Krug ch. 9-11
Almost done with the book :(. But I feel like Ive learned a lot so Im glad I read it! Im super pumped to make my own website now, and I NEVER thought I would be saying that! Thanks Krug!
Well I never understood the specification in the time alotted for a usability testing for a website. In the beginning of chapter 9, Krug shows us a prime example of what certain amounts of time mean. For the assignment we had, that was obviously not the REAL observation for usability testing that you would use for a serious or BIG business. I mean, we used the correct steps and what not, but I came to find out that it is a bit more serious than it was in class. Thats good to know!
The tips about "true things about testing" really intrigued me! I found that very helpful. It really pointed out the importance of testing your site. I thought that was just to see what people liked...but its really a lot more than that. You need to test for many things, make sure your site will stand up on its on and be able to ast and give the users what they need or what they are looking for. The graph of "Traditional Testing and Lost-Out-Lease Testing also found a way to help me out some. It tells you how many testers you should have and the difference between the two amounts. Which I didnt realize. Hmm....Then he even showed a sample test session. Now thats amazing...and SO helpful! It also points out that you should review the results right away. Something I didnt know. I mean I still did it, cuz I was an assignment, but still, I didnt realize that.
These chapters had so many great examples that were surprisingly easy for me to understand pretty easily. Not only did I actually understand them, but I was able to apply them to the work I do, and now I know for the next time I have something like this to do whether its testing or creating the site, Krug has helped me out a lot.
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Daniella Choynowski on Krug ch. 9-11: What we did in class the other
Megan Seigh on Krug ch. 9-11: I did realize that this chapte
Andy Lonigro on Krug ch. 9-11: I agree, although, like Jackie
Andy Lonigro on Krug ch. 9-11: I agree, although, like Jackie
Jackie Johns on Krug ch. 9-11: Shellie, I found this chapter
Shellie, I found this chapter really helpful too. I wish I read it before we did our usability tests! Krug's example would have been extremely helpful. And actually, I think our usability tests were similar to something used in a corporate setting. It would probably be more refined since (I think) that was everyone's first try at designing and administering a test. But like Krug said, the tests don't have to be complex! So I think we can take what we did on our own and compare it to the information in this chapter and really understand usability testing in a complete way. You really can't learn something until you try!
I agree, although, like Jackie, I think it might have been beneficial to read this chapter before our usability testing, I also think I was able to understand the chapter better with a working knowledge of what usability testing is and how to administer it (on a very basic level).
The thing I think is cool though is the general concept of usability testing. Going into education, I will have the task of assessing my students to monitor their progress. I the knowledge we've gotten from Krug about usability testing will prove to be very useful in for me personally in the future. If I design a test or a quiz of some sort, a great way for me to find out if the assessment does its job or measures what it's supposed to would be to use usability testing on it. The principle doesn't only apply to web writing. I think it can apply to other forms of writing as well.
I agree, although, like Jackie, I think it might have been beneficial to read this chapter before our usability testing, I also think I was able to understand the chapter better with a working knowledge of what usability testing is and how to administer it (on a very basic level).
The thing I think is cool though is the general concept of usability testing. Going into education, I will have the task of assessing my students to monitor their progress. I the knowledge we've gotten from Krug about usability testing will prove to be very useful in for me personally in the future. If I design a test or a quiz of some sort, a great way for me to find out if the assessment does its job or measures what it's supposed to would be to use usability testing on it. The principle doesn't only apply to web writing. I think it can apply to other forms of writing as well.
I did realize that this chapter was very informative in usability testing. Like you, I didn't realize just how important and beneficial it is. The biggest thing is that you have to have a lot of time and a lot of patience to work on your site but it is certainly possible and it can be done.
What we did in class the other week was a critique, in that we had people observe our sites and comment on design issues. Of course the websites seemed easy to us to use: we designed them. I guarantee we would have gotten a very different set of commets had we actually made our classmates use our websites.
We usability test for the same reason we have people peer review our research papers. We may see the thesis defense clear as a bell, but others don't think the same way we do.
Great Post! I thingmo web design is complete if it doesn’t have clear naviation, readability of text and forms to contact