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Wireframes are not sufficient for speccing RIAs!

		Monday, 12 May 08 - 10:59 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Psychology

Lately I've been seeing briefs for Rich Internet Apps (RIAs) that require a certain number of 'wireframes'?

RIAs are characterised by multiple interactions on one screen without a full screen refresh. One screen has many different states - Drop downs, fly outs, sliders, changing grids, the list goes on. They are just like a desktop app.

I get worried because most people think a wireframe refers to a Visio or PowerPoint diagram that is a flat file and has limited simulation or clear description of how interactions work on the screen.  This is not sufficient as you need to create many very similar wireframes to show how the screen works. It can be done, as Steve Collins suggests, 'You create lots and lots of wireframes, like a traditional cartoon animation, to show how all the screen states can change!' A waste of time. 

The night before last, when I was at Interesting South, the problem with traditional wireframes was hammered home.  I was chatting to Twitter guru and coder, Brad Kellet (@bck) about how requirements get communicated to him. He basically said, 'I usually get some crappy wireframes that leave too many options open. I am often unclear of how a client wants to put together.'

'So how do you get an RIA right?', I ask. ' Oh, it ends up in lengthy face-to-face interaction, while I try and work out what they need!'. He even said that he'd love a library of the hand gestures clients use to interpret how they think the RIA should be designed!

What he really needs is something much more detailed than just wireframes and interaction. The 'wireframe' has to realistically represent all the interactions that occur on one screen of an RIA! He needs a high res model of the interface.

Hi-red and Lo-res wireframes

Thanks to Steve Collins for putting this together for me.  Firstly, Lo-res wireframes are the same as the wireframes that I see referred to in briefs, but with an RIA they are just not enough to communicate to a developer what to do with them. They have a valid use:

• laying out core page functionality
  
• representing major navigation items
• validating major components and structure. 

Lo-res wireframes are critical to developing an understanding of potential application and site framework as well as building an understanding of major application interactions prior to developing hi-res wireframes. 

Hi-res wireframes build upon the lo-res wireframes, they are used to:

• instantiate and test the understanding of application and site flow
  
• show to clients and potential end-users exactly what they are getting
• describe every screen interaction in detail to application developers and graphic designers to aid in building the application.
  

Hi-res wireframes can also be used as the foundation of a functional prototype for testers, designers and developers to test assumptions against.  Testing against hi-res wireframes and prototypes can provide significant cost savings early in the project, militating against expensive and time-consuming changes late in the project lifecycle.

Axure have solved this problem with a fantastic tool that can be used to produce hi-res wireframes and is not much harder to use than Visio. You can even use it to run usability testing on the out put and it can be printed into a very clear spec document too.

Report writing #3 - Don't repeat yourself

		Monday, 12 May 08 - 06:42 AM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Usability

I've seen many [usability] reports with an inordinate amount of repetition. A consultant might identify that users have trouble finding things, using the navigation of a business application, and then proceed to mention the issue in the:

1. Exec summary
2. Findings
3. Task specific data and
   
4. Heuristic (criteria) evaluation section. 

What a waste of time and how boring for the reader (and the author)!

Instead the report should be planned properly so that there is a maximum of two repeats:

1. In the report, and
2. Exec summary.

Our reports use lots of pictures and tables most of the time they don't even have an exec summary!

In this post I describe how I use mind maps to organise my thoughts and arrange an efficient hierarchy of information. This is the best way to make sure you don't repeat yourself. And you don't leave anything out!

So far in this report writing series, you'll be on the right track if you:

1. use some spin,
   
2. design it properly and
3. minimise repetitiion.

Report writing #2 - 12 design tips

		Saturday, 10 May 08 - 09:31 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Usability

Clients are busy people and they never read long, text heavy [usability] reports. Design can be a useful tool to buy more time from them and make it easier for them to draw meaningful Nuggets from your documents.

Following on from my post about spin in report writing, here's 12 report design tips to engage your time poor readers:

1. 'Design' your report template so that it captures your readers' attention immediately and increases the likelihood of them reading your report. 
2. Use a designer to create the template. Don't make the design up yourself, if that's not your specialty, it will look silly.
   
