Human Computer Interaction Assignment

This document reports the usable aspect of two human-computer interaction product, both are software, one uses to join and split files, another uses to learn the Japanese alphabet. - Software: Fastest File Splitter and Joiner v3.x (Usable) - Software: Kana Tutor v4.2 (Not usable)

Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Human Computer Interaction Assignment Document Code: Ass1 – v1.1 Student: Trần Công Phan Vinh (Mr) Instructor and Evaluator Huỳnh Anh Dũng (Mr) Hanoi, Sep 18th 2010 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 RECORD OF CHANGE Effective Date Changed Items A* M, D Change Description New Version Sep 18th Assignment A Newly created 1.0 Sep 19th Conclusion M Add detail 1.1 (A – Added M - Modified D – Deleted) Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 SIGNATURE PAGE REVIEWERS: Trần Công Phan Vinh Sep 18th SE0417 ORIGINATOR: Student Huỳnh Anh Dũng Sep 20th Human Computer Interaction Instructor Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.1 Purpose 1.2 Scope 1.3 Definitions, Acronyms, and Abbreviations 1.4 References 1.5 Overview 3.1 What is FFSJv3.x? 3.2 What task does this software perform? 3.2.1 Splitting 3.2.2 Joining 10 3.2.3 MD5 Checksum 12 3.3 Present one way in which this software is usable for me 15 3.3.1 Summary of this software usability .15 3.3.2 Why it is usable for me 15 3.4 How would someone else find this product difficult to use? 17 3.5 How could this difficulty be resolved? 17 4.1 What is Kana Tutor v4.2? 18 4.2 What task does the software perform? 18 4.3 Present one way in which this software is difficult for you to use? .23 4.3.1 Summary of this software usability .23 4.3.2 Why it is not usable for me? 23 4.4 How could this difficulty be resolved? 24 4.5 How would someone else find this software easy to use? 25 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Purpose This document reports the usable aspect of two human-computer interaction product, both are software, one uses to join and split files, another uses to learn the Japanese alphabet - Software: Fastest File Splitter and Joiner v3.x (Usable) - Software: Kana Tutor v4.2 (Not usable) The purpose of this report is to practice describing and analyzing a product’s interface as well as develop awareness to different kinds of users and to what constitutes good or poor design Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 1.2 Scope The software FFSJv3.x which was analyzed in this report is the joining and splitting files software The software Kana Tutor v4.2 which was analyzes in this report is the software that provides a way to learn the Japanese alphabet In order to make sense of this assessment, this report will only describe the attributes that related to HCI terms, joining and splitting files terms and Japanese alphabet terms 1.3 Definitions, Acronyms, and Abbreviations Acronym Definition HCI Human Computer Interaction FFSJ Fastest File Splitter and Joiner Kana Japanese Alphabet (Hiragana + Katakana + Manyougana) 1.4 Note References No Document Issued date Source Note Template Software Requirements Specification Sep 10th, 2009 http://cms.fpt.edu.vn/ A report template Interaction Design Beyond Human-Computer Interaction 2nd edition Sep 06th, 2010 FPT University Library Text book Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 1.5 Overview The rest of this HCI report contains: - - An analysis of FFSJ v3.x usability: o What is FFSJ v3.x? o What task does the software perform? o Present one way in which this software is usable for me o How would someone else find this software is not usable? o How could this difficulty be resolved? - An analysis of Kana Tutor v4.2 usability: o What is Kana Tutor v4.2? o What task does the software perform? o Present one way in which this software is not usable for me o How could this difficulty be resolved? o How would someone else find this software is usable? - My background – This can affect my opinions and decisions A short conclusion of the software FFSJv3.x and Kana Tutor v4.2 MY BACKGROUND In this report, I am the user and the one will an assessment of those products It is obviously that my background is the most important aspect to consider those products are usable or not In this case, my psychological profile will be used to describe my background in order to simplify the connection between my background and my opinions in this report Related Information Name: Gender: Age: Cultural: Religion: Job: Years of experience in using Computer: Interest in download file and the need of Status Trần Công Phan Vinh Male 20 Vietnamese cultural No Software Engineering student More than years Yes Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 joining and splitting software? Learning Japanese? Disability: Strengths: Yes No -experiences in using Window’s software and application -have learned Japanese for years -impatient when doing a hard and confusable