Subject: 9/24/99 UWired Usability Meeting Notes


               UWired Usability Committee
                       9/24/99
                         ACC

Attending -
  Doug Brock, Dan Comden, Bill Corrigan, Rick Ells,  Connie Missimer,
  Judy Ramey, Diane Sartorius, Kathryn Sharpe, Marcy Tufarolo, Stacey Waters
 
Next Meetings - 
  Full Committee: Academic Computing Center, (3737 Brooklyn) 
                    Friday, Oct 29 2:30-3:30

  Retreat Planning (anyone welcome): Academic Computing Center (3737 Brooklyn)
                   Friday Oct 8, 11am-noon
                   Friday, Oct 22, 2:30pm-3:30pm

Quick News -
  o UWTC's  Laboratory for Usability Testing and Evaluation (LUTE) 
    is being remodeled and will be closed for several months
  o Dan Comden will meet with student chapter of STC to talk 
    about accessibility aspects of Web site design

Heuristics Test
  Judy Ramey needs volunteers to test a new set of Web site design heuristics
  developed by TC to test a set of Web design heuristics that
  the TC folks have been working on for some time. Designed to
  support the systematic and thorough examination of a Web site's
  design, the heuristics cover 5 areas: navigation, visual design,
  designing for comprehension, role definition, and interactivity.
     o To volunteer, send email to Judy Ramey ( jramey@u.washington.edu )
     o Each volunteer will receive a notebook with the heuristics and 
        how to test them. 
     o You will have from October 1 to October 15 to conduct the evaluation
        on the site of your choice. The notebooks must be returned by 
        October 15.
     o You will also receive a follow-up phone interview sometime before the
        end of October.
     o Judy recommends that you work in teams of two or three people
        and that you limit yourself to evaluating 3 to 5 pages.
     o Further info on the heuristics can be found on the TC Web site 
        (www.uwtc.washington.edu) - follow the post-workshop activity link.
        Or you can go directly to the papers on which the heuristics are 
        based by going to:
         http://www.uwtc.washington.edu/international/workshop/1999/post-workshop/heuristics/default.htm

Heuristics Discussion
  o Heuristics are not a straight-forward business
  o What is goal of the evaluation, what is the desired outcome?
  o Is the evaluation problem oriented? solution oriented? 
  o To assess how you did with your navigation is very different from
     assessing how you did with role construction.
  o Answers are often specific to a certain audience
  o A heuristic for audience definition is needed - any volunteers 
    to develop one?
  o Content, Community, Commerce - many sites try to do
     all three.

Developers Retreat
 o Possible themes:
    - Improving interconnectivity and interoperativity to give users an
      efficient, effective UW Web environment
    - Design issues of the emerging UW Web environment 
    - Clarifying assumptions we are making about users
    - Clarifying what users assume about the UW Web environment
    - Developing criteria for UW sites: if you want to fit within 
      the UW framework, do these things
    - Clarifying strategic implications of different design approaches 
      (example, frames mean no searches of site)
    - Front-end analysis that should take place before creating a UW site -
      analyze information, define purpose, develop structure, 
      interconnective design 
 o Ideas:
    - Could have separate tracks for transactional versus informational site
      design
    - Could have track just for directors trying to keep a grip on what their
      staff are going
    - Experience-sharing by developers who tried it specific design approaches, 
      sharing of sources on how to do it
    - Share design assumptions that are driving developer's
      decisions, get developers to state assumptions they are making.
    - Dialogs with actual users about site designs
  o Planning Meetings
    - To get moving, meetings will be held every other week to work on 
      developing the retreat, beginning Friday October 8
    - Any interested committee member can attend
    - Bill, Kathryn, and Rick volunteered to conduct the meetings. 

 

 |- Rick Ells - 543-2875 - rells@cac.washington.edu - Rm 301 4545 Bldg -|
 |-                http://staff.washington.edu/rells/                  -|