Tagged ‘ui_experiencethreads’

Here are a few new ideas on how to improve the existing scenario functionality. Each corresponding letter denotes an alternative idea. Just thought to throw this out here and see if some concepts seem better than others. There are at least three directions which I’d like exercise in the next revision behind scenarios. These include:

• Allow quicker access to creation of scenarios (one click to create a new scenario)
• Separate of scenarios from the left toolbar to the topbar (because it’s bigger than tools)
• Allow playback of scenarios

I’ve also moved Scenarios out of the 0.1 release and moved it into the 0.2 release on our roadmap. Thoughts?

Here is a second attempt at the Experience Threads functionality. I’m also thinking of simply calling it “Scenarios” as that might be a term with which more people might be comfortable with. In this revision, the idea was to:

1. integrate the experience threads higher into the top bar, away from overlapping the workspace
2. create controls which would allow users to move through the scenario more visibly (arrow buttons and arrow keys)
3. make the experience threads / scenario tool be bigger than the rest of the canvas drawing tool (take the scenario tool away from the left tool bar and move it to the top)

Another idea which this sketch explores is using icon size to represent how big each scenario or thread is. This can be seen in the experience thread / scenario overview page. So, the more snapshots or items a thread has, the larger the icon.

Experience threads, flows, or user stories enable designers to represent bigger ideas about various forms of user needs that the interface ought to support. It is a form of abstraction of requirements but also a way of envisioning in the form of scenarios. More so, designers should be allowed to own and interpret requirements which this feature allows for. Here I am referring to use representation as threads, as to step away from the misleading, inflexible and superficial idea that use happens in a predictable and linear way. Instead I would like to offer up the possibility to allow for complex threading of use representation.

More so, after interviewing a few designers, it was found that there is a definite preference for presenting wireframes as opposed to just sharing them (which results in important ideas being misunderstood or ignored). Hence, during presentation mode, experience threads could also be used as to guide the presentation with the stories the interface supports (visible in alternative G). Also, during presentation mode, comments could be captured about the feedback gathered which is visible in alternative (I).

[Updated June 10]. The new ideas starting from (Q) and on, explore the possibility of creating experience threads by means of taking screen snapshots of the interface (and various object states). More so, these screen snapshots can be intertwined with representations of user activity to tell rich and visible stories of interaction that can be used to fuel the presentation mode.