task English, Vietnamese Weaknesses: Preferred Languages: FILE SPLITTER AND JOINER V3.x 3.1 What is FFSJv3.x? FFSJ is a small program for splitting and joining files, because nowadays, when people upload or transfer data, they usually encrypt to prevent errors and save time FFSJ was developed by Le Minh Hoang since 2006, but FFSJv3.x was released since 2007 The owner has introduced the strengths of FFSJ as below: - Very fast: FFSJ can optimize disk-cache and memory usage, this makes FFSJ 3-5 times faster than HJ-Split, Win Split, Master Splitter in both splitting and joining tasks Of course, it is much faster than any compression program - Simple: FFSJ works well on all Windows platforms - Small: FFSJ are small enough to fit on a floppy disk Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 - Easy to use: file FFSJ has a friendly user-interface; it can be used to split any - Easy to be integrated: Since v3.0, FFSJ published its command-line interface End-users can split/join multiple files using a BAT file Developers can write their own interface (in any language) to perform splitting/joining tasks from their applications - Secure: FFSJ uses an advanced encryption algorithm to make your data much more secure from unauthorized access Since v2.9, MD5 checksum algorithm has also been integrated to verify data integrity - Compatible: FFSJ can join parts produced by HJ-Split - Free and Safe: FFSJ free and clean, it not contain any form of adware, spywares, viruses, Trojans and backdoors I checked, and most of the above are true FFSJ can join parts produced by HJSplit, if the split parts have the right format extension FFSJ took 20 second to join parts; each part’s size is 150MB, when HJ-Split took 25 second FFSJ’s size is very small, only 350KB 3.2 What task does this software perform? FFSJv3.x can perform three main tasks: Splitting, Joining and MD5 Checksum 3.2.1 Splitting Switch to the "Splitting" tab: Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Select the source file There are several ways to select the source file: - Choose the source file from open dialog - Drag a file from Windows Explorer and drop to the "Splitting" tab - Edit source file name directly Setup parameters according to your preference: change output directory, change number of split parts, change part limit, etc Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Click "Split" button, enter your password if you want to encrypt the data, and wait until File Splitter completed the task You will see the message: Done 3.2.2 Joining All split parts must have the same name, except for their extensions (.001, 002, a, b, etc.) Joining split parts is equivalent to restoring original file 10 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Switch to the "Joining" tab: Select the first split part (.001 or a file) There are several ways to select the first split part: - Choose the first part from open dialog - Drag the first part from Windows Explorer and drop to the "Joining" tab - Edit the first part name directly Check the list of split parts from drop-down list 11 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Setup parameters according to your preference: Change output file, specify your split parts are in different locations, etc Click "Join" button, enter the password if your split parts are passwordprotected, and wait until File Joiner complete the task You will see the message: Done 3.2.3 MD5 Checksum Switch to "MD5 Checksum" tab: 12 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Select a file to get MD5 signature There are several ways: - Choose a file from open dialog - Drag a file from Windows Explorer and drop to the "MD5 Checksum" tab - Edit the file name directly Click "Get & Copy" button, and wait until File Checksum complete the task You will see the message: Done MD5 signature has been copied to clipboard, you can paste MD5 signature to somewhere and keep this signature with your file 13 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Heuristics My perspective Visibility of system status FFSJv3.x always keep users informed about what is going on, through providing appropriate feedback within reasonable time For example: When FFSJ completed splitting task, you will hear a sound and see a message Match between system and the real world Because the owner is Vietnamese, so it was written in two languages, Vietnamese and English Error prevention FFSJv3.x provides MD5 Checksum to help users check the integrity of files It helps users prevent from downloading error files Recognition rather than recall The buttons are all big and have good metaphor, so inexperienced users can understand, recognize the function of each button for the 1st time using FFSJ Flexibility and efficiency of use Since v3.0, FFSJ has published its command-line interface (CLI) in order to make FFSJ more flexible Examples: To split file c:\test\LargeFile.dat to equal-size parts, save to