This session was a fun next step after the morning dev seminars at eTel. Once you've developed a technology, how do you design a product around it that will tap into how consumers want to use it? These panelists brought their varied expertise to bear on the issue:
- Brian McConnell, Open Communication Systems/RadioHandi
- BJ Fogg, YackPack
- Roberto Tagliebue, Nike TechLab
Simplicity starred in BJ's talk. He explored some interesting concepts on how user response relates to relative cost and benefit. e.g., is the cost lower or higher than expected? User responses range from frustration (cost/benefit lower than expected) to satisfaction (cost/benefit exactly what expected) to delight (cost/benefit higher than expected). There are many shades of color around this - for example, when the cost is lower than expected, but the benefit is exactly as expected, users experience a sense of growing competency. (Disclosure: Omidyar Network is in an investor in YackPack.)
Brian went to the other extreme and focused on complicated devices. He particularly cited the Motorola Razr, which is an extremely cool phone but very difficult to use. The device is limited both internally and externally, so users must juggle hurdles that range from limited disk space to poor user interface design.
Multimodal interface design such as is required by the Palm Treo is particularly challenging.
Mobile
UI types include text/HTML, WAP/WML, SMS, MMS, voice, speech
recognition, applet viewers, and native applications, such as those
based directly upon the Windows API. Each of these UIs are good at
enabling a different type of application. For example: SMS is great for
sending alerts or checking 411. MMS is ideal for sending photos.
Neither is good at both. A wish list of multimodal interfaces would
include features like click to dial (text/web + voice) and voice email
(native application + voice).
Roberto chimed in on future product design. Improvements to two-way technologies must be more than just making technology go faster, last longer, weigh less, or do more. Next-stage design needs to tap into the emotional aspects of connection. Designers must understand how, when, and why we use the things we do - and then apply those lessons to their products. Sitting here with a software background, this resonated with themes I've considered in developing use cases.
During final Q&A, there was a bunch of grumbling from session attendees. What's interesting about this is that it came from both extremes - developers are both frustrated by the low usability of very expensive phones, and defensive because of the increasing demands from usability design. Making a product simple is five times as difficult as making it complex. There is even a perceived threat emerging from the consumer products companies, who have spent years working with psychographics, etc. and are now entering technology markets.
Some final tips on designing for usability:
- Always bring people to focus groups in pairs. Not only will they be more comfortable with a friend there, but they'll be more likely to talk to each other about what they think. This is much more insightful than what they'll tell you.
- Give people more than one object to respond to. You'll get more comparison and context.
- Connect design to real behavioral data. Use information that's already available from devices, or from service history, in order to drive what you think is important.
Tags: christine herron spacejockeys voip technology design usability o'reilly etel