3. Your report markets your brand, forever - Ask yourself, 'Does my client feel proud of my report when they show their colleagues?'
   
4. Be consistent with your branding and design across documents so they can recognise/find them.
5. Be consistent with your branding and design within a document - That's common sense really!
6. Use images that catch the eye  - we know a picture tells 1000s of words.
7. Put call outs (speech bubbles) on the images - they can be quick easy to read (if you say useful stuff).
   
8. Highlight the important messages with formatting and headings - so they are scannable and easily recognised.
9. Use a standard layout that highlights the priority findings on all pages - that way a people can choose the level of detail to read.
10. Use tables with images and icons - they may the report look shorter and allow easy comparison and scanning. However, you can fit lots of info in there if your smart!
11. If you have a design recommendation, don't describe it, draw it! If you can't draw then find an example and paste a screen shot in the report.
12. If you are using wireframes make them look 'designed' with some logos, curves, colour and shading. Plain black and white wireframes look amateurish!

i reckon we need to bring back the design into usability! It's no longer about making things work, that's a given. It's about making them cool too!

Using free online tools for your business

		Friday, 09 May 08 - 08:53 AM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Technology helping people

I'm doing a lunch presentation on next Tuesday at Bureaux, where I have my office.

I will be showing how I use online tools to improve communication, knowledge management and marketing.  Hopefully I can seamlessly link the tools together on different sites during my preso!!

Here it is on Slideshare!

 

As an outcome of all of this you basically get free marketing on search engines!

Scribd is another way of publishing your stuff on the web to get noticed!

I'll add more ideas here on Tuesday night!

Please don't put my change on a tray!

		Sunday, 20 April 08 - 10:27 AM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Psychology

Let's take the frustration expressed my last post about cash registers and change to the e x t r e m e !

Why do Sydney's bartenders give me beer change on an dented old aluminium tray?

Every time I go to accept my change in the 'standard' way,with my hand, a wafer thin silver disk carrying my money is carefully manoeuvred around and under my cupped hand, to rest on the sopping wet bar mat.  As I struggle to pick up the dripping wet coins and notes I think,
'Who was the 'tool' that came up with this idea?'

Does this inane practice generate more tips for staff because poor customers can't be bothered picking up their coins from the champagne and vodka soaked plate? I'm glad our bank notes are plastic now! Could you image the mess with paper?

This pisses people off and often hear people say, 'I'd tip them if I really wanted to anyway, but I'm not going to now!'

 

How much change is that?

		Saturday, 19 April 08 - 02:54 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Psychology

This morning I was at the bakery. A woman being served asked the assistant if the pile of change in her was the right amount. 'Yes',  the assistant said looking at the register, 'you gave me a 50 and your change is $35.30.'

This reminded me that every time I go into a shop and buy something for cash I get a little irritated with the customer service in these technological times.

I remember the very first time I served a customer in the fruit shop where I had my first job. I did exactly what the shop assistant I just described did this morning.

However, in my case, an old grey-haired customer saw me do this and gave me my first lesson in customer service. He said, 'Don't do it like that! Do this:

1) Take the customer's money

2) Put it in the drawer

3) To work out the change start with the total of the bill and put coins into your hand smallest to largest each time bringing the amount in your hand closer to the Total.

4) When you get to a round 5 dollar amount do the same with the notes.

5) Hand the money back to the customer in the same order - coins then notes. You can count them or not, it doesn't matter because the customer will know how much you've given them.

Since the invent of cash registers that do the sums for you, people have forgotten how to do the simple arithmetic and clearly show you the amount of change you have in your hand. And, as a bonus, if the coins are given back first then they don't slip off the notes onto the ground!

This a good example of how a technology that should be more reliable and consistent in calculating the correct change, may not be in practice, because it removes an important error checking process. 

Maybe when I have [more] grey hairs I'll give assistants, like the one this morning, a little lesson.

 

Social Networking can improve or damage relationships. What do you think?

