Tracing Visual Narratives: User-Testing Methodology for Developing a Multimedia Museum Show    

As a cognitive framework for making meaning of the world, the narrative provides a powerful form for structuring information, and has been adopted as a useful design framework for many communicative forms, including interactive media. This paper reports on the use of visual narrative for user-testing an interactive museum show. The viewers’ perceived narratives of a sequence of graphics from a show on brain science were compared to the designers’ intended narrative. Mapping the audience’s reading of the visual arguments proved a useful testing structure in developing the show, with color and pattern tracking proving especially critical when viewers experienced novel or abstract information.

Kim, Loel. Technical Communication Online (2005). Articles>Usability>Testing>Visual Rhetoric

Training Teachers and Serving Students: Applying Usability Testing in Writing Programs    

Teachers often test course materials by using them in class. Usability testing provides an alternative: teachers receive student feedback and revise materials before teaching a class. Case studies based on interviews and observations with two teaching assistants who usability tested materials before teaching introductory technical writing demonstrate how usability testing can make novice teachers more confident about and help them predict student experiences with their assignments. By helping to train teachers, usability testing can also help better serve students.

McGovern, Heather. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2007). Articles>Education>Usability>Testing

UniFace: Internet-Based Software for Remote Usability Testing of Icons

The Graphical User Interface (GUI) of software usually consists of huge number of icons. Though the intention is to improve the usability of software, not all interface designers are able to test and evaluate the comprehensibility of icons. Increasing exposure to unevaluated icons causes cognitive fatigue to users and slows down the intuitive learning. Users from diverse geographic locations, cultures and religions are very likely to interpret and understand these icons differently. As software products are designed to address universal needs, testing and evaluation of GUI across the globe or at least, wherever the product is likely to be used becomes important. Creation of dedicated usability labs in various locations for usability testing is not a viable proposition. A software tool named 'UniFace' for remote usability testing of icons is designed capitalizing on far-reaching capability of Internet. UniFace extends the usability lab onto the desktop of every user.

Katre, Dinesh S. HCeye (2004). Articles>Usability>Testing>Online

Usability

Usability Leistungsspektrum Die ausgefeiltesten digitalen Strategien scheitern oft am Einfachsten: der Usability. Doch in einer Zeit, in der Ihr Wettbewerber nur einen Mausklick weit entfernt ist, stellt Usability eine der größten Herausforderungen im Bereich der digitalen Kommunikation dar.

Schröter, Holger. Digital District GmbH (2005). (German) Articles>Usability>Testing>Methods

Usability Metrics

First, when you are conducting a usability test, it is important to understand exactly what data you should be collecting. You should not run a test without first deciding on what data is required to address your business challenges. Plan ahead! Second, in a usability test, you don't just watch users. You must collect data that reflects how customers actually use your products and services. This is easier said than done.

Rhodes, John S. WebWord (2001). Articles>Usability>Methods>Testing

Usability Myths Need Reality Checks

Not so very long ago, it was agreed that five to eight users was enough for a good usability test. Somehow, this idea achieved mythic status. We believed it. We preached it to everyone who would listen. It survived in areas where it had been disproved, and was introduced into new situations where it didn't even apply. What gives some ideas such staying power? What did the five-user myth accomplish? It reconciled test plans with testing budgets! If five to eight users are enough, then it's safe to act on the results of a test series with only five to eight users.

Schroeder, Will. User Interface Engineering (2002). Articles>Usability>Methods>Testing

Usability Statements of Work

Repeated (iterative) usability testing finds problems sooner, and usability engineering helps agencies save money. With those ideas in mind, it makes sense that agencies would want to submit their sites and other products to usability testing; doing so is an effective use of taxpayer money, especially with regard to performance measures.

Martin, Beth A. Usability.gov (2006). Articles>Usability>Testing

Usability Studies of WWW Sites: Heuristic Evaluation vs. Laboratory Testing  

Describes the strength and weaknesses of two usability assessment methods frequently applied to web sites to illustrate issues of special interest to designers.

