1. Informatics 121 Software Design I
Lecture 5 André van der Hoek & Alex Baker
Duplication of course material for any commercial purpose without the explicit written permission of the professor is prohibited.
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

2. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Today’s Lecture
Characterizing design activity
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

3. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Recap
Stakeholders
Any design aims to effect a change in the world, and anyone affected by these changes, as well as anyone engaged in effecting the changes, is considered a stakeholder in the design process.
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

4. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Recap
Stakeholders
Any design aims to effect a change in the world, and anyone affected by these changes, as well as anyone engaged in effecting the changes, is considered a stakeholder in the design process.
Outcomes
Outcomes are those things that happen to stakeholders as a result of a designer’s work.
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

5. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Recap
Stakeholders
Any design aims to effect a change in the world, and anyone affected by these changes, as well as anyone engaged in effecting the changes, is considered a stakeholder in the design process.
Designs
Between stakeholders and outcomes stand designs, expressions of what is to be created or done to solve the design problem.
Outcomes
Outcomes are those things that happen to stakeholders as a result of a designer’s work.
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

6. Choosing between Alternatives
Final Design
Alternative Designs
So, a very simplified view of the design process, which you are experiencing as part of your refinement of your bus station ideas and comparison on your alternative designs, is to identify alternative designs and variations on those designs, and decide which you would like to use. Well, how do you decide which you want?
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

7. What Makes a Design Good?
Final Design
Alternative Designs
Product
Well, lets consider what the role of a design is. At the end of your design process, you’ll hand off the final design, and some product will be created. So you want the best design, which is the one that leads to the best product.
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

8. What Makes a Product Good?
Final Design
Product
How do you determine if a product is good? Well, it depends on the user, and the experience that they have – so the notion of a good product is tied up in the experience of using it, the outcomes are all intertangled.
Users
Experiences
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

9. What Makes a Product Good?
Final Design
Product
But remember, users are just some of the stakeholders that we have – how do other stakeholders feel about the product you’ve created? How do the drivers/manufacturers/etc of your design problem feel about the product, the user’s experience, and other aspects of the product?
Stakeholders
Users
subset of
Experiences
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

10. The Heart of the Design Problem
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
So the whole thing is a bit circular, we must consider the alternatives that stakeholders might like (highlighted), but…
Stakeholders
Users
subset of
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

11. The Heart of the Design Problem
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
…in order to find that out, we have to project along the outside of the wheel, and imagine what kind of designs will lead to what products, and what the experience of using those products will be like – its important to have the prototypes, representations and other tools to make these kinds of projections effectively
Stakeholders
Users
subset of
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

12. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Designers Have To…
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

13. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
The Heart of the Design Problem: Infinities, Wickedness, and Satisficing
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

14. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Magic?
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

15. Identify Stakeholders
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

16. Identify Stakeholders: Methods
Group meeting / interview with stakeholders
Looking at similar / previous / previous version of your own products – what users do they have?
Ask customer
Conduct a field study (observations in the field, interview in the field)
Be the subject yourself, by going through the experience
Define the context and see who is related
Research the organizations that are involved
Interviewing an outside person close to the situation but not necessarily a stakeholder
Check with the domain expert (inside your own organization, or someone from the outside)
Survey the domain / end users
Anticipate you don’t know them all
Always check government regulations
Standards bodies
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

17. Generate Alternative Designs
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

18. Generate Alternative Designs: Methods
Prioritizing different stakeholders / changing priorities
Trying out tradeoffs in terms of different goals and uses
Generate artificial constraints
Seeking random inspiration
Think of frequent potential use cases, design for them
Brainstorming
Testing the design for use cases
Splitting a design team into multiple subteams – designing the same and/or different parts
Picking a template, finding something that is already
Think of similar/related systems, add funcitonality (or subtract!)
Collaborate
Isolate
Inspecting
Walking through the design
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

19. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Produce Final Design
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

20. Produce Final Design: Methods
Testing (mentally, walthrough, ..)
Integrate parts from other designs
Document, document, and document
Refine!
Blueprinting
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

21. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Envision Product
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

22. Envision Product: Methods
Prototyping
Paper prototyping
Differentiating yourself from existing products
I am NOT that, but more like this
Blueprinting
Walkthrough
Simulation
Make a video
Make a picture 
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

23. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Anticipate Users
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

24. Anticipate Users: Methods
Role play!
Examining use cases
Personas (fake users with real data)
Demographics
Field study
Shadowing
Interview one on one
Interview groups
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

25. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Predict Experiences
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

26. Predict Experiences: Methods
Prototyping
Putting prototypes in front of users
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

27. The Process Is Not Linear
Final Design
lead to
leads to
Alternative Designs
Product
produce
generate
envision
Designers
have goals and anticipated uses for
experienced by
Your job, as a designer, is to manage all parts of this cycle, to internalize them, and come to designs and products that will work the best – of course, that obscures a lot of the details of how to actually design… so lets get to those
Stakeholders
Users
identify
anticipate
predict
Experiences
may or may not match expectations of
leads to
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek

28. © 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek
Tips for Assignment 3
Ask yourself…
…do you have at least one alternative design that satisfactorily addresses each of the goals and uses of the various stakeholders?
…what methods are you using that we identified in class today?
…what tradeoffs are you making to address conflicts?
…do you have a complete and precise vision for the product?
…do you have a clear understanding of what users’ perceptions will be of this product?
…can you identify the mismatches in stakeholders’ expectations and what your envisioned product will provide? …
Basically, are you engaging with the design process consciously and purposefully?
November 7, 2018 – 18:33:51
© 2009 University of California, Irvine – André van der Hoek