Behold, the UI
Wednesday/08/08 2007
| SoapboxWorkgroups require more than software that achieves tasks. They also demand that the user interface sparkles; that the software directs them to get their work done in a pleasing way. This reality places a burden on developers.
During a rigorous validation and verification (V&V) review of a FileMaker system, I was struck by the number of details checked by the quality assurance staff. Great attention was focused almost exclusively on mathematical calculations and data protection.
However, the reviewers had far greater difficulty determining the validity of requirements relating to "ease-of-use" and "intuitive interface". These requirements were listed along side the logic expectations of the system.
I'm convinced that workgroup systems fail to live up to their potential due to poor user interfaces more often than for logical problems. People won't use a system if the interface intimidates them. Even when the logic of a solution works as advertised, they will find another way to solve their problems if the system lacks a meaningful experience to accomplish the given task.
The bulk of my professional career was spent in printing and publishing, an industry upon which the intangibles of good design became both an art and a science. Millions of dollars are spent every day to assure that a page design moves people to action.
Graphic designers are trained not only in digital creation, but in how people interact with a design. Advertising agencies establish focus groups to determine if the outcome of a specific ad will lead to results. Editors watch readers "eye travel" to determine if graphic elements on a page keep the reader in the story for as long as possible.
These same principles apply to good user interfaces.
Every organization has a personality. Every workgroup projects its own identity. The toolsets they employ must conform to these dynamics for real work to be accomplished. When workgroup software is incompatible to the character, disposition or expectaions of a team, it will fail...despite the fact that it delivers an accurate result for an equation or provides access to valuable data.
While these thoughts are really nothing new to experienced technology consultants, I am reminded, again, of how much rigor must be placed on the interface of a project. If a client cannot express an objective standard to measure the effectiveness of a user interface, then it is our job to state such standards.
Where are the tools to measure user interface guidelines? To this date, the best series of practical, measurable user interface rules are found in Alan Cooper's "About Face" series. I would encourage anyone with a passion for effective software to scoop up one of his books, today.
On a more immediate, practical level, the next time you pick up a brochure or magazine, keep track of where your eyes travel as you scan, then read, its content. Now, take that same approach to your user interface. Ask yourself if the user's eye moves to where you want when entering data or prompting an action. What roadblocks did the interface impose on the user when initiating an action? Ask yourself how your UI can be validated as an objective quality component to the system you've created.
Even as the V&V process completes for another of Entellic's workgroup projects, I am challenged to achieve the ultimate interface that inspires people to maximize their efforts.