PCSO Effectiveness 7.1 Intrduction

As few studies employ paper prototypes with Android touch screen tablet devices, an initial pilot usability test was performed to confirm fidelity for this case-study application as well as to evaluate and refine the testing approach. This pilot assisted in preparing for the usability test with paid end-users and ensures it was executed properly regarding interview and biographical questions. The first mock usability test involved testing four low-fidelity prototype designs to determine which Android elements improve learnability and efficient navigation of the application (Figure 5.1). Here, low-fidelity refers to the low quality of the visuals and the amount of detail placed on the graphics. Mockups were

created in Microsoft Office PowerPoint. All interfaces were developed using distinct Android guideline components and stylistic decisions were based on current and frequently used elements and interactive Android patterns. The prototypes contained the same functionalities, but only frequently used and core application features were incorporated in the user tasks. As the discoverability of an application’s options and features rely on on-screen cues or affordances, various elements can be tested when testing multiple designs. Progression through the application conforms to general navigation principles, however, efficiency when learning the application’s interface was taken into account in this first round of usability testing. For example, familiarity and competence with a system’s navigation controls becomes easier over time, regardless of any initial usability issues. The comparative testing is therefore focussed on determining which UI elements are most intuitive in early stages of the application’s usage.

The low-fidelity designs were minimal to prevent users becoming distracted from irrelevant information, such as colour and font styles. The outline of the tablet and UI graphics were represented with a “sketched” quality, in order to denote an unfinished product and encourage users to provide constructive feedback. All designs included the action bar at the top of the application to hold the options for global user actions, such as save and delete. This is a common feature that was introduced with the release of Android 3.0 (API 11) and acts as a structural anchor for various interactive components and also provides a consistent and recognizable interface feature across applications.

The prototypes were designed with various Android patterns and layouts. Design 1 (Figure 5.1a) uses two vertical sidebars to display the main menu and their respective options. The left-most fragment is fixed, with the adjacent bar displaying the scrollable list of the selected category. This is a common layout seen in tablet applications and one experienced Android users should be familiar with. Design 2 (Figure 5.1b) incorporates the main categories into the top action bar and a horizontal scroll list beneath. This leaves most of the screen free for the building of the carbohydrate structure. It is to assess the preference to the horizontal scrolling gesture. Design 3 (Figure 5.1c) separates the two fragments to place the canvas in the centre of the screen. This allows for users to select categories with their left hand and drag residues with the right hand. Text is also used in place of the icons for users who might not understand the icon representations.

Design 4 (Figure 5.1d) uses a tree structure for an expandable and collapsible navigation of the left hand menu. A long scrollable list is formed and a larger canvas is available.

Users can control which category they would prefer hidden or remain visible.

5.3.1 Methodology

The testing was conducted on three users. Each screen was printed on a piece of A4 paper and placed in order of the steps required to complete a task successfully (Appendix 3.2). The participants used their finger on the mockups to simulate the gestures they would do on a tablet. As the user moved through each task and completes a step, the next paper was flipped over to reveal the effects of the correct step. Any difficulties or wrong moves would be guided or questioned such as why such a manoeuvre was made, what they thought would happen and users were asked what else could they could observe on the screen that would meet the objective. No recording equipment was used. Information for refining of the approach was gathered such as possible questions users would ask and the difficulties seen with the low-fidelity mockups.

Figure 5.1: The low-fidelity mockup designs used for the pilot usability testing. The designs had various layouts including a) vertical sidebars on the left, b) a horizontal

navigation with fixed tabs, c) a split layout seen in few sketching applications, d) a collapsible tree-structure navigation.

a) b)

c) d)

5.3.2 Results

With regards to the prototypes, a few minor image inconsistencies were identified in some of the paper prototype screens. The scripting of questions and guidance for the test was refined where unforeseen user difficulties were encountered. For example, it was discovered that users had the most difficulty in navigating the first design prototype due to a misunderstanding of tasks given. This may cause a bias, in results due to a negative or emotional response when first attempting to understand tasks and unfamiliar terminologies. As the test users were not the intended target end-users of Glycano, the wording of tasks was simplified and the exact instructions on what to do for each step for the rest of this pilot test was changed. This allowed users to concentrate on the design of each prototype and overcome the difficulty of touch screen based gestures that are not naturally be intuitive with low-fidelity paper designs.

In this pilot study, users lacked the perception of touch-based gestures when interacting with the paper prototypes. Even though wireframes were effective in constructing various initial designs and viewing conceptual layouts for navigation, a more representative model that is close to the intended solutions is required for usability testing with end-users. Communicating touch-based elements through static low-fidelity wireframes is difficult where device feedback and affordances play a significant role. For example, some interactive gestures that are natural when handling a touch screen device, such as long-pressing and reacting to haptic feedback, are not intuitive when engaging with paper mockups. Although most of the tasks involved in the mockups require only single tapping of controls, some involve gestures that may be more apparent when dealing with a higher fidelity prototype or the fully developed application on an actual device. As many users have become accustomed to mobile interactivity and its controls, downgrading the experience was shown to affect the usability and comprehension of information. For example, the abstract and unclear representations of buttons and interactive elements made completing tasks fairly difficult. Furthermore, many contextual affordances that mobile devices rely on to suggest interactivity, require a higher level of detail than is provided in a non-functioning prototype. The inflexibility of the low-detailed designs meant certain features were indistinguishable between static elements and buttons as a higher level of detail such as shading, colour and texture would suggest interactivity. The testing of four designs also became too lengthy.

Therefore we concluded that while the pilot testing was beneficial in improving the scripting and interview questions as identifying inconsistent design details that may be

overlooked by the designer, it can cause confusion. Even though low-fidelity prototypes are easy to produce and are a useful method for generating many design ideas, the contextual usage of the actual device and its interaction is not conveyed and may produce misleading results [66]. This is possibly due to an ineffectual means of conveying interactive elements that did not adequately simulate a tablet application environment.