		Thursday, 17 April 08 - 11:13 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Technology helping people

Have you heard this kinda of rhetoric?

1. 'Sorry I'm not doing Facebook yet, I am focussing on LinkedIn'
2. 'Oh, Facebook is so bad, relationships become so superficial'
   
3. 'I don't have time for Facebook'
   

From my perspective:
#1 people, 'You are missing out'
#2 people, 'Your relationships are probably superficial anyway'
#3 People, 'It's worth it'

I was talking with a psychologist friend the other day about how great Facebook is, and she really 'got it'. I recounted my experiences of about 6 months ago.

Catching up with a friend I haven't seen for a while at a party:
F: ' How ya goin?'
J: 'Good how are you'
F: 'Fine thanks'
J: 'I'm about to have a baby'
F: 'I know, it's on your Facebook'
J: 'Doh!'

Then today, I met a friend I haven't seen for a while:
F: 'Hey, How was your presentation last night, did you get good feedback?
J: Great thanks! (I think to myself - 'ah, he read it on my Facebook'). The group was really interested and loved the eye tracker. How was your lunch yesterday?
F: Awesome, at such and such and we ate...'

What happens now is that a lot of the small talk is done away with and is relegated to the realm of Facebook or other social networks. Technology is helping us to have richer and more focused catch ups with friends and colleagues who we know well.  Not to mention keeping up to date with what they are doing whilst we are busy with work and family.

Then on the other hand, it means that we can be lazy! We don't have to catch up with our friends to find out what they are doing! Plus small talk is fun!

I'm an advocate of the former, what do you think?

Have you MET a 'Meatball Sundae'?

		Wednesday, 16 April 08 - 11:26 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Social networks

Seth Godin has a new book out about Meatball Sundaes - those businesses who try to adopt New Marketing approached in Web 2+ land and fail because they don't change their business processes.

You know, they don't have enough people in their call centres to respond to comments on social networks they have spawned or staff to chat online with customers who need help.

Well, something else that his book has made be consider are those 'People' who are Meatball Sundae's in themselves.

You know, they want to adopt the New Marketing but are still stuck in last year and just don't get it, yet.

Using role-play to innovate design

		Monday, 14 April 08 - 06:04 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in UX

In a new software design project that I'm working on, I'm simply not allowed to observe the current human interactions as they occur offline.

The context we are working in is a bit foreign to me and actual observation would be invaluable. My client had a brilliant idea – role play!

So today we got into it! I felt like I was back at Lifeline learning how to do phone counselling - role play, after role play after role play before I was allowed near the phones!

I played the role of the end-user and my client the service provider. It was amazing the ideas we came up with in 20 minutes!  By empathising with the end-user I could instantly see things that would improve the interaction online.

The exciting thing was that some of the functionality that we came up with doesn't even exist now! Completely new tools that are only useful online! Amazing!

A couple of colleagues were watching us and said they couldn't believe all the ideas they had too! I could see their pens smoking as they wrote notes!

It turns out that the role-play process we fell into today through sheer desperation has been addressed by usability practitioners before.

Jared Spool states,

    'Role playing is a time-tested psychological technique to put people into a more conducive context to gain the information you need.'

He used it to get research participants into the right frame of mind.  However, today we found that it was an incredibly useful technique for designers to objectify the online interaction and identify better ways of doing things. It allowed us to interrogate the context of usage and simultaneously envision how the online environment can be leveraged to make the service outcome possibly better than face-to-face! Time will tell on that one!

Spool also suggests in this persona article, that we could have initiated role-playing with Personas. We didn't formally adopt personas today (they are not ready yet) but my role was discussed before I launched into it.

Gry Seland wrote a great research paper on Role play as a design method. He suggests role-play has the following uses:

   1. making end users active participants in the development process,
   2. creating a focus on user needs,
   3. fast idea creation in early phases of a project, and
   4. enhancing the developers’ understanding of the future context-of-use.


Lots of links to academic articles can be found on a old IxDA Feb 2008 discussion about interaction design and theatre. It suggests that 'participatory design can involve role playing to understand task flows and the needs of users and also to envision how a future design might affect the overall practices'.

