Firmbee Interaction Design Quiz: Prototyping and Evaluation Flashcards

What is the main purpose of evaluation in the design process?

Which type of evaluation involves controlling users' activities to test hypotheses?

What is a limitation of evaluations in controlled settings involving users?

Which type of evaluation is good at demonstrating how people use technologies in their intended setting?

What is a drawback of evaluations not involving users?

Why do many designers still assume that if they find a product attractive, others will too?

What is the purpose of prototyping in interaction design?

When design problems are identified after prototyping, what is the next step?

What is the purpose of evaluation in interaction design?

If there are issues found during evaluation, what is the next step?

When is the final product produced in the interaction design process?

If major changes are needed after evaluation, what might be required before moving to the next phase?

Basic Activities of Interaction Design

Prototyping involves designing interactive products using low fidelity, high fidelity, and rapid prototyping methods.
Prototyping helps to identify design problems, and if found, the design process goes back to designing alternative solutions.
Evaluation is the final activity that determines the usability and acceptability of a product or design.

Evaluation in Interaction Design

Evaluation is integral to the design process and involves collecting information about users' experiences with a prototype or design artifact.
The goal of evaluation is to improve the design.
Evaluation focuses on two aspects:
- Usability of the system (how easy it is to learn and use)
- User's experience (how satisfying, enjoyable, or motivating the interaction)

Common Mistake in Design

Designers may design only for themselves, assuming that others will have the same experience.
Evaluation helps to check that the design is appropriate and acceptable for a wider user population.

Types of Evaluation

Controlled settings involving users:
- Users' activities are controlled to test hypotheses and measure or observe behaviors.
- Main methods: Usability Testing and Experiments.
- Pro: Reveals usability problems.
- Con: Poor at capturing context of use.
Natural setting involving users:
- Little or no control of users' activities to determine how the product would be used in the real world.
- Main methods: Field studies.
- Pro: Demonstrates how people use technologies in their intended setting.
- Con: Expensive and difficult to conduct.
Any settings NOT involving users:
- Consultants and researchers critique, predict, analyze, and model aspects of the interface to identify usability problems.
- Pro: Cheap and quick to perform.
- Con: Can miss unpredictable usability problems and is not a replacement for actual usability testing.

Learn about the basic activities of interaction design, including prototyping with low fidelity, high fidelity, and rapid prototyping. Discover how to address design problems through alternative designs and iterative prototyping, followed by evaluation to determine the effectiveness of the interactive products.