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Issues
Reflection
From this project, we learned a great deal about the design process. Initially, we had many problems adhering to the prescribed process. We often found ourselves arguing about later details in the earlier assignments. For example, we were discussing implementation during GR1, and fonts and aesthetics during GR2 (as well as GR3). In addition, we were often reluctant to scrap already made ideas early on (though in the end, we did change our entire project idea after GR1, which was honestly one of the best design decisions we made). Once we focused on the current tasks, however, the design process ran smoothly and there were far less tensions among the group.
In addition, given that we were implementing a multiuser interface, most prototypes were very difficult. We had many problems simulating multiple users during the paper prototype (and never quite found a way to do so effectively). Therefore, most users didn't fully understand the social premise, so we didn't get as much useful feedback as we could have from our paper prototype (other than the fact that we weren't very good at representing multiple users). Therefore, during our computer prototype, we had to spend a great deal of extra time simulating multiple users. However, this time, that decision paid off, and we gathered a lot more useful feedback from our computer prototype. However, we were still hindered by our lack of menus and pricing, so we got a lot of feedback about our quickly thrown together menu simulation.
Lastly, our final product had many issues due to trying to synchronize multiple users. In a more ideal world, we would have had more foresight into the potential problems and had allotted more time for solving these problems.
If we were to do this again, we would put a great deal more time towards providing more representative simulations of our project, so reviewers/testers can put more time into reviewing our ideas, rather than our faults in our simulation. In addition, we would have been more productive had we embraced the design process more. Therefore, if we were to do this again, it would be more beneficial for us to follow the prescribed plan rather than to argue about details too early. As we later found out, it most important to have a solid, well thought out, and documented plan from the first GRs.