Tuesday, 21 April

User-Centered Design 4/4

Rapid Prototyping, Semantic Design

You have just completed rapid prototyping in Project 4.3.

The key? "Fail" early, and keep iterating.

As we start to wrap up the course...

Project 3.3 grades posted now

Project 3.3 Resubmission Opportunity

Since some of you didn't get feedback on Project 3.2 before submitting 3.3, I'm giving anyone who wants it the opportunity to edit and resubmit project 3.3.

If you wish to do this please do not take time away from Project 4. Instead incorporate the changes after completing Project 4.

The deadline for the resubmission is: Tuesday, 5 May at 12:01 am

If you plan to resubmit, please email your mentor to let them know to look for your project.

Grading Options

 For Projects 3 and 4 you can choose to count all the interim grades (3.1, 3.2 and 4.1, 4.2, 4.3) or you can choose to have your final grade 3.3 or 4.4 count for the full percentage of the project, e.g. Project 3: 12.5% and Project 4: 16%. If you wish to count only  the grade for either project please email your mentor and Tom. 

Office Hours

No office hours for Shannon today

I have them today and Thursday

Omar has them tomorrow

Other Mentors by appointment

Remaining Due Dates:

Tuesday, 28 April -- Project 4.4: [Final) User-Centered Design Project due, Reading Response 14 due
Thursday, 30 April -- Final Reflection Paper due
Tuesday, 5 May at 12:01 am: Project 3 Resubmissions due (optional), including new personal reflection and team member evaluations
Tuesday, 5 May, 10:15 am - 12:15 pm -- Final Exam given

Extra Credit Opportunities:

• Design Journal -- worth up to 5 points on one's final grade, depending upon completeness -- show your mentor your journal at the end of class on Tuesday, 28 April or Thursday, 30 April -- or make an office hours appointment with them
• Sketchnoting -- scan (don't photograph) good examples and email them to your mentor

Review Reading Response 13 answers:

What, according to the authors, are the advantages of building apps into existing platforms, like Facebook?

For User: Provides authentication (no need to log in), a familiar interface, opportunities for shared experiences, and access to services provided by the platform, such as user registration and geolocation data. 

For Client: Access to large numbers of potential users, built-in payment systems, and opportunities to market their business through social media.

What is a “requirements statement”? What are its aspects and why are they important?

A clear definition of the desired outcome of a project.

It will have a hierarchical structure with essential requirements at the top of the hierarchy and supporting requirements lower down. 

It is easy, when going through the iterations of a project, to lose sight of a project's focus. 

 They should:

• Maintain a clear focus on user experience instead of focusing on developing "features" 

• Apply design to achieve functionality

• Link and simplify different requirements in a single responsive design rather than developing multiple designs.

 What is “semantic design”? What are its characteristics and why is it important?

"The purpose of a semantic design is to devise a data-model, or information architecture (IA), for organizing information in a way that makes sense to people. 

"It also defines the language, (or syntax) for the systems that will store, link, exchange and interpret the data in order to personalize our experience."

 Emphasize the role of "metadata," or "data about data" that is embedded into digital documents, e.g. file names, tags in social media -- i.e. how to people understand and work their way through information-rich environments (as you saw when doing usability testing what the designer intended isn't always clear to people)

Project 4.3: Review of Student Work

• Christopher Podlaski group
• Ingrid Weiss group
• Lucus Lim group

Discussion of Project 4.4

Hints:

• Write additional sections
• Revise and unify existing sections
• Do a "style guide" and paste your work into it from you working document

Presentation by Mentor Tori Rice

Looking ahead:

• Thursday, 23 April: Video of Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO, that addresses design thinking in the context of business and innovation
• Tuesday, 28 April: Final exam question review and Sustainability
• Thursday, 30 April: Final Reflection and course wrap up
• Tuesday, 5 May at 10:15 am: Final Exam

Team Work Time

Homework for Thursday, 23 April:

• Work on Project 4.4