Week 3: Sept 26th, 2011

Heuristic Evaluation:
This week I performed a heuristic evaluation on an application developed for the iPhone and iPad, in order to discover any usability issues in the interface design.
Some of the key differences between a heuristic evaluation and a standard user test:

• There is no need for the observer to interpret the users action, since the user evaluating the interface is a domain or HCI expert.
• The users willingness/ability to answer questions and explain their actions
• The extent to which the observer can provide hints to use the interface, which would allow for better assessment of the usability.

Prior to the evaluation, I was provided with a very brief description of the application (similar to that which would be provided when downloading the application).
The evaluation was performed without any further tutorial, in hopes of remaining as independent and unbiased as possible.
A written record was kept of all issues discovered or any additional comments.  Following each evaluation, I discussed these issues with developer and we reviewed the potential fixes.


iPhone
Length of evaluation: 20 mins
Some principles that were reviewed:

• Aesthetic and minimalist design
• Visibility of system status
• Efficiency of the user: Keywords first
• Consistency and standards

iPad
Length of evaluation: 1 hour
Some principles that were reviewed:

• Aesthetic and minimalist design
• Consistency and standards
• Recognition rather than recall
• Documentation and Help text

The first iteration of changes to the iPhone version were implemented mid-week.  The second iteration of changes are in progress and will be scheduled for review late this week/early next week.