c:\test\SP directory: 14 Aesthetic and minimalist design FFSJ.exe "-Task=Split" "-Input=c:\test\LargeFile.dat" "-Output=c:\test\SP\" "-PartCount=5" FFSJv3.x is very simple but pretty design, it has few buttons but can carry all the tasks it need to Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 3.3 Present one way in which this software is usable for me 3.3.1 Summary of this software usability FFSJv3.x is a simple splitting and joining files software Its design has applied the Nielsen heuristics, the heuristics help the interface of this software look prettier and easier for me to use Nevertheless, I am not the only user of this software My perspective of it may not be applied for all other users Some other can find this software practically hard to use because they expected a more detailed tutorial or a system recovery if they make mistake for example But most of those problems can be solved without redesign too much In conclusion, this program is a usable product 3.3.2 Why it is usable for me 15 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 16 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 3.4 Problem No How would someone else find this product difficult to use? Heuristics How they find this software is not usable? User control and freedom When FFSJ is splitting or joining, you cannot stop or escape until the program finished its task It violated the rule “emergency exit” Help users recognize, diagnose, and recover from errors Help and documentatio n If users tick “Delete split parts after joining” and besides, users not have all file need for joining (some files are error or missing), FFSJ will create an incomplete file and delete all the split parts (not delete to the Recycle Bin) So users have to re-download all the files again, it take time and make users feel uncomfortable I was surprised after years of using this software that it provides Help and documentation Users have to click on the red-border area to get help It is too difficult to recognize And it has only online documentation, so users with no internet connection cannot read it 3.5 How could this difficulty be resolved? 17 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Problem No Way to solve Make a new button to help users stop when FFSJ is joining or splitting Many times I wanted to stop because I found out I have made some mistakes but FFSJ not provide me anything to halt the process When FFSJ is processing, users cannot anything except wait until it finished it tasks Provide users some methods to recover from errors, for examples, not delete immediately and move the split files to the Recycle Bin By this way, users can restore the deleted file and save time for not re-download them again Make a new button (clearer) to inform users about the help and documentation And make offline documentation, so everyone can use it for help KANA TUTOR V4.2 4.1 What is Kana Tutor v4.2? Kana Tutor v4.2 is software by South Street Software released as a shareware Kana Tutor v3.0 setup is approximate MB in size and it runs on Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000 Kana Tutor v4.2 helps Japanese learners learn Japanese Kana 4.2 What task does the software perform? Kana Tutor v4.2 helps you learn Japanese Hiragana and Katakana You can display the desired kana, and then practice drawing it on the drawing pad 18 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Click the "animate" button to view the animated strokes in order It also includes male and female voices speaking the Kana 19 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 To help make it easier to navigate the Kana and learn them, they have been organized into three sections The Base Alphabet contains the primary 46 kana Once you have learned to draw these, choosing the Full Alphabet will give you a further 25 kana which are based on the original 46 kana but contain an "accent", thereby changing its pronunciation The Yoo-On Table contains the final 33 kana These are combinations of two kana and are easily learned once you have mastered the first 71 20 Problem No Heuristics Problem description Recognition rather than recall Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Do you understand what those buttons’ functions are? Of course absolutely not, right? Flexibility and efficiency of use Because the metaphors are too bad, users cannot know what are they stand for Besides, I cannot understand what function of the yellow area is, after used this software for 30 minutes (now I finally knew it used for drawing session) The main function of this software is drawing Japanese Kana, but for me, the Japanese learner, I will never write Kana by mouse, I would like to use my hand and pencil Help and documentatio n Besides, I became professional at Kana after just hours learning by book, so I wondered why the programmer released version 4.2 without any development for further learning Like I said before, it has