Small-Scale Usability Testing “ Evolution Not Revolution” Darlene Fichter March 12, 2003 Computers in Libraries 2003

Outline What is usability? What is user testing? Why conduct tests? 3 types of small scale tests Cognitive walkthroughs Preference testing Task based testing

What is usability? Ease of use Ease of learning Fitness for purpose An effective product

What is user testing? Involves actual users interacting with the web site Typically users are asked to perform tasks while usability evaluators observe and take note of their actions

Why conduct user tests? How do you know it works?

Why test? As web managers we want to offer the best service that we can Even the best designers are not representative of the users of their systems Poor judges of what users want and need

Why test? Web development is expensive, and supporting a poorly designed system is even more expensive “pay now or pay later” Unhappy users who will leave; often social and political costs

Reasons for NOT conducting tests 1. Too much money Usability testing can fit any budget 2. Not enough time This is not the case 3. Requires a expert consultant There are many tests you can do yourself

Usability Evaluation Techniques Less than an HourCognitive walkthrough Less than Half a DayPreference testing 1 Days to 2 WeeksTask based testing

Cognitive walkthrough Development team collectively walks through the site They assess: Whether the user has the right information on the current screen to make the next right action Whether the user even notices the option Whether the user will confidently make the right choice

Cognitive walkthrough works best when: You clearly identify and personalize the user: Joyce, a 40 year old nursing student, has to complete a paper on asthma education programs. She is working from home … You designate a recorder to take notes of trouble areas You have an open culture where you can question things, “would she”?

Typical user of a public library site Jason, 12 years old, keen reader Likes Stephen King’s books He’s in the library, read all the books at his local branch, and wants to request books from another location.

Old version

Old version of catalogue Default is author Stephen King

Results screen

New design Catalogue is more prominent But does it look clickable or like an ad? Does “liric” the brand name help or hurt?

New search screen Controls are placed BEFORE the box where you type Default is title keyword – most common? Will he think to change it?

Mockup Stage Home page See if your “user” could find the correct 1 st step on the path to completing the 5 most common tasks for your site Workflow applications with forms Difficult to design without a cognitive walkthough

Union Catalogue Search Page Mockup

When can you use a cognitive walkthrough? Almost at any stage as long as you have a some ideas of the screens and wording Best used early in development to prevent problems when live Can be an effective technique to use on a live site before redesign

Preference testing Also called “cookie” testing Zero in on troubling labels

Example: Interlibrary loan Which label best describes asking your library to order a book from another library? 1. Request book from another library 2. Interlibrary Loan 3. Request forms 4. Books from other libraries

“Live Reference” on Health Sciences Library Site Words in the label and the design were crucial to the use How could we get the right words? What about the design?

Testing the Wording Got a question? Get an answer online NOW! Click here Got a question? Chat with a librarian NOW! Ask me! Questions? Ask online and we'll answer! Ask me now! Don't give up! Ask us and we'll help! Click to chat Not finding what you're looking for? Ask a librarian

Rounds 4-5: Small graphic and wording

Task testing with users Users are given specific tasks Asked to verbalize their thoughts Observe, record, and debrief

Guerilla testing Guerilla style testing was popularized by Jakob Nielsen Showed that simple “low tech” testing of five to seven users could yield excellent results 5 users will typically uncover 80% of site- level usability problems

Example tasks 1. Find a 5 scholarly articles on global warming 2. Find a book on patenting human genes 3. Find out when your books are due 4. Find the phone number for the library closest to your house.

Measurements Time on task Number of errors Difficulty in Navigation Understanding site structure User satisfaction

Edmonton Public Library Took two tactics for testing: Full blown site wide testing on the “current” site Small scale testing for iterations of the home page Much quicker to carry out

Edmonton Public Library Home page One week Had two designs One more minimalist One “portal” style with many links Tested for 3 afternoons Participants were asked where they’d click to try to complete 7 tasks We wanted a very high success rate on the main page

New Home Page – 6 Rounds of Tests

Task Based Testing Excellent way to gather data If you can’t “formally” do tests, consider “informally” was you watch someone try to find a book or journal on your web site. Train yourself to be an observer Testing just 1 user is 100% better than testing no users at all

Can short tests be effective? Absolutely! First testing gets done. You can focus on a particular aspect of the site that is troubling and fix it anytime. Avoid the pitfalls of waiting for a big study: Web team is overwhelmed by so many things to fix that they are parallelized Big studies are timed just before the site launches – too late to change anything substantive

Key Advantage of Short Tests You can do more of them Often the “problem” Is easier to spot than the “solution” Several rounds of testing help you get a solution that works well Iterative

In conclusion Usability testing does not have to be: Expensive Time consuming Difficult It’s a great technique for making your web site better for your users.

Thanks Questions? Darlene Fichter