How Do You Design a Usable Mobile App?

Jibo He & Barbara S. Chaparro

Department of Psychology, Human Factors 4/8/14 1

Agenda

§  Introductions"§  Opportunity and Challenges for Mobile Design"§  Mobile App Development Process"§  Usability & Mobile Apps"§  How to Assess Usability"§  Mobile Usability Toolkit"§  Interactive Demo"

What This Workshop is

-  App development"-  App features that impact usability"- Common mistakes"- How to assess app usability"

!

What This Workshop is Not

§  Developer training"§  Graphic design training"

" If you need such training, please call Jibo

Barbara S. Chaparro, Ph.D.

Research Interests •  Human-Computer Interaction •  Software/Website Design & Evaluation •  Usability Testing •  Mobile Computing •  Use of mobile devices in hospitals •  EMR usability •  Technology UX

Ph.D. Experimental Psychology Texas Tech University Associate Professor, Coordinator Human Factors Director Software Usability Research Lab

Clients

Ph.D. Engineering Psychology University of Illinois Assistant Professor Human Factors

Jibo He, Ph.D.

§  Research Interests:"§  Human Computer Interaction"§  Driving Safety"§  Mobile Technology and Usability"§  Google Glass "§  Emerging Technologies in

Healthcare"§  Alternative Input Methods"

Agenda

§  Introductions 12:30"§  Opportunity and Challenges for Mobile Design

12:45!§  Mobile App Development Process 1:00"§  Design Guidelines for Mobile Apps 1:20"§  How to Assess Usability 1:45"§  Mobile Usability Toolkit 2:00"§  Interactive Demo 2:30"

Mobile Product Opportunity

§  Mobile ads spending"§  $18 billion in 2014"§  $42 billion by 2017"

Mobile Product Opportunity

§  Mobile application stores revenue"

Mobile Product Opportunity

§  Mobile application monthly downloads"

Mobile Product Opportunity

§  Mega-million app companies"§  Whatsapp - $19 billion (acquired by Facebook)"§  Instagram - $1 billion (acquired by Facebook)"

Mobile Product Opportunity

§  Developer Revenue"§  Average revenue per application estimated US$8700"

Mobile Product Challenges

§  So MANY apps – how can yours stand out? "

Mobile Product Challenges

§  Does it meet a need (the market or your customers)?"§  Is it unique?"§  Does it offer quality user experience (UX)?"§  Is it being advertised/marketed? "

Agenda

§  Introductions"§  Opportunity and Challenges for Mobile Design"§  Mobile App Development Process!§  Design Guidelines for Mobile Apps"§  How to Assess Usability"§  Mobile Usability Toolkit"§  Interactive Demo"

Mobile App Development Process

§  Which platform to choose?"§  What programming language?"§  What tools are needed? "§  Who do I hire to do the work?"§  How do I advertise/market it? "§  How can I make money? "

Mobile App Development Process

§  Which platform to choose? "§  Android"§  iOS"§  Windows"§  Blackberry"§  Firefox mobile"§  Ubuntu mobile"§  Tizen"§  Sybian"

Mobile App Development Process

Mobile App Development Process

§  What programming languages? "§  Objective-C (iPhone & iPad)"§  Java (Android)"§  C# (Windows mobile)"§  HTML5 (All platforms)"

Mobile App Development Process

What tools are needed? "§  Android:"

§  A computer with any operating system"§  An Android device for developing"§  Many Android devices for testing"

§  iOS"§  A Mac"§  An iDevice for developing"§  Several devices for testing (iPhone 5s, 5c, 4)"§  $99 developer license fee per year"

Mobile App Development Process

Who do I hire to do the work? "§  Developer"§  Graphic designer"§  User experience (UX) researcher"§  Marketing specialist""

Mobile App Development Process

How do I advertise/market it?"§  Submit to the app store"§  Word of mouth"§  Social network marketing"§  Search engine optimization (SEO)"§  Advertising""

Mobile App Development Process

How can I make money?"§  App sales"§  Mobile ads"§  In-app purchase"§  “Free” Promotion"§  Get acquired by large

company""

Agenda

§  Introductions"§  Opportunity and Challenges for Mobile Design"§  Mobile App Development Process"§  Design Guidelines for Mobile Apps!§  How to Assess Usability"§  Mobile Usability Toolkit"§  Interactive Demo"

Design Guidelines for Mobile Apps

§  LOTS of design guidelines out there"§  MANY of the WEB DESIGN guidelines also hold true

for APPS"

Design Guidelines for Mobile Apps

§  What is unique about APP design?"§  Think about how apps are used "§  Types of environments"§  Under what circumstances"

§  The “cross-channel” experience: "§  Consistent"§  Seamless"§  Available"§  Context Specific"

Types of Mobile Solutions

§  Responsive website – adapts to any device; most flexible"

§  Native app – Google Play, iOS App store (use when speed is important)"

§  Web app – task oriented; e.g., booking tickets"

Types of Mobile Solutions

Question Responsive Design Site Native App

Does app use smartphone features?