Help button but when users click it, they found nothing except some introducing lines about the company and the programmer Consistency and standards 21 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 Kana Tutor v4.2 also includes two tests to help reinforce your learning Recognition displays 25 kana in a x grid You are given the English pronunciation of the kana and you must find it in the grid The other is a Drawing Test in which you are asked to draw the kana Both tests have time limits as well as the option to choose the number of kana in each test 22 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 4.3 Present one way in which this software is difficult for you to use? 4.3.1 Summary of this software usability Kana Tutor v4.2 is software that rarely applies any of Nielsen heuristics It functions are useful but not easy to understand how to use The interface of it contains some tiny and hard-to-understand buttons which are not recognizable for most users (including myself) It has Help button but when users click it, they found nothing except some introducing lines about the company and the programmer The heuristics which were violated are the following heuristics: Recognition rather than recall, Aesthetic and minimalist design, Help and documentation… The other heuristics are not violated but it does not mean that they were applied in this application Although there are some users feel that this software is easy to use but they are very specific and not much In conclusion, this software is not easy to use for a wide range of user It will requires a lot of effort to make it became a product that easier to use 4.3.2 Why it is not usable for me? 23 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 4.4 How could this difficulty be resolved? Problem No Way to solve Each button should be bigger and has a labeled text name to be easy to remember They also need to re-design into a brighter color base to meet the enjoyable point of human eyes The software should be implementing to have much more function A help document should be implemented Change some buttons’ image to make it clearer for users For example change the “Eraser” button like the figure above 24 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 4.5 How would someone else find this software easy to use? Heuristics Other users’ perspective Flexibility and efficiency of use I just found out this software after being professional at Kana, so with me Kana Tutor v4.2 is helpless But other users, who were just started learning Japanese, maybe feel it is efficiency to use Visibility of system status Users can use four senses to learn at once, ears to hear the sound, eyes to see the animation, mouth to pronounce and hand to write down the Kana Kana Tutor v4.2 usually keep users informed about what is going on, through providing appropriate feedback within reasonable time For example, when testing, if the users’ answers are wrong or right, the software informs users by using color change CONCLUSION 25 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 - As far as we can see in the assessment of FFSJv3.x, this software has most of the heuristics of Nielsen, which includes: o Visibility of system status o Match between system and the real world o Error prevention o Recognition rather than recall o Flexibility and efficiency of use o Aesthetic and minimalist design Although these principles were not fully implemented in this product but it is enough to say FFSJv3.x is usable - In contrast, the assessment of Kana Tutor v4.2 shows not enough usability This product violated most of the heuristic and only seems to meet some of Nielsen principles The violated principles are: o Recognition rather than recall (most violated) o Consistency and standards o Flexibility and efficiency of use o Help and documentation Obviously, despite of having some good points, this product is difficult to use or, in other word, is not usable In conclusion, a product which is usable must accomplish as much design heuristics as possible Besides, it takes a lot of effort to make a product meet those Nielsen principals REFERENCES [1] John Wiley, “Beyond human-computer interaction” Interaction Design, 2nd edition, New York, 2007, pp 29-36 26 Website: http://www.docs.vn Email : lienhe@docs.vn Tel (: 0918.775.368 27 ... Requirements Specification Sep 10th, 2009 http://cms.fpt.edu.vn/ A report template Interaction Design Beyond Human- Computer Interaction 2nd edition Sep 06th, 2010 FPT University Library Text book Website:... to make a product meet those Nielsen principals REFERENCES [1] John Wiley, “Beyond human- computer interaction? ?? Interaction Design, 2nd edition, New York, 2007, pp 29-36 26 Website: http://www.docs.vn... Japanese alphabet terms 1.3 Definitions, Acronyms, and Abbreviations Acronym Definition HCI Human Computer Interaction FFSJ Fastest File Splitter and Joiner Kana Japanese Alphabet (Hiragana + Katakana