uPortal Walkthroughs - Student Persona Ed (Kathy)

(Accessibility and usability heuristic evaluations combined with cognitive walkthroughs)

Evaluation Completed by:    Kathy Moore

URL:  http://wiki.fluidproject.org/pages/createpage.action?spaceKey=fluid&fromPageId=328018
Date: September 12, 2007

Heuristic reviews and cognitive walkthroughs were performed on a Dell pc at 1152 resolution and millions of colors using Firefox on Win xp over a T1 connection.

See UX Walkthrough Heuristics for heuristics used in this evaluation.

Scope of Walkthrough

•    See uPortal Evaluation Plan

User profile(s) and context of use:

Persona: Ed McClellan, Undergraduate
uPortal: Public/Guest page, Login, UBC WebMail, Info Finder, News, Classifieds
Profiles will generally only be used for the cognitive walk-through, not the heuristic evaluation. However, users may be set up with a certain role in the system (e.g. student, instructor) for the heuristic evaluation.

•    See Sakai Personas

Scenarios

Scenarios will generally only be used for the cognitive walk-through, not the heuristic evaluation. However, it is fine to use these scenarios for the heuristic evaluation if it is helpful to evaluators in figuring out how to walk through the application. See uPortal Content Management Scenarios for a list of all possible scenarios. Evaluators will likely only cover some of the scenarios, in one of the roles, in their individual evaluations.

•    General Overview (heuristic evaluation)
•    Finding.....
•    Scenario: Ed has just completed his first-time student registration process and is now going to the portal to check his institution email for the first time. Ed is also curious about what online services are offered and what the university portal is like. (portal, login, webmail)
•    Scenario: Ed is finishing registering for spring semester classes for his freshman year and needs to clarify and verify the registration deadlines. (calendar and/or announcements)
•    Scenario: Ed would like to find out if anyone is selling a cheap couch that he can put in his dorm room. (classifieds)

Assumptions for this evaluation:

•    [List any additional assumptions used in evaluation]

 Positive Findings

All positive findings, from both the heuristic evaluation and the cognitive walk-through, should be placed in this section. 

Summary of Usability & Accessibility Issues Found 

All usability & accessibility issues found, in both the heuristic evaluation and the cognitive walk-through, should be placed in this section. 

Priority Legend:

High = Task cannot be completed

Medium = Task completed with significant effort and failed attempts

Low = Task completed with minor complications and/or annoyance 

Usability Issues	Principle	Link to screen shots	Priority	Suggestions for solution	Tool	Component Identified?

Usability Issues	Principle	Link to screen shots	Priority	Suggestions for solution	Tool	Component Identified?
"Channel" language may be unfamiliar	Match between system and the real world: The system should speak users' language, with words, phrases, and concepts familiar to the user.	Open	Low	Is "window" a more familiar term?	Channel
"Channels" do not all follow same behavior; One allows use within uPortal, another appears in new tab. A few links replace uPortal in existing window.	Consistency and standards	Open Open	Medium	Use different visual metaphors and language to describe "channels" that do or do not keep the user in uPortal.	Channel/ May be a matter of best practices
Some text overlaps on Win xp Firefox even at normal size, 1152px width; were designers on mac?	Visibility	Open	Medium	Allow text to stack Use shorter titles