Interface Simulation and Analysis

1. Interface Simulation and Analysis Evaluating a cell phone interface Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

2. Interface Simulation • Flexible, versatile, extensible • Ability to implement in common web-based markup/programming languages • HTML, JavaScript, CSS • Easier and less expensive than physical mockup • Allows rapid testing of many different configurations Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

3. Simulation in Alpha • Four-Function Calculator • Kyocera 2235 Cell Phone Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

4. Interface Simulation • Challenges and complications • Coding device functionality is not difficult • Representing gfx/text interface is difficult • Representing complicated menu structure can be difficult • Comm 540 is not a programming course  • Interesting and informative experience, but … • Need for evaluation Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

5. Interface Evaluation • A look at existing technology • How well-designed is the interface? • How does it hold up under different tasks and different users? • How logical is the internal structure of the interface? Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

6. Interface Evaluation • Cell phones as an ideal technology for evaluation • Young technology • Rapidly developing technology • Overwhelmingly popular technology • Many different implementations of same basic functionality Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

7. Kyocera 2235 • Introducing … the Kyocera 2235! • The phone with the cool blue glow • One of Verizon’s popular models over the past year • Fairly representative of mid-range cell phone design • Kyocera web site provides some interesting online resources • http://www.kyocera-wireless.com/2200_phone/2235_know.htm Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

8. Research Methodology • Determine representative users • Determine representative tasks • Evaluate users on tasks • Evaluate phone’s menu structure Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

9. Participants • Participant 1 (me, baseline?) • 23 years old, user of this phone • Participant 2 • 19 years old, college freshman, user of almost identical phone • Participant 3 • 21 years old, college junior, user of same brand/similar phone • Participant 4 • 44 years old, college senior, user of very different phone • Participant 5 • 70 years old, worked in business, never used a cell phone Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

10. Tasks • Make a call • One of the most fundamental tasks on a cell phone • Look up a specific number • Also a very common task • Identify number types (cell, home, work) • Organizational functionality • Calculate 3217 x 4193 • Access non-phone-related tools • Non-mental math Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

11. Number Types • Cell Work Home Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

12. Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

13. Task Analysis • How many steps does each task require? • How long did it take each person to perform each task (or with what accuracy)? • What kinds of results should we expect? Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

14. What is a Task Step? • 1 step = progression through 1 level of the interface hierarchy • Keying in “607-592-1234” is 1 step, not 10 • Keying in “607-592-1234” + “Send” is 2 steps, not 11 Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

15. Task Steps • Make Call: 2 steps • Number Lookup: 4 steps (or 2 steps *) • Number Type ID: 1 step (n/a) • Calculate: 3 steps Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

16. Task Results Summary Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

17. Task Results Implications • Routine tasks (make call, number lookup) seem intuitive to users of other phones • Non-phone-specific task (calculator) may be difficult for users of non-Kyocera phones • Operation of cell phone largely unclear to non-cell-user • Number type iconography for “cell” and “home” are clear to all; “work” unclear to non-Kyocera users • Results suggestive, but not generalizable Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

18. Hierarchy Analysis – Card Sort! • Index cards to represent each menu item … • … randomized • Asked participants to do 4 things: • Group cards into categories • Prioritize within categories • Prioritize among categories • Name groups/categories Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

19. Card Sort Results - Summary Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

20. Things to Watch Out For • Some names modified to make purpose clearer • “Display” -> “Display Settings” • “Add New” -> “Add New Contact” • “Mystic | Ching” -> “Mystic | Ching Game” • Potential ambiguity • Some items used as category names • “Network Settings” etc. (usually settings) Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

21. More Things to Watch Out For Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

22. Kermit Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

23. Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

24. Card Sort Results –Analogous Category Names Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

25. Interesting Results • Tendency to separate “add” from “view” functions • “Add New Contact” vs. “View All Contacts” • Tendency to categorize contact list/messaging functions together • Tools and Games often separated • Unlike phone, “Personal Contacts” always before “Business Contacts” • Contacts, Messages categories invariably precede Settings, Tools/Games Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

26. Potential Problems? • Non-Kyocera users confused about “Countdown” • Everybody confused by presence of both “Message Settings” and “Messaging Settings” – peculiar redundancy in phone Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

27. Further Exploration • Classic complaint: power on/off button • Text input: order of punctuation? • . & @ , -’ : ; ? / ” ” ( ) _ • Why is comma not second? (Do we really need commas for phone text-messaging?) • Why is question mark so deep? (Aren’t questions the essence of many text messages?) Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb

28. In Conclusion • And don’t forget, more importantly than anything else, cell phones should never have subliminal messages. Communication 540 – Spring 2003 – Mike Webb