Comments on: Innovation and Usability http://www.chriskhalil.com/2007/01/29/innovation-vs-usability-is-there-really-a-fight-anymore-2/ My thoughts on work and life Fri, 05 Sep 2008 20:54:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.7 by: Christopherkhalil http://www.chriskhalil.com/2007/01/29/innovation-vs-usability-is-there-really-a-fight-anymore-2/#comment-1034 Mon, 16 Apr 2007 10:52:03 +0000 http://www.chriskhalil.com/2007/01/29/innovation-vs-usability-is-there-really-a-fight-anymore-2/#comment-1034 Shane, You're quite right in what you say about Usability Testing. It certainly has it's place, but will tend to eliminate and downplay innovative UI paradigms as the user -on first use- may well struggle with something which requires some learning. I'm sure if we went back into the mists of time and took a long term CLI user and Usability Tested them on a direct manipulation UI (such as Windows) they would initially struggle. The test results would give management the bullets they require to kill the idea before it's even had a chance to be used in anger. Yet it's those leaps in UI design that tend to be the most successful in the medium term.  If we look at the iPod UI design, it was quite different to anything we'd seen before.  When I first got my iPod (and naturally never bothered to read the instruction manual) I struggled with it.  Now I've had it for quite some time it seems so natural to use. So where does that leave us?  Well, I strongly feel Usability Testing is important and has its place.  If the best solution to a problem is an innovative one, then I'd suggest the best place to start Usability Testing would be to recruit users who aren't familiar with existing paradigms.  So, if one were to design an innovative shopping cart solution, we'd need to test it on users who have never tried ecommerce before.  Those users that have been exposed to ecommerce will have strong perceptions of how it should be done.  To effectively user test it they'd have to unlearn their existing behaviour. For instance, I'm sure if you could find users who hadn't ever been exposed to Office and tested the new Ribbon UI on them they'd find it perfectly natural.  Whereas testing it on existing Office user's they'd have to adapt to the new interaction philosophy, and may not 'get it' as fast as those users who are new to it. Shane,

You’re quite right in what you say about Usability Testing. It certainly has it’s place, but will tend to eliminate and downplay innovative UI paradigms as the user -on first use- may well struggle with something which requires some learning.

I’m sure if we went back into the mists of time and took a long term CLI user and Usability Tested them on a direct manipulation UI (such as Windows) they would initially struggle. The test results would give management the bullets they require to kill the idea before it’s even had a chance to be used in anger.

Yet it’s those leaps in UI design that tend to be the most successful in the medium term.  If we look at the iPod UI design, it was quite different to anything we’d seen before.  When I first got my iPod (and naturally never bothered to read the instruction manual) I struggled with it.  Now I’ve had it for quite some time it seems so natural to use.

So where does that leave us?  Well, I strongly feel Usability Testing is important and has its place.  If the best solution to a problem is an innovative one, then I’d suggest the best place to start Usability Testing would be to recruit users who aren’t familiar with existing paradigms.  So, if one were to design an innovative shopping cart solution, we’d need to test it on users who have never tried ecommerce before.  Those users that have been exposed to ecommerce will have strong perceptions of how it should be done.  To effectively user test it they’d have to unlearn their existing behaviour.

For instance, I’m sure if you could find users who hadn’t ever been exposed to Office and tested the new Ribbon UI on them they’d find it perfectly natural.  Whereas testing it on existing Office user’s they’d have to adapt to the new interaction philosophy, and may not ‘get it’ as fast as those users who are new to it.

]]> by: Shane Morris http://www.chriskhalil.com/2007/01/29/innovation-vs-usability-is-there-really-a-fight-anymore-2/#comment-1006 Sun, 15 Apr 2007 11:40:45 +0000 http://www.chriskhalil.com/2007/01/29/innovation-vs-usability-is-there-really-a-fight-anymore-2/#comment-1006 Chris, you inadvertantly (I presume) pose some BIG QUESTIONS about usability testing. Usability testing drives us down the path of the usable (and consistent) because (unless you have a large budget) it focusses its attention on users' first use of an application. Where an application is to be used regularly (like a business app) then this may be quite INappropriate. Nevertheless, even in this case, we feel obliged to usability test because, quite frankly, what is the alternative? Wait for release and then evaluate in the field? Or get that large budget and do longitudinal testing? Innovative user interfaces require courage. You need to either be small enough that you have nothing to lose, or big enough that you can either pay to reduce the risk, or use your market clout to push through. Which brings us to 'genius design'... No users necessary! Sounds like fun, at least... Shane Chris, you inadvertantly (I presume) pose some BIG QUESTIONS about usability testing. Usability testing drives us down the path of the usable (and consistent) because (unless you have a large budget) it focusses its attention on users’ first use of an application. Where an application is to be used regularly (like a business app) then this may be quite INappropriate. Nevertheless, even in this case, we feel obliged to usability test because, quite frankly, what is the alternative? Wait for release and then evaluate in the field? Or get that large budget and do longitudinal testing?

Innovative user interfaces require courage. You need to either be small enough that you have nothing to lose, or big enough that you can either pay to reduce the risk, or use your market clout to push through.

Which brings us to ‘genius design’… No users necessary! Sounds like fun, at least…

Shane

]]> by: Doreen Buckingham http://www.chriskhalil.com/2007/01/29/innovation-vs-usability-is-there-really-a-fight-anymore-2/#comment-4 Thu, 25 Jan 2007 11:14:49 +0000 http://www.chriskhalil.com/2007/01/29/innovation-vs-usability-is-there-really-a-fight-anymore-2/#comment-4 A very informative article, very logical approach to the subject,simple but sensible, the writer must of had a lot of experience to understand the subject so well I will now always think of Chris when I see the comment ,Form follows function, Much better the way he sees it Form and function should be one joined in a spiritual union. Well done and thanks very much . A very informative article, very logical approach to the subject,simple but sensible, the writer must of had a lot of experience to understand the subject so well I will now always think of Chris when I see the comment ,Form follows function, Much better the way he sees it Form and function should be one joined in a spiritual union.
Well done and thanks very much .

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