Why don't you try out this research method in your next project, particularly if you are short on time or money and can't access your users directly. Hey, I'm sure you did role plays as a kid? You never know, you might have fun!

Report writing - Using Spin

		Tuesday, 08 April 08 - 07:40 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Usability

When my staff or I are reporting findings from website usability testing there is always the challenge of knowing the right 'tone' of the document.

In the last month we've heard two interesting comments on projects for two different Agencies:

Agency 1 - "Can you be more BRUTAL?"

Agency 2 - "Can you make it all a bit more POSITIVE sounding?"

Both agencies had different needs:

Agency 1 was pitching to a new account and wanted to show the client that things weren't right with the current site and it required more work.

Agency 2 built the site and wanted to look good so that the client could see all the opportunities to improve the site.

As usability consultants, I believe we need to objectively and accurately report what happened.  However, it can be done in a number of ways to meet the particular agency's expectations.  For example:

Negative spin	Positive spin	No spin
Issues with your site	Your current practice	Findings
Interactive tools are hidden	Interactive tools are secondary to other information	Interactive tools are hard to find
Participants did not understand the navigation links	Navigation links can be easily changed so that participants can understand them	Participants had very different perceptions of the words in the navigation

Understanding the impact of your writing style is critical to your project's success.  It can completely change how the report is received.  Some practitioners would say, 'just report what you saw with no spin'; however, there is an opportunity to write the report in such a way as to achieve the best outcomes.

A good way to identify the 'tone' required is to find out what the agency is doing with the report and then check that they like your language at least twice during the reporting process.  As follows:

1) Conduct the test

2) Find out what the Agency is going to use the report for and plan it with them

4) Debrief the Agency at draft stage, and see if the language is right for their needs

5) Make amendments to the tone of the report if necessary.

Tangler forum facilitates innovation for busy consultants

		Sunday, 06 April 08 - 08:51 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Technology helping people

I am working on a client project with a really tight time frame. We have to spend more time together innovating but I there is none! Plus people are in 3 different offices in two states! What to do?

I immediately launched a free and private Tangler forum so the collaboration can happen online. Over Friday and the weekend we've had 6 people contributing and some great ideas are surfacing.

It has helped us to quickly:

• Get thoughts out of our heads
• Comment of existing documents
• Consider our innovative ideas as we write them down
  
• Think about and discuss solutions without being face-to-face
• Prepare for our next face to face meeting on Monday so it is short and to the point.

Here's to Web 2.0!

Awesome online customer service!

		Sunday, 06 April 08 - 09:27 AM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Technology helping people

OMG, I just found Get Satisfaction when I was looking for some help with a Twitter idea. Yes, an idea! Not actually a problem, more a feature request.

This service ducks the online customer service NORM and does it really well, in a completely customer focussed way. It even lets everyone voice their emotions!

---

Many of my customers have been looking for a more customer centric approach to service online and chat seems to be quite prehistoric and needs complete business process redesign. This still needs you to consider your process but looks much simpler as it is not person to person.

Get Satisfaction has a seamless workflow that never confused me. I 'trust' that I will get a response (not that I have yet) and it leverages Web 2.0 technology really well.

Step 1
I input my question on one page, with a description, title, tags, flexibility for multiple products and most importantly a myriad of ways to leverage social networks within the company (Twitter in this case) and through my network of friends.

Here's the automatic output for my question in my Twitter client - Twitterrific

Step 2
The next page I was presented with was a summary of exactly what other people will see with full ability to edit anything.

Oh, most importantly, anyone can use it for their own specific context!

Here's a quick look. (I went a bit overboard with Skitch)

PG 1

PG 2

 

Tobii and Objective at CeBIT

		Saturday, 05 April 08 - 01:49 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Event updates

We are at CeBIT on the 20-22 May! 

Tobii are visiting from Sweden and will be exhibiting with Objective! They're bringing the latest in eye tracking technology, as well as some really cool eye control demos.

