Homework 3: Two User Studies of Paper Prototypes

For 05-863/08-763/46-863: Introduction to Human Computer Interaction for Technology Executives (Fall, 2008)

Homework 3: Start: Tues, Nov 11, 2008, Finish: Tues, Nov 18, 2008

Using the paper prototype you created in Homework 2, you are now going to run a user test of that prototype with one or more users, revise the paper prototype to try to fix any problems found, and then run one or more additional users on the revised version.

PART A: The first part of this assignment is to perform a user study of the prototype you created for homework 2. You should put your paper prototype in front of at least one user. This should be a different user than you used for your CI in homework 1, and this person should also be a novice at your appliance. As with the CI, you might want to videotape your sessions. As noted in homework 1, the university has some video-cameras that it loans to students, but you have to plan ahead and get a CFA lending card. Here are the details: http://www.cmu.edu/computing/clusters/lending.html. Let me know if you find other ways to borrow cameras.

• The first deliverable for PART A is the script that you use to direct the users on what to do. If it is the same as previous assignments, please mention this, but go ahead and include it again, so we have everything in one place.
• The second deliverable for PART A is a set of at least five (5) User Action Reports (UARs) describing the results of the user test or tests. You can find the UAR Templates here (http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~bam/uicourse/UARTemplate.doc)

PART B: Next, you will modify your paper prototype from homework 2 to try to fix the problems you observed in your user study.

• The deliverables for PART B is a copy of your new paper prototype. Again, make a copy of this version and keep the original for use in PART C.
• Also turn in a summary of what you changed. This should be a short description.

PART C: Next, you will do another user study with a different user of your revised prototype. Again, this is a different person, also a novice (so you have at least 3 people you have used so far). You should videotape this one too.

• Hopefully, your script has not changed from PART A, but if you need to change the script, then the first deliverable for PART C is the new script. If the script is the same, then just say "same script".
• The second deliverable for PART C is a set of at least five (5) User Action Reports (UARs) describing the results of the second user test(s). (These are obviously in addition to the UARs from Part A.)
• Finally, describe what you would change in your prototype as a result of this test, but you do not have to revise your paper prototype. Instead, you will be making a Visual Basic implementation of your revised design as part of Homework 4.

Please turn in this assignment as a hardcopy of your reports and copies of your various paper prototypes in a recloseable envelope (as for homework 2) with your name on it before class.