User Interface Structure Design

Chapter 11 Slide 1 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Key Definitions

The user interface the system will interact with external entities defines how The system interfaces define how systems exchange information with other systems Slide 2 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Key Definitions

The do navigation mechanism provides the way for users to tell the system what to The input mechanism defines the way the system captures information The output mechanism the system provides information to users or other systems defines the way Slide 3 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

PRINCIPLES FOR USER INTERFACE DESIGN

Slide 4 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Principles for User Interface Design

Layout Content awareness Aesthetics User experience Consistency Minimal user effort Slide 5 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Layout Concepts

The screen is often divided into three boxes Navigation area (top) Status area (bottom) Work area (middle) Information can be presented in multiple areas Like areas should be grouped together Slide 6 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

More Layout Concepts

Areas and information should minimize user movement from one to another Ideally, areas will remain consistent in Size Shape Placement for entering data Slide 7 Reports presenting retrieved data PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Layout Example 1

Slide 8 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Layout Example 2

Slide 9 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Layout Example 3

Slide 10 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Content Awareness

All interfaces should have titles Menus should show where you are where you came from to get there It should be clear what information is within each area Fields and field labels should be selected carefully Use dates and version numbers to aid system users Slide 11 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Aesthetics

Interfaces need to be functional and inviting to use Avoid squeezing in too much, particularly for novice users Design text carefully Be aware of font and size Avoid using all capital letters Slide 12 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

More Aesthetics

Colors and patterns should be used carefully Test quality of colors by trying the interface on a black/white monitor Use colors to separate or categorize items Slide 13 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

User Experience

How easy is the program to learn?

How easy is the program to use for the expert?

Consider adding shortcuts for the expert Where there is low employee turnover, some training can lessen the impact of less precise interfaces Slide 14 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Consistency

Enables users to predict what will happen Reduces learning curve Considers items within an application and across applications Pertains to many different levels Navigation controls Terminology Report and form design Slide 15 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Minimize Effort

Three clicks rule Users should be able to go from the start or main menu of a system to the information or action they want in no more than three mouse clicks or three keystrokes Slide 16 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

USER INTERFACE DESIGN PROCESS

Slide 17 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Five Step Process

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Use Scenario Development

An outline of steps to perform work Presented in a simple narrative tied to the related DFD Document the most common cases so interface designs will be easy to use for those situations Slide 19 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Your Turn

Visit the Web site for your university and navigate through several of its Web pages.

Develop two use scenarios for it.

Slide 20 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Interface Structure Design

Window navigation diagram (WND) Shows how all screens, forms, and reports are related Shows how user moves from one to another Like a state diagram for the user interface  Boxes represent components  Arrows represent transitions  Stereotypes show interface type Slide 21 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Window Navigation Diagram Example

Slide 22 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Interface Standards Design

The basic elements that are common across individual screens, forms, and reports within the application Interface metaphor Desktop, checkbook, shopping cart Slide 23 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Interface Elements

Interface objects Interface actions Interface icons Interface templates Slide 24 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Interface Design Prototyping

A mock-up or simulation of screen, form, or report Common methods include Paper Storyboarding HTML Language Slide 25 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Storyboard Example

Slide 26 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Interface Evaluation Methods

Heuristic evaluation Compare design to checklist Walkthrough evaluation Team simulates movement through components Interactive evaluation Users try out the system Formal usability testing Expensive Slide 27 Detailed use of special lab testing PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Summary

The user interface should be designed to make the user’s work easier and more effective.

Principles for good interface design include concern for content and context for navigation through activities, aesthetic consideration, assistance for novices and experts, consistency, and minimizing user effort.

The design process focuses on user actions, diagramming the structure, setting up standards and a template, then evaluating interface designs. Slide 30 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

Expanding the Domain

Jakob Nielsen has a delightful and refreshing vision regarding user interfaces. You can check them out at:

http://www.useit.com/papers

Slide 31 PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegarden Systems Analysis and Design Copyright 2001 © John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.