Guerrilla HCI: Using Discount Usability Engineering to Penetrate the Intimidation Barrier

When asking how many usability specialists it takes to change a light bulb, the answer might well be four: Two to conduct a field study and task analysis to determine whether people really need light, one to observe the user who actually screws in the light bulb, and one to control the video camera filming the event. It is certainly true that one should study user needs before implementing supposed solutions to those problems. Even so, the perception that anybody touching usability will come down with a bad case of budget overruns is keeping many software projects from achieving the level of usability their users deserve.

Nielsen, Jakob. Alertbox (1994). Articles>Human Computer Interaction>Methods>Usability

Task Analysis and Human-Computer Interaction: Approaches, Techniques, and Levels of Analysis    

In this paper we critically review task analysis models and techniques. These approaches to task analysis are discussed in order to develop a richer picture of human activity, while analyzing their limitations, general weaknesses, and possibilities for improvement. We consider their ability to determine the appropriate set of atomic actions in a task, their effect on workers’ motivational needs, their support of users’ cognitive and sociocultural processes, and their effectiveness in supporting interface design. We note that the major approaches have focused on very different levels of analysis, and call for greater integration of these different levels in task analysis theory.

Crystal, Abe and Beth Ellington. University of North Carolina (2004). Articles>Human Computer Interaction>Usability>Methods