- Uses smartphone features

Is it better if customized to user’s device?

- Personalization to user; customized user interface

Is there a lot of data transfer?

- Data transfer is faster

Do you want users to make quick purchase?

- Faster with customized info

Are you trying to optimize search engine traffic?

Better SEO

-

Are frequent updates likely?

Easier to update; no app store approval

-

Do you want app to be everywhere (universal)?

More universal

-

Limited budget? Cheaper – one code base -

SURL App Design Guidelines

What contributes to the success of an app?"§  User-focused – serves a unique need of user"§  Well designed"§  Engaging"§  Easy to use"

"

Common Problems in App Design

§  Lack of Affordance"§  Navigation/Link Confusion"§  Inconsistency"§  Target Size/Location"§  Lack of Feedback"§  Lack of Instructions or Help"§  Bad/missing error messages"

Affordance: iOS 7.0 “Flat” UI Design

iOS 6.0 vs 7.0"

Affordance: Windows 8 Metro

Affordance: Android App

Which are links?

Nope

Why do I have to be told what to tap?

Navigation/Link Confusion

Tapping  on  “Video  Schedule”  does  not  take  the  user  to  a  new  screen.  Instead  it  takes  the  user  back  to  the  last  page  viewed.    Users  do  not  realize  this…  

Navigation/Link Confusion: Which Tab is Active?

Inconsistency

Tapping  on  the  events  on  the  le?  screen  result  in  more  detail.  Tapping  on  the  events  on  the  right  screen  does  nothing.    

Inconsistency

Medal count is ordered by total number of medals (left) or by the number of gold medals (right).Neither allowed user to sort by medal type.

Inconsistency

Horizontal scroll plus a “More”

No scroll

Vertical scroll

Return to Affordance? iOS 7.2

Accessibility option to bring the button shapes back!"

Target Size

What is link here? Why do only some athletes have a picture?

Target size is very small

This shows you detail of race.

This is not a link

Target Size & Location

Google Hangout GPS and camera links are very small and can be tapped by accident instead of Back hardware button.

Lack of Feedback

Lack of Instructions or Help

Snapchat is not intuitive for first-time users. ""Icons are not very meaningful."

Instructions Example

Bad or Missing Error Message

App Design Guidelines

§  Make touchable items look touchable"§  Be consistent"§  Use adequate target sizes AND think about how user

will interact with page"§  Provide feedback to every action"§  Provide instructions for first-time users"§  Use meaningful error messages"

SURL App Design Guidelines

§  Aesthetics"§  High quality images & media"§  High quality logo"§  Professional look-and-feel "

§  Text Appearance & Format"§  Uses adequate text size and appropriate style"§  Adequate text contrast with background"§  Text formatting facilitates scanning"§  Writing style appropriate for mobile users"

Agenda

§  Introductions"§  Opportunity and Challenges for Mobile Design"§  Mobile App Development Process"§  Design Guidelines for Mobile Apps"§  How to Assess Usability!§  Mobile Usability Toolkit"§  Interactive Demo"

How to Assess Usability

§  “Heuristic” Evaluation"§  Expert view of app design quality and ease of use based

on established heuristics and guidelines. "§  iOS, Android, Windows design guidelines"§  Usability.gov"§  J. Nielsen useit.com"§  usabilitynews.org"

"

App Design Usability Testing

App “ease of use” can be measured by:"§  Learnability"§  Efficiency"§  Memorability"§  Satisfaction"

Objective vs Subjective Measures"

"

Usability Testing

"A method of systematically determining the

usability of an app from the end-user perspective. "

Usability Testing - When?

§  As early as possible in the design phase"§  As frequently as possible"§  Before functional specs are completed"§  Whenever a design decision needs to be made"

Usability Testing - Who?

§  8-10 participants"§  1-2 observers"§  Users representative of the targeted population"§  NOT members of the design team"

Usability Testing - How?

§  Define usability goals - relative vs. absolute "§  Create/test task scenarios"§  Decide on usability measures"§  Recruit appropriate test participants"

Usability Measures

§  success "§  time to complete tasks "§  number of steps/taps to complete tasks"§  user perceptions of ease of use "§  overall user satisfaction with the app "§  eye tracking (optional)"

Example App Usability Study

Example: Ordering Pizza using an App

§  Add a pepperoni pizza to an order"§  Add a cheese pizza (alter the order to customize

toppings on the pizza)"§  Order a variety of items using a $100 budget"§  Delete an item from the order"

Ordering Pizza using an App

Editing a Pizza Order

Deleting a Pizza Order

Efficiency

§  Number of taps to complete task"§  How does it compare to the ‘optimal’ number?"

