FHTW Berlin / Fachbereich 4 Internationale Medieninformatik MMA: Web Usability Sommersemester 2005 Prof. Dr. Debora Weber-Wulff

Week 1

1. The object that we will doing a cognitive walkthrough for is an odometer for a bicycle. Don't know what an odometer is? Check out the Wikipedia! We will be doing a cognitive walkthrough for this little box. Your first job is to identify a typical user population. Who uses odometers? What knowledge about odometers will these users typically have? Are there any special conditions on the use of an odometer on a bicycle? Unfortunately, I do not have an instruction booklet for the odometer. It looks like this:
   
   

   

   
   There is a 2-line display and 6 buttons below the display. The buttons are labelled: Clock, M/Km, Timer, Odo, Dst and Set. What might the buttons mean? List typical tasks that a member of your user population will want to complete using the odometer. This will be the first section of your report.
2. Now develop the correct sequence of actions for one of the tasks, for instance changing the time display from summer to winter time. This will be the second section of your report.
3. Go through the actions in your sequence step by step. For each action in the solution path, construct credible "success'' or "failure'' stories about why a user would or would not select the correct action. This will be section 3 of your report. Critique your stories to make sure they are believable, according to four criteria:
   
• Will the user be trying to achieve the right effect?
  What is the users' goal - will they want to select this action?
• Will the user know that the correct action is available?
  Is the control (button, menu, switch, triple-click, etc.) for action apparent (visible)?
• Will the user know that the correct action will achieve the desired effect?
  Once users find the control, will they recognize that it is the correct control to produce the desired effect?
• If the correct action is taken, will the user see that things are going okay?
  After the correct action, will users realise progress has been made towards their goal (is there proper feedback)?

Week 2

4. Now repeat steps two and three for another task, for example clocking the distance and time one needs from home to school.
5. Propose design changes to the user interface, based on the cognitive walkthrough! This will be the last section of your report.
6. Submit the URL of your report by the begin of your next exercise.