First Exercise

Specify the context of use
Identify who will use the product. Identify what they will use it for. Identify under what conditions they will be using it.

Specify Requirements
Identify business requirements and user goals that must be met for the product to be successful.

Create Design Solutions
This part of the process may be done in stages, building from a rough concept to a complete design.

Evaluate Designs
The most important part of this process is that evaluation - ideally through usability testing with actual users - is as integral as quality testing is to good software development.
The four D's of design should be used at all stages of the process:

Define
Decide
Design
Deliver
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Describe these items in terms of:
-The context of use (Who, Where, under what conditions)
-The business and user requirements (what must the product achieve for the business and the end user.)
-The design solution (A design based on the above requirements)
-The possible user tests (Observe real people using the product in the actual enviroment it would be used in. Assign tasks to the user based on what they would use the product for. )

a) The IPhone with its advanced user interface and touch screen technology
-The context of use
-The business requirements
-The design solution
-The possible user tests

b) The Xbox 360 blades interface
-The context of use
Users:
Established and new users. Age 5-65 (mainly 13-40). Generally ages 13 - 40 like to have the latest generation in consoles. People outside this age range may also use the interface therefore it is easy for new users to pick up and use. Most people between 13 - 40 who will buy this console will have already used an XBox or Playstation 2.

Used For:
Navigating features and media on the XBox 360.

Under Conditions:
location - In a home enviroment. Usually in living room and bedroom. Used by a single person or a group of people.

previous technology-
XBox, Playstation2. The Interface must be recognisable to current xbox users as well as being usable to previous users of other consoles.

-The business and user requirements
The Interface should make it easy to navigate the menus on the 360, for established and new users. It should be easy to find any particular file from the hard drive.
Interface design needs to look and feel like cutting edge technology.

-The Design Solution
The controllers are wireless, due to previous problems on other consoles where people have tripped over the wire and pulled their precious console onto the floor.

The blades design looks very ergonomic, inkeeping with the design of the console itself.
The 'Blades' device gives rise to connotations of 'cutting edge'.

Very easy to use tab based navigation for quick access to users needs.
Blades are curved towards the center, focusing the users attention onto the important information of that page.
Colour style is in-keeping with the xbox 360 logo design, although the colour style is customisable to the users preference.
Several different ways of controlling the navigation.
Colour coded buttons displayed on screen give further hints to aid navigation.
The Xbox Logo is visible throughout the interface design.

-The possible user tests
Observation of users using the previously available consoles to identify any problems or transactional frustrations in the interface usage.
Paper prototyping of initial interface design, with usability tests aimed at previous users of the Playstation2 or XBox. It would be a good idea to also use testers that have not used either of these previous consoles, to check how easy to use the interface is.
Usability testing of refined prototype Interface on an actual XBox 360.


c) The ticket master kiosk interface
-The context of use
-The business requirements
-The design solution
-The possible user tests

d) Nintendo Wii controllers

-The context of use
Users:
Established gamers and new gamers. Age 5-65 (mainly 13-40). New gamers will be drawn to this console, as it is a much more social and active experience to use the Wii controllers over previous control methods. Established and new gamers who like party activities or want to make exercise fun may be drawn to the Wii, due to its multiplayer games and requirement of physical activity to control the games.
Nintendo consoles have always had games suitable for all ages, many of the games available on the Wii are also suitable for a family enviroment.

Used For:
controlling interactive games on the Nintendo Wii.

Under Conditions:
location - In a home enviroment. Usually in living room. Used by a single person or a group of people. A lot of physical movement with the arms is required in many games.

previous technology-
XBox 360, Playstation3. These previous consoles have controllers that have evolved from previous technology perfectly for most types of games.

-The business and user requirements
The ability to control games in a new way, using physical movement.
To make gaming more of a group activity and less anti-social. Many games are suitable for all ages, therefore it would be safe for parents to buy this console for their children.

-The design solution
The Wii controllers have taken a new path in control technology, with movement sensitivity requiring the user to simulate the actual movements of the type of game they are playing. (if it is a tennis game being played, you would swing your arm like a tennis player to hit the ball) This new control method sets the Wii apart from other consoles.One half of the controller can be used as a traditional control pad.
After the initial release of the Wii, some people have had the controller slip from their hand while playing a game. The wrist strap was developed and added to the controllers to solve this problem.

-The possible user tests
Usability testing of prototypes. Users (from a broad range of ages and gaming experience) would pretend they are playing a specific game, and initial problems noted.
The controllers could possibly have been developed further after the creation of the Wii with usability tests using prototype controllers, and an actual Wii console.

e) Sky+ Interface

-The context of use

Users:
Established and new users. Age 5-80.

Used For:
Navigating between channels on TV, Viewing TV schedule, Recording TV programmes, viewing TV programme information

Under Conditions:
location - In a home enviroment. Usually in living room and bedroom. Used by a single person or a group of people.
previous technology- Most people have owned video recorders and/or DVD recorders as well as TV decoder boxes. There are/were many transactional frustrations with the existing technologies (complicated menus, slow response, running out of recordable media, only record one channel at a time)


-The business (and user) requirements:

Must be easy to use.
Must consider the way people are used to using the previously available technology.
Must remove problems of earlier technology.

-The design solution
Easy to use interface, usually only requiring the use of Up, Down and Select buttons on the controller, which are the most prominent buttons on the remote control, in order to navigate the TV guide and menus.

Has all the buttons on the controller that correspond to previous remote controls, making it easy to use for people who use their controls in different ways.

-The possible user tests
Paper prototype and task list.
Observing users using currently available technology to define any problems that can be solved in the new design.