Mobile eye tracking

Mobile eye tracking

§  Eye tracking study of Pizza Hut iPad app"

Mobile eye tracking

§  Eye tracking study of Pizza Hut iPad app"

Agenda

§  Introductions"§  Opportunity and Challenges for Mobile Design"§  Mobile App Development Process"§  Usability & Mobile Apps"§  How to Assess Usability"§  Mobile Usability Toolkit!§  Interactive Demo"

Mobile Usability Toolkit

§  iOS"§  Mirror on large display"§  Display Recorder"§  URL Logger"§  Keyboard Logger"

§  Android"§  Mirror on large display"§  Activity Monitor"§  URL Logger"§  Keyboard Logger"

§  Google Glass"§  uSee Glass"

§  Mobile eye-tracking"§  Tobii eye tracker"

Mobile Usability Toolkit

§  Mirroring from a phone or tablet"

Mobile Usability Toolkit

§  iOS Mirroring on large display"§  AirServer"§  Reflector"§  MirrorOp Receiver and Sender"

§  Android"§  MirrorOp Receiver and Sender"

Mobile Usability Toolkit

§  iOS Display Recorder"

Mobile Usability Toolkit: Android

§  Activity Monitor"§  Monitors activity on Android device"§  Captures task completion time"

§  URL Logger"§  Log URL visits"§  Captures task completion time"§  Can be used as a measure of lostness"

§  Keyboard logger"§  Records keyboard entry"§  Can be used as a measure of physical workload"

Mobile Usability Toolkit: Android

§  Touch Recorder"§  Records number of touches"§  Can be used as a measure of physical workload"

Activity Monitor installation

§  http://www.ueseo.org/download/Activity%20Monitor/ActivityMonitor.apk!

§  http://tinyurl.com/ActivityMonitor!§  Or Scan the QR code below to install Activity

Monitor!

URL Logger installation

§  http://www.ueseo.org/download/URL%20Logger/URLLogger.apk!

§  http://tinyurl.com/URLLoggerInstaller!§  Or Scan the QR code below to install URL Logger!

ASTRO File Manager installation

§  Search “ASTRO File Manager ” in Google Play store"§  To see data collected by the tolls"

Touch Logger

§  Needs a computer with Android developing environment;"

§  Log touches in Android devices"

Kidlogger

§  Log keyboard input"

Other Mobile Usability Tools

§  Google Glass – uSee Glass"§  Participant point-of-view"§  Facilitator logging "

uSee Glass for Google Glass

uSee Glass Traditional Software using Webcam

Participant and/or researcher POV Researcher perspective only

Log events through tap Log events from separate computer

No extra camera needed Webcam required

Text chat in Glass head-mounted display Text chat in heads-down-display

Manual video analysis Specialized software required

Mobile solution, portable Not portable

Low cost High cost

Agenda

§  Introductions"§  Opportunity and Challenges for Mobile Design"§  Mobile App Development Process"§  Usability & Mobile Apps"§  How to Assess Usability"§  Mobile Usability Toolkit"§  Demo!

Demo

§  Compare the auto-quote system of State Farm & GEICO. Which system is more usable?"

§  Persona: "§  John Doe SSN: 349-06-7488"§  Age 29, male, single, born on Jan. 1, 1985"§  Start to drive since 20 years old, rents an apartment"§  505 Rock Rd Apt 888"§  Wichita, KS 67206"§  6000 yearly mileage, no accident or ticket history "§  owns a 2008 Ford Taurus SEL 4D SED, 5000 yearly

mileage, purchased on June 1, 2010"

Sample experiment data

§  Sample data"https://www.dropbox.com/sh/u5unthylo9oxoms/GqXmbigl5l""

Results

State Farm GEICO

Task completion time 6.71 min 6.19 min

# of URL visits 9 21

# of key entries 109 93

# of taps 271 249

GEICO system was more efficient •  Shorter task completion time •  Fewer taps and key entry

Usability Recommendations

What did you notice? "

Usability Recommendations

§  Quick deletion of default values"

Usability Recommendations

§  One vs. three boxes for SSN"

Usability Recommendations

§  Missing required information"

References

§  www.usabilitynews,org "

§  www.Usability.gov "

§  www.useit.com"

§  He, J., Chaparro, B., & Haskins, C. (submitted). USee Glass: A Mobile Usability Research Tool Using Google Glass. Proceedings of Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, Chicago, IL."

§  He, J. , Chaparro, B., Siu, C., & Strohl, J. (2014). Mobile eye tracking. Chapter 10 of Eye Tracking in User Experience Design. Published by Morgan Kaufmann. "