Kantner, Laurie and Stephanie L. Rosenbaum. Tec-Ed, Inc. (1997). Articles>Usability>Testing>Methods

Usability Techniques: Analyzing and Reporting Usability Data

There is an ongoing discussion in usability circles about the importance of formal reports that document the results of usability testing. I think that each usability evaluation should have a formal report that provides some context for the problems. Not all problems can be addressed immediately and memories fade. Usability reports are also important for showing what a usability specialist has done. They can also be used to determine some metrics, such as the number of problems addressed by development or the number of problems that occurred during successive prototypes or versions of a product.

Wilson, Chauncey E. STC Usability SIG (1997). Articles>Usability>Testing>Methods

Usability Test Data

People often throw around the terms 'objective' and 'subjective' when talking about the results of a usability test. These terms are frequently equated with the statistical terms 'quantitative' and 'qualitative'. The analogy is false, and this misunderstanding can have consequences for the interpretations and conclusions of usability tests.

Hodgson, Philip. Userfocus (2003). Articles>Usability>Testing>Methods

Usability Testing and Editing Online Documentation: Where's the Connection?  

Through the completion of an independently researched and developed academic proposal, this author demonstrated the need for change in academic instruction and the need for working technical communicators to extend their skills by recognizing the connection between usability testing and editing online documentation. In short, the underlying connection between these two processes is that, in order to edit online documentation effectively, the editor must know the basics of usability. This paper discusses the background, the methodology, the results, and the implementation of this research project.

Giordano, Jennifer L. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Documentation>Usability>Testing

Usability Testing and Research

The more intuitive a product's interfaces and procedures become, the more usable it becomes. Thus, the less formal documentation it requires. To do our part, we can strive to reduce the number of words a customer needs to read. Focusing on clarity and concision, we can take pride that of the words that remain, every word will count. Working with usability experts, our fellow customer advocates, we can transmute unwieldy products into easily used ones. To me, that's a compelling reason to remain a technical communicator, regardless of why we became one.

Harvey, Michael. Carolina Communique (2005). Articles>Usability>Testing

Review: Usability Testing and Research  

If you want a usability reference that includes research, theory, tools, and practical applications within one cover, Usability Testing and Research is the book for you.

Williams, Jocelyn Crump. Technical Communication Online (2002). Articles>Reviews>Usability>Testing

Usability Testing Best Practices: An Interview with Rolf Molich

If you’ve done any usability testing, design evaluations, or heuristic inspections, then you’ve been affected by Rolf Molich's pioneering work.

Perfetti, Christine. User Interface Engineering (2003). Articles>Usability>Methods>Testing

Usability Testing in Academic Programs: A Report from Five Universities  

This paper reports on usability testing within five leading academic programs in technical communication. The authors give some background on usability testing at their respective institutions, describe their facilities, and briefly relate how their programs in technical communication incorporate usability testing into teaching, research, and consulting.

Dayton, David, Susan Feinberg, Roger Grice, Tharon Howard and Judith A. Ramey. STC Proceedings (2005). Articles>Usability>Testing

Usability Testing in Practice

If you're interested in Web site usability then it's likely that you've come across the concept of professional usability testing. It's also likely that the practicalities of testing have remained a mystery, because very little has been published about it on the Web - until now.

Starling, Andrew. WDVL (2002). Articles>Usability>Testing

Usability Testing of Mobile Applications: A Comparison between Laboratory and Field Testing    

Usability testing a mobile application in the laboratory seems to be sufficient when studying user interface and navigation issues. The usability of a consumer application was tested in two environments: in a laboratory and in a field with a total of 40 test users. The same problems were found in both environments, differences occurred in the frequency of findings between the contexts. Results indicate that conducting a time-consuming field test may not be worthwhile when searching user interface flaws to improve user interaction. In spite of this, it is possible that field testing is worthwhile when combining usability tests with a field pilot or contextual study where user behavior is investigated in a natural context.