In addition, they will have a MyTobii P10 to show you. This is popular with people who have limited movement and speech because it allows them to talk and type with their eyes! I've recently blogged about using Mind Power here.

Twitter described - Tap your collective consciousness

		Thursday, 03 April 08 - 10:38 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Technology helping people

I was with Steve @Trib Collins yesterday and heard him explain Twitter to a colleague at work. I finally got it!

Until now I thought it was just about social chit chat and sharing information.  I like that, if I have the time! Who does?

Think about it differently please
At work I actively leverage people everyday. I ask others to do thinking for me, sometimes they even write stuff down. 

However, people may often be thinking about me, or for me, passively. I might have asked them an interesting question as we parted ways, perhaps they disagreed with me and are still thinking about it. If they keep their thoughts about me to themselves, isn't it just energy wasted?

What if I could guide their thoughts with little effort when we are not together side-by-side? And know that [some of] what they are thinking about will help me?

What if I can I can actively leverage my network to do thinking for me, instantly, online?

Think about it for a second [thanks].

Tapping the collective consciousness
Actively getting the collective consciousness to solve problems for you can occur in four ways when we are not face-to-face:

Synchronous private
I can ask people over the phone and dial/chat with someone from my Skype list, but that is only one-on-one and I choose the person I want to answer my question. They may not be the right one to best help me.

Asynchronous private
Email.

Asynchronous public
I can post my question on Google Answers or LinkedIn Anwsers etc.  But that is slow.  A little while back I did this and asked a question about Government on LinkedIn.  I got lots of quality responses from people who self selected but it took a week or so.

Synchronous public
The best way to get rich, interesting and relevant feedback.
Directive collective thinking happens on talk back radio. An announcer asks a pertinent question and people call in straight away if they’re interested. They put energy into it and generate good conversation.  This is engaging radio.

Twitter is better. It's also real time and you get answers to your questions on your desktop or phone or browser from people who are online immediately.  But the best bit is that you can CHOOSE to tap into a knowledge base of tens of even thousands of people you've SELECTED and can UNSELECT. They probably have similar interests to you and you can ask them whenever you want.  No disk jocks needed!

When I ask questions with Twitter I'm actively tapping my collective online consciousness in the most efficient way to find out the best information from people I choose.

Remember though - this is not free. It takes effort and you have to build your network by talking to them regularly with interesting, polite, relevant, useful stuff.  Right @Trib?

Anyone tried www.fluther.com?

My twitter handle is @jamesbreeze

I use your content - I link to you

		Wednesday, 02 April 08 - 06:22 AM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Psychology

At university I did two Theses. I remember feeling zero guilt for using someone else's ideas, so long as I gave them due reference. I do that online now, it's called a link.

Thanks for linking  

Please KISS usability people!

		Saturday, 29 March 08 - 05:37 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Usability

I was just watching Demogirl's screencast about user friendly websites below.

What is so compelling screencast is that it is really short and about really obvious usability issues.

Often I head off blogging about stuff that is just too complex and will appeal to a small percentage of net users who are in the usability industry.

If I want to promote usability to the broader population I need to Keep It Simple... Stupid!

S'cuse me, your Netvibes Universe is empty

		Sunday, 16 March 08 - 08:44 PM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Social networks

Mine is full!

I have just updated my UsableWorld Netvibes Universe with all my blogs (RSS) that I read. Please check it out!

I excitedly searched my Facebook friends with Netvibes to see who else was one. Quite a few of you have signed up, but NOBODY has any content in their Universe

These are my tabs - full o stuff.



As of yesterday I use Netvibes regularly again. It was easy for me to send my private stuff public, but I can only work out how to surf my friends stuff. And my friends, you have no stuff...

If you visit leave us a Wall message! Please update your Universe too!

Mind Mapping Manifesto

		Sunday, 16 March 08 - 04:10 AM (GMT +10:00) By James Breeze in Mind Maps

Chuck's new e-book Mind Mapping Manifesto is out. 

I haven't got my copy yet, but his last one Power tips for Mind Mapping - was an excellent read for the budding mind mapper (and I'm in it).

Happy reading! Review to follow!