| Da Vinci Usability's
User Centered Design Methodology
The Da Vinci Usability User Centered Design methodology is a process
for incorporating usability engineering into the systems and web site
design process. Usability engineering, also known as usability, is
the process of making systems easy to use, and ensuring that they
meet the needs of their users. There are three principles of usability
that are essential to designing a successful user interface:
- Understand your users. To
design an effective user interface, you must know who will be
using your system, what they will use it for, and how they will
use it.
- Involve end users in the user interface
design process. It is impossible for system developers
to accurately anticipate how an end user will use a system. It
is critical that end users themselves help to design the system.
- Follow industry-wide user interface
standards. Consistency in the look and feel of a user interface
is essential, and standards provide a way of maintaining consistency.
Da Vinci Usability's user centered design methodology takes a structured
approach to incorporating these principles into the system design
process. It is intended to help project teams plan and execute the
appropriate user centered design tasks to ensure that systems are
easy to use and meet the needs of their users. UCD Methodology Overview
The following is a brief description of each of the tasks in our User
Centered Design (UCD) methodology:
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Step 1 Perform a User Analysis
The purpose of a user analysis is to understand, at a high level,
who will be using a user interface and how they will use it. Da
Vinci Usability uses user profiling, interviews, focus groups
and contextual analysis to complete the user analysis.
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Step 2 Perform a Task Analysis
The purpose of the task analysis is to understand in detail what
tasks users want to accomplish within a user interface, and how
they want to accomplish them. Da Vinci Usability works with users
to create current and future state task flows that capture detailed
user needs.
- Step 3 Design the Information
Architecture The Information Architecture is a high-level
map of how information will be organized in a user interface.
In many ways, the correct design of the information architecture
is key to a successful user interface, as it provides a strong
foundation on which to build the detailed user interface screens.
- Step 4 Create an Initial User
Interface Design Once the information architecture has
been completed, detailed screens can be designed. Working the
the information that has been collected in the previous steps,
and where possible working directly with users, we will complete
a set of screen mockups or storyboards. The screen designs often
start as rough mockups, and are transferred into Visio or HTML
renderings as the are refined.
- Step 5 Refine the User Interface
Design and Create a UI Prototype As the screens reviewed
and redesigned, they are transferred into an on-line prototype.
A user interface prototype helps users, the business team and
the systems team visualize what how the system or site will look
and feel. A prototype is also essential for conducting usability
testing.
- Step 6 Perform Usability Testing
In usability testing, prospective users of a system or
a site are asked to use a prototype of the system or site to perform
realistic tasks. By observing users while they are trying to use
the screens, any usability flaws can be quickly uncovered and
fixed.
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Step 7 Write a User Interface Specification
After the user interface has been designed, the details of each
screen design are documented in a user interface specification.
- Step 8 Write a User Interface
Style Guide The purpose of a user interface style guide
is to ensure that all related sites or applications have a similar
look and feel. The style guide captures the high-level standards
and guidelines behind a UI design, and provide a library of user
interface standards and conventions to be drawn upon in interface
design.
Tailoring the Methodology
This UCD methodology has been designed to be flexible, so that it
can be adapted to the needs of system or web site. Some projects may
benefit from completing all of the User Centered Design tasks; others
may only need to complete a few tasks. The criteria for determining
which UCD steps to use include:
- Size of the user interfaceThe
more user interface screens a system has, the more important it
is to use the complete User Centered Design methodology to ensure
consistency between screen and ease of use of the whole system.
- Complexity of the user interfaceThe
more complex a user interface is, and the more complex the workflows
that the system will automate, the more important it is to use
the complete User Centered Design methodology.
- Number of users The larger
the number of users, the more important it is to use the complete
User Centered Design methodology.
When should User Centered Design be done?
The following are guidelines for when to conduct each User Centered
Design task:
- User AnalysisA user analysis
is generally conducted before project planning has begun, or during
the early stages of a project. In cases where no formal project
has been established, a user analysis may be conducted before
project planning to provide business management with an understanding
of the workplace that can help to determine if there is a need
for systems development. For projects that are just beginning,
the workplace evaluation may be used to help define the project
scope and determine the project approach.
- Task AnalysisTask analysis
should be conducted during project planning to help define the
project scope and determine the project approach. However, the
task analysis cannot be conducted until after the business objectives
have been defined. The task analysis may be continued through
the early stages of requirements analysis.
- Information Architecture and
Initial User Interface DesignThe information architecture
and initial user interface design can be completed at a number
of different points in the design process:
- An information architecture and initial user interface
design may be completed before project planning has begun.
It this case, it can be used to define business objectives,
and to help business management visualize how new or upgraded
systems would impact the business.
- An information architecture and initial user interface
design may be completed at the beginning of requirements analysis,
used as a tool to define business requirements.
- An information architecture and initial user interface
design can be done at the beginning of system design, used
to design a user interface based on existing business requirements.
- UI PrototypeThe UI design
is generally refined and the UI prototype completed as requirements
definition is finished and system design begins.
- Usability TestingUsability
testing can be conducted as soon as a working UI mockup or prototype
is available. The earlier usability testing is done, the more
effectively problems found in the testing can be addressed.
- User Interface SpecificationGenerally,
the UI specification is a living document that is begun as soon
as the first UI concepts are created, and is completed once the
final UI design is finished.
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