GR3 - Paper Prototyping
Prototype photos
Iteration 1
Search
Entering your conflicts
Friends
Browse search results
Export classes
Briefing
[Note: all of our test users were part of our target user population, i.e. MIT students, so we did not feel it necessary to provide detailed background information on the MIT HASS requirement or designation system.]
I Can Has HASS is a schedule planning and course selection tool aimed at helping MIT students to select humanities courses each semester.
The site allows students to search for courses matching certain criteria, look at what courses their friends are taking, and keep track of courses that they are considering taking. Students can also construct a projected schedule based on their selections.
As you complete the tasks given to you, please vocalize your thought process as much as possible. This is especially important if you become confused or frustrated, because that means you have identified a problem in our design, and telling us what you are thinking will help us fix it.
Remember that you are free to quit the experiment for any reason, at any time.
Thank you for helping us to improve I Can Has HASS!
Scenario Tasks
- Search for HASS classes of the following criteria:
- No final exam
- Don't care about CI-H
- Not interfering iwth your other class, which meets 1-4pm on Wednesdays
- From departments STS, 21F, and 9
- Select a class and mark it as a class that you are considering.
- See what classes your friends are taking. Add one of Ben's classes to classes you're taking.
- Email your schedule to yourself.
Observations
- Test users were surprised by the drag-and-drop interactions, and most tried other interactions (such as clicking) before discovering how to mark classes as "interested in" or "definitely taking." Affordances will definitely be really important here.
- However, after realizing that classes could be dragged-and-dropped, users 1, 2, and 4 all exclaimed "Cool!" --> user satisfaction++
- Although all testers were MIT students, none of the users knew what the HASS-D numbers stood for, and most didn't know what all the department numbers were
Prototype iteration
Changes from iteration 1 to 2:
- New layout for search page - moved the calendar/scheduler to the top right hand side and changed the UI for the departments. Instead of taking up half the page with the checkboxes for the departments, we changed it to a "Choose..." drop down menu that can be used if necessary, and we moved it to the bottom. We also rearranged the order of the checkboxes to make the more common departments at the top (such as 21L, 21M, 21A, etc).
- New layout for friends page - search bar is in the middle instead of the left sidebar
- Eliminated the left sidebar which was used to easily change options that you searched for. Instead, made the "search" and "results" pages easily accessible to go back and forth quickly.
- Added a right sidebar which displays classes you are considering and classes you are taking. Also displays your calendar/schedule at the top. At the bottom, has options to email your schedule or share it via different communication methods - this replaces the "export" or "my classes" page.
- Changed wording of "Browse" to "Results", and put it right next to the search.
- Added the names of categories 1 through 5 because many users did not know what the categories were.
- Changed friends' classes to sticky notes so that they have affordances to be dragged to the right sidebar.