Heuristic evaluation and bug tagging

Registered by Ivanka Majic

Mozilla are using heuristic user experience tags in bugzilla. Let's review what the tags mean and how we could apply them in launchpad bugs.

Blueprint information

Status:
Not started
Approver:
Ivanka Majic
Priority:
Undefined
Drafter:
None
Direction:
Needs approval
Assignee:
Charline Poirier
Definition:
New
Series goal:
Accepted for maverick
Implementation:
Unknown
Milestone target:
milestone icon ubuntu-10.10-beta

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Sprints

Whiteboard

Heuristics are used to evaluate a system design from a usage perspective. They are a tool which allow us to design and test.

The underlying principles are listed below.

The objectives for the session:
1) Discuss the underlying principles
2) Review the tags proposed by Mozilla. Do we want to adopt them all? Should we consider more?
3) Discuss how the tags will be used in the context of bug reporting. How do we want these bugs to be interpreted by the bug triage team?
4) Can the use of these tags be expanded beyond heuristic evaluations to usability testing results?

Why use heuristic evaluation tags?
 * Be able to put more reason behind bug decisions
 * Establish a common vocabulary in bug reports
 * Aid in prioritizing bugs

Ressources:
http://blog.mozilla.com/faaborg/2010/04/22/dont-talk-about-users/
http://uxmag.com/strategy/quantifying-usability
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tJxF8zTuLdEj9pUcxnLAemA&output=html

Guidance: supporting the user and making the actions that are possible in the interface obvious.
- visual grouping of information to create emphasis
- immediate feedback, make the system transparent
- readability

Proposed tags: ux-implementation-level, ux-discovery, ux-affordance, ux-visual-hierarchy

Workload: consider the information density
- Be concise
- Create a information hierarchy which enables users to pick out important messages

Proposed tags: ux-efficiency, ux-interruption, ux-natural-mapping

Control: transparency of system
- Make the actions of the system explicit
- Give the user control. Allow the user to go back and cancel actions

Proposed tags: ux-feedback

Adaptability: flexibility of the interface
- provide alternative routes to achieve the same goal
- consider the experience of users, provide advanced features for advanced users and support first time users.

Proposed tags: ux-tone

Error management: design interfaces that prevent errors
- make error messages pertinent, exact and easy to read
- error messages should support error recovery
- make sure their are means by which users can correct their errors

Proposed tags: ux-control, ux-undo, ux-error-prevention, ux-error-recovery

Coherence: have a coherent metaphor throughout the UI.
- be consistent with terminology. Use the same words to describe the same things throughout

Proposed tags: ux-consistency

Naming and nomenclature
- have a strong semantic relation between words and what they refer to

Proposed tags: ux-jargon

Compatibility
- compatibility between the application and environments
- wherever possibly support common standards.

Work Items for maverick-beta:
[michaelforrest] Create examples for each of the tags with reference to Gnome HIG - http://library.gnome.org/devel/hig-book/stable/: TODO
[ivanka] Announce this initiative and aim to work towards new standard: TODO
[ivanka] Design team and Ivanka to commit to using these in filing bugs: TODO

(?)

Work Items