(Floe) UI Options interview + contextual inquiry, Toronto, Participant 1

Demographics information

  • Male, 36-45 years old
  • Work related to web design and development
  • Uses computer daily, more or less all day
  • Other devices: iPad
  • Has difficulty with precise movements (motor skills) (e.g., on the iPad, it's difficult to select small targets)

Main interview

  • Uses computer for all aspects of life: social (e.g., email), work (web design/development), play (reading articles/blogs; doesn't play video games; no interest in them), online banking, online shopping (almost all his shopping is done online except for groceries), listening to music, and sometimes to watch movies
  • Uses the iPad for reading eBooks, mainly PDFs (i.e., not ePub-like books)
    • Typically reads in portrait mode
    • Zooms in PDFs to focus on particular pieces of content, but mainly reads at default scale
    • Bigger screen would help for reading, but can't think of other helpful enhancements
  • Has used online video lectures for learning
    • Sometimes watches them full screen, sometimes with other documents or applications beside it, depends on content
    • Will sometimes switch between video and applications if doing hands-on learning
    • Uncomfortable when the lecture goes too fast and can't keep up (esp. if it involves hands-on learning)
  • Touch can sometimes be difficult to use on the iPad for selections or taps that require fine movements
    • For websites, and the computer generally, there's fewer problems since the mouse is adequate for fine movements
    • Prefers mouse over the trackpad for fine movements

Contextual inquiry

  • Most of browsing through Reeder (RSS feed application)
    • Likes using it because it's very keyboard accessible
    • Uses keys to switch between blogs, articles, and read articles in full
    • Often reads the RSS summary before reading original article page
  • Salon.com
    • While scrolling using trackpad, sometimes accidentally selects elements and has minor difficulty finding empty areas to deselect
    • Usually enters the site directly to an article via Reeder
      • This used to be annoying for Salon.com since the browser would be directed to an RSS article page, requiring one additional click before reaching the article proper
  • Wikipedia.org
    • To find "Netherlands" article on Wikipedia: used in-browser web search to search for "netherlands wikipedia"
    • To find what currency Netherlands uses: used in-browser content search for "currency"
    • Some issues with Wikipedia:
      • Sometimes there's too much information
      • In-browser search helps, but when there's too many words and the search is for something more general, it's hard to find
      • If needing to read the full article, would use Reader (Safari feature)
        • It's more focused, and gets rid of the unnecessary junk
        • Usage depends on how long the passage he needs to read: if it's a long passage, he'll use it; if it's a short one, he won't bother
      • Bigger font would help
      • Less junk--get rid of things that aren't the article
  • Notable functions/features used:
    • Sticky keys
    • Spaces
    • Full-screen mode
    • Green "maximize" button
    • In-browser web search
    • Browser content search