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Tripmedia's
GUI development philosophy adopts a Performance
Centric Design (PCD) approach*.
This enables scenario based analysis and testing
of design specifications to outline user interface
requirements. This allows for a new form of interaction
between user tasks and software design based on
a consideration of issues such as platforms, system
capabilities and user constraints.
The pre-development
tasks at each phase are highlighted as follows:
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| This phase
determines the product scope & objectives, and
involves an analysis of platforms, data structures,
and data flows. Detail functional specifications
and high level technical specifications are outlined
to determine the relationship between various components/entities
of the system. |
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Discuss/Determine
product objectives with development team:
Based on user requirements, the GUI design team
outlines scenarios and storyboards which highlight
product features & constraints, performance
issues and user interaction. This forms the basic
"vision" for the product.
These include Flowcharting tasks :
 creating
a task chart that presents tasks in sequence, identifies
their
 frequency,
details input requirements, details display requirements,
and
contains
comments on what users might want to do at each
step.
creating
storyboards |
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Create
UI mockups
User interface mockups of the product are created
as early as possible, and feedback is elicited from
users. These mockups can illustrate such things
as page types and navigation menu bar designs. |
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Hold
a UI design marathon
The GUI Design Team brings a sampling of performers
and developers together in a room for a marathon
session that results in the creation of an actual
GUI model in a few days. |
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Conduct
UI walkthroughs
Following a GUI design marathon, a series of GUI
walkthroughs takes place based on the developed
task analyses and redesigned workflow. Errors, confusion,
complexity, and uncertainty are noted and incorporated
into improved iterations of the design. |
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Create
a style guide
Style guides are created to ensure the consistency
of the interface and the efficiency of the coding
effort. In cases where style guides already exist,
modifications based on user taks can be incorporated.
The style guide documents rules for menus/navigation,
screens, dialog boxes, messages, etc. This ensure
that simplicity, learning, cohesion, and ease of
use is implemented in the application design. |
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| The design
phase establishes detailed product specifications.
The GUI is clarified in detail and communicated
to the development team. |
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Create
prototypes
Prototypes are like mockups and storyboards except
that they simulate the proposed GUI design and exhibit
partial functionality. |
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Usability
testing
Each prototype is then
tested using scenario based usability standards.
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Detailed
UI design
The GUI is evaluated with each iteration, and the
conceptual model is further clarified, to formulate
a detailed UI design document. This would specify
the following:
Fully
developed menu bar.
Design
of all pages. Knowledge that needs to be embedded
in these pages
is
also specified.
Specifications
of all pathways between menu/buttons and pages.
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Update
the style guide
The feedback from the prototyping/usability sessions
forms the basis of the final design of the interface.
The style guide are refined, if necessary, to reflect
final design decisions. |
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*
Marion.C. 1997. Implementing Performance Centered
Design
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©
Copyright
2005 Tripmedia Pvt.Ltd.All rights reserved.
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