Kaikkonen, Anne, Aki Kekäläinen, Mihael Cankar, Titti Kallio and Anu Kankainen. Journal of Usability Studies (2005). Articles>Usability>Testing

Usability Testing Then, Now and Tomorrow  

What is current practice in usability testing? How has it changed? What is essential for a good test and what is optional? We compare typical usability testing practice in the past (10+ years ago) with what we find is typical today. Then we look forward to predict what may happen in the future. We predict trends towards testing as a purchasable commodity, more remote testing, as technology makes it easier to ‘observe’ users over the Internet and more ‘mass market’ testing as businesses like Amazon try out their design ideas by micro-launching variants of their web site to see which one plays best with their customers.

Jarrett, Caroline, Dana E. Chisnell and Jeff Johnson. STC Proceedings (2005). Articles>Usability>Testing>History

Usability Testing Your Documentation's Content  

Traditionally, usability testing of documentation examines the structure of the documentation and users' preferred methods of accessing it. An area of greater importance that requires testing is the documentations content. Content means the features we choose to document, the way we write about them, the terminology, the use of examples, and the amount of text on a page. If the content is unclear, the access methods and design of the documentation are not as helpful. Following a specifk content testing methodology, documentation specialists can identify the areas in their Help where content is aproblem.

Chinoporos, Sandra and Mary Beth Butler. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>Usability>Testing

Usability Testing: 8 Quick Tips for Designing Tests

This document is intended to help beginners design questions to help them conduct a good usability testing session. If you already have a prototype you want to test, you've already drafted a few questions, and you're eager to learn how to make the most of your opportunity to learn from your users, then this document is for you.

Jerz, Dennis G. Seton Hill University (2002). Articles>Usability>Methods>Testing

Usability Testing: A Definition Analyzed

Usability testing actually measures human factors as they apply to performed tasks based on the interaction between documentation and a product user. As technical communicators, we are becoming increasingly aware of the importance human factors have on our profession.

Ruhs, Michael A. Boston Broadside (1992). Articles>Usability>Testing

Usability Testing: A Field Test Report

The following is a brief description of how I tested a user manual for a word processing program to be used by low-level and intermediate-level users.

Cheng, Ting Ting. Boston Broadside (1992). Articles>Usability>Testing>Documentation

Usability Testing: Assess Your Site's Navigation and Structure  

Usability is literally the 'ease of use' or understanding it takes to make something work. In this case, Web Site usability is the understanding of how an individual user navigates, finds information and interacts with your Web Site. Unlike online surveys or focus groups, usability testing is a oneon- one process in a 'watch and learn' approach. The results of the sessions are used to improve your user’s experience. Having the development team watch the testing and witness the results helps resolve most internal issues in an undisputed manner. You can’t fight the reality of usability testing.

Goto, Kelly. GotoMedia (2000). Articles>Usability>Methods>Testing

Usability Testing: Don't Let the Myths Put You Off  

Jarrett dispels several myths about usability testing that may dissuade technical communicators from applying valuable usability techniques.

Jarrett, Caroline. Intercom (2003). Articles>Usability>Methods>Testing

Usability Testing: Evaluation and Integration in the Document Development Process  

Support, teamwork, and process are the keystones of our renewed efforts to reap the benefits of usability testing. Best practices from the literature led us to adopt Nielsen's suggestion to build reliance on task-based scenarios, heuristic evaluations, and protocol-aided revision. But integrating usability testing with documentation development processes is crucial. Our approach includes getting writers involved in planning and conducting informal and formal usability tests throughout the development cycle. Implementation is based on ISO-compliant work instructions and product information guidelines. Usability measurements and process metrics help demonstrate results and added value.

Robbins, David B. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>Usability>Testing