotional attachment will be bias in favor of ease of development. As an interaction designer it is important to remember that product experience to users, no matter what the product, count on tasks being obvious.

    Taking a quick glance at the two remotes above, what tasks can you determine will be obvious to complete. Let's suppose that the person will be watching TV in the dark. Without being able to look at the remote, will it be easy to figure out what buttons to press? The remote on the right uses differing shapes, placement and space around the buttons to distinguish tasks from one another. The user will be able to learn how to use the remote during daylight or under the light. Familiarity with the product soon begets the obvious nature to complete tasks.

    Of course, on the left, lights allow the user to see which button is which and how to complete a task like changing the channel. However, due to the number of buttons and the few spacing there is between them - the user will have to look at their remote every time they want to use it.

    Obvious interaction is not so obvious when it of course depends on perspective. Anyone on a team will have a differing perspective of obvious interaction when they are looking at the same product. However, the key point in making things obvious is about taking away prerequisites. So for instance, in the remote example lighting was taken away. Without looking at the remote which is easier? How often will the user need to relearn the interface? How long will it take to learn the interface the first time? These are a few important questions when thinking about obvious interaction.