This exam is open book / open notes. No electronic devices are permitted.

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Margaret Cooper
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SENG 310 Midterm February 2011 Total Marks: / 40 Name Solutions Student # This exam is open book / open notes. No electronic devices are permitted. Part I: Short Answer Questions ( / 12 points) 1.

(4 points) (2 points each message) Error message #1 Poor default setting default should be to save not cancel. Yes and OK would appear to do the same thing.

1 SENG 310 Midterm February 2011 Total Marks: / 40 Name Solutions Student # This exam is open book / open notes. No electronic devices are permitted. Part I: Short Answer Questions ( / 12 points) 1. Explain what is wrong with each of the following error/warning messages, and describe how they could be improved. (4 points) (2 points each message) Error message #1 Poor default setting default should be to save not cancel. Yes and OK would appear to do the same thing. Better version would have buttons Yes (default), No, and perhaps Cancel. Error message #2: Does not speak the user s language, uses complicated technical language. Uses strong words (fatal). Does not tell the user how they can fix the error or find out more information. Solution would correct these things. (Okay if they get 2 out of 3 of the above points). Page 1 of 5

2 2. A development team does a few quick sketches of their interface and then begins implementing their final application. Explain why this is a poor process, giving examples of problems the team is likely to encounter. (4 marks) Relevant points: o The process does not follow good HCI design practice because it is not iterative o The interface will probably not be usable by end users as it has not been tested by them o The team may end up wasting development effort because it is likely that they will throw away their interface or have to change it substantially o May also have to change the underlying system itself if the functionality requirements were wrong o Any other reasonable example problem is acceptable here 3. Below is an image of a light switch panel from a living room. The owner complains that he can never remember which switch controls each light. Explain which of Norman s design principles this design violates and why. Then suggest how to improve the design. (4 marks) Norman s principle of Mapping violated because it is not made obvious which switch maps to which light Better design would place the lights in an arrangement matching their physical location, or would at least provide a map and visually link each switch to the location of the lights on the map. Page 2 of 5

3 Part II: Planning for Interaction Design ( / 16 points) Imagine you are working for the Island Farms dairy. You are going to develop a computer application that will be used to monitor what is going on in the yogurt production assembly line (temperature, humidity, etc. in each part of the plant, problems with machinery, and so on). 4. a) List two types of direct users of this system. (1 point) b) Who else could be affected by the system s introduction? (3 points) Direct users need to be the people who would actually directly interact with the system. Examples include assembly line workers in charge of monitoring, and the assembly line managers. There may be other reasonable answers. Other people who could be affected (need to name at least 3 different groups of people): o Other workers at Island Farms (e.g. clerical staff, transport staff, mechanics, etc.) o Managers at the company o Owners / Shareholders o Any other group who could conceivably be affected 5. List 2 characteristics of one type of the system s end users. What does each characteristic imply about the system design? (4 points) Any reasonable answer is fine here. 1 mark for each characteristic and 1 mark for each implication. Example: Assembly line workers o May have minimal education levels (e.g. high school) system language and interface should be kept simple o May be very busy if they have to monitor many aspects of the system system should be kept simple, strong cues may be needed to notify users of potential problems Page 3 of 5

4 6. Choose one user group that you defined in question 4a. Explain in detail how you will gather requirements about the tasks and context of use for this user group. Be specific about what you will do and why. (4 marks) Almost any reasonable choice of information gathering technique(s) are acceptable here, if the reasoning behind their choice is sound. The techniques must: o Be able to gather information about both tasks and context of use (environment, etc.) o Be open-ended enough to capture information that is not expected o Be able to gather both information that users can tell you and information that users cannot tell you (because they don t think about it) o Involve the researcher spending some time at the assembly line, so they can see and experience the environment for themselves. o Be practical, in terms of resources. I.e. you should not recommend using every technique we have mentioned in class because it will take too much time. Survey / questionnaire alone is a very poor choice surveys are usually superficial and are inflexible so that you can t change the direction based on what is interesting. Interview alone is better, but may not get at aspects of the task that users can t explain or don t realize that they do. Interview is better if held in the environment of interest (the plant). Best approach is probably some combination of direct observation and interviewing. 7. You have been asked to come up with an initial interface design for this product. You have one week. Describe what prototyping method(s) you would use to demonstrate your design. Justify your choice. (4 points) Again, reasoning behind the choice is more important than the actual choice. Probably paper-prototyping, storyboards, or some similar fast screen mockup (e.g. using a computer drawing tool) is the best bet here, because it is such a short timeline (need to be fast) and it is the initial interface design (want very fast iteration, ability to throw away designs without them taking much work). Page 4 of 5

5 Part III: Design ( / 12 points) 8. Design an interface to an exercise log application for a mobile touch screen device such as an iphone. The system will track the amount of time a user spends on different types of exercise such as jogging, walking, cycling, weight training, etc. The system will enable the user to: o Enter the length and type of exercise they have done on each day, including past dates. Multiple types of exercise may be done on one day. o Edit previous entries to the log. o Set a daily or weekly exercise goal (total time). o View a historical chart showing the amount of exercise per week, classified into three levels: light, moderate, and intense. (The classification will be automatic, based on the type of activity entered e.g. walking is light, jogging is intense). The chart should compare this to the exercise goal (if set). Demonstrate your design using sketches and words. Make sure it is clear how your design works. You will be marked on the clarity of your description (6 points) as well as the usability of the design itself (6 points). Prototype (P) i.e. completeness of your description / prototype (out of 6) o Clear how the system works (what buttons do, navigation, etc.) o Prototype is complete, satisfying requirements above. This includes a history chart with goal shown, goals and actual exercise entries Usability (U) (out of 6) o There is a meaningful home screen that shows some useful data, not just a few buttons (shows something like most recent entries, how close user is to goal, or chart) o Clear design, not confusing o Organized layout o Reasonable breakdown into screens. Not too many screens. o Does not require too many clicks / steps for simple actions (efficient interaction) o There is some confirmation when items are added (the best way to do this is to show the list of entries with the new one added) o Shows context i.e. the user can always easily answer Where am I? (easiest way is to have a tab-like design with one button for each screen, current one highlighted) Page 5 of 5

Information System Architecture. Indra Tobing

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