This presentation was done for the course Interface prototyping. 22.04.2014. Media lab. Media Department.

1. INTERFACE PROTOTYPING
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

2. About the workshop
Do not forget to present ourselves

3. TIMETABLE
1st day
22.04
Tuesday
2nd day
23.04
Wednesday
3rd day
24.04
Thursday
4th day
25.04
Friday
5th day
28.04
Monday
6th day
29.04
Friday
9.00
Introduction
of the course.
Lecture on:
Different
prototyping
techniques
9.00
Lecture:
Why paper
prototyping?
9.00
Lecture:
Meeting the
user.
9.00
Lecture:
What to
observe?
9.00 -16hs
Planning and
testing 1
more
iterations
Working on
the
presentations
10-14hs
Audio
interface for
dating service
10-14hs
Video Poem
10-16hs
Independent
work
10-14hs
Testing 1st
iteration.
Redoing the
prototype
Testing again
Working on
the
presentations
13hs
Final
presentations
14hs
Lecture:
Remix
practices and
EUscreen
14hs
Lecture:
Introducing
the exercise +
more on
remix
Designing
renmixing
tools
Planning the
1st iteration
15hs
Students
presentations
: how was the
day?

4. Validation of any design idea is best done by prototyping and testing. Through
practical exercises this workshop introduces different paper prototyping techniques
and their related research results and analysis; these tools will enable you to
develop and present your design ideas with professional conviction and flair. The
interfaces in this workshop are assumed to be either screen based or physical
operation interfaces for digital products and services.

5. Study Material
Rettig, Marc. (1004) "Prototyping for tiny
fingers." Communications of the ACM
37.4: 21-27.
Snyder, Carolyn (2003). Paper
Prototyping. The fast and the easy way
to design and refine user interfaces.
Elsevier Science. USA.
Houde, Stephanie, and Charles Hill.
"What do prototypes prototype."
Handbook of human-computer
interaction 2 (1997): 367-381.
Buchenau, Marion and Fulton Suri, Jane
(2000) Experience prototyping. DIS ´00,
Brooklyn, New York. CC by Abeo5 in Flickr

6. Assessment Methods and Criteria
Lectures, group work. 80% attendance, completed exercise tasks and a written report.
Workload
Contact hours: 7hs X 6 days: 42hs
Independant work: 39hs
Total amount of hours: 81hs
CCbyGonzalo_arinFlickr

7. Explore different prototyping techniques
Use a case study: remixing video and their related interfaces
Make prototypes using different techniques, test and iterate them.
inCCbydanceinskyinrFlickr
YOU will

8. Main task: design a non-traditional video editor. Videos cannot be download. The novelty will
be in the interface, but can also be in the outcome. It can be an interface for tablets, desktop or
mobile devices. It can apply different type of filters.
CCbySTC4bluesinFlickr

9. CCbyGartoninFlickr
OUTCOMES
Final presentations: students have to
prepare a 5min video in which they
document the process, including the
different test situations. The final interface
has to be evaluated at least three times.
In addition to the exercises participants
are required to compile a learning diary
in which they document the process and
make an account of the reading material.

10. BASIS OF PROTOTYPING
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero Media Lab ARTS 2014

12. "What I hear I forget.
What I see, I remember.
What I do, I understand!”
Lao Tse

13. INTRODUCTION TO PROTOTYPING
Fields of HCI and design
Evaluation role (e.g. usability tests): tools for evaluation of design failure
or success
Generative role (tools supporting design exploration): design thinking
enablers (Lim et al. 2008)
Prototypes are communications media (Eriksson 1995)
Prototypes are concrete - they help to communicate and evaluate ideas.

14. DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROTOTYPES
… pencil sketch, cardboard or foam mock up of a device, slide show of
images, videotape showing simulated behavior, simulation in a software
prototyping environment, partially implemented version of the product
(Eriksson 1995)

15. DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROTOTYPES
Crude/rough/non-interactive prototypes can capture rough ideas early on
(Eriksson 1995)

16. DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROTOTYPES
More polished prototypes can help communicate the gist of the design
Prototypes supporting interactivity can be used to ask feedback from users
(Eriksson 1995)
Juha Salonen- Interface prototype workshop 2009

17. VISION PROTOTYPES & WORKING PROTOTYPES
Vision prototypes can be rough or polished. Highly polished prototypes
have both drawbacks and benefits. c.f. Apple Computer's "Knowledge
Navigator”.
KnowledgeNavigator

18. VISION PROTOTYPES & WORKING PROTOTYPES
Emphasize form, interactivity, and visual appearance.
Part of the iterative design process, for the designers to engage with
each other, but also in participatory or design approaches to engage
"users" in the design process.
Piia Aho- Paper prototyping course 2009

19. VISION PROTOTYPES & WORKING PROTOTYPES
Working prototypes should have two properties:
accessibility and roughness
Piia Aho- Paper prototyping course 2009

20. EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR
Vision prototype – animation (public)VISION PROTOTYPE

21. Vision prototype – sketch (project partners)
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

22. Working prototype – sketches (design team)
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

23. Working prototypes – paper – co-design sessions
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

24. Working prototypes – mobile proto (co-design activities)
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

25. Working prototypes – “magnets” (design team)
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

26. Working prototypes – wireframes
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

27. Working prototypes – paper prototype (design team)
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

28. Software prototypes (“alpha version”)
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

29. Urban Mediator v2.0
EXAMPLE: CASE URBAN MEDIATOR

30. PRINCIPLES OF PROTOTYPING
(Lim et al. 2008)

31. LOW FIDELITY METHODS
Low-cost, easy and fast to make, multiple designs can be evaluated,
proof-of-concept, can happen early
Flexible, no fear of computer, focus on important things
BUT: Error cases potentially hard to find, does not produce detailed
specifications, Not Real!
Typically just sketching with pen and paper.
No need for great drawing skills to communicate the
ideas

32. HIGH FIDELITY METHODS
Building an interactive prototype of the system
It could be for example Flash, Director or Visual Basic
Pros: realistic functionality, user-driven, can be used for real testing,
look and feel, already usable for specification, marketing and sales
Cons: expensive and slow to develop, cannot be used early, might
direct attention to irrelevant details, people often reluctant to change
major aspects, may lead to unrealistic expectations
Software design example - too detailed prototypes lead the customer
to think that the project is ahead of the schedule. Beware.

33. STORYBOARDING
Drawing sequences of possible user interaction tasks
Help to develop ideas further and also find missing features
Related to scenarios (what are scenarios?)

34. IN BRIEF
When creating a prototype, it is important to consider:
• the material
• the resolution
• the scope

35. PAPER PROTOTYPING
The prototyping method used during this workshop
Best suited for 2D interface design, especially often used in web design
For 3D or highly interactive content less useful
Rough sketches of the interface
One of the designers acts as a "computer" and changes the pages.
When the user interacts with the imaginary system: points with a finger
Need to take notes AND videotape the test case for further analysis
Use your imagination: for example menus can be done with pieces of
paper

36. ROLES IN THE TEAM
the facilitator/introducer
(the only one talking with the user)
“Speak aloud the option you have chosen”
the machine
(browsing papers/ finding the right one)
“I will act as the computer, turning the pages to maneuver through the
site”
the observer
(talking notes of the user behavior/ problems/ suggestions)

37. Today teamwork
Task: Make a quick scenario for a call service for dating
The person is calling to select a date.
This is a warm-up exercise to get you started with prototypes and evaluation.
It's okay to make mistakes :)
Make cards for reading aloud
Necessary features: selection of the right person (gender, physical qualities, profession, etc), meeting place
(address), payment method: cash, sms, money transfer.
Confirm date (place, hour, person).
Work in groups of three: test leader ("facilitator"), computer, observer
and test user (recruited from another group). Rotate the roles. Everybody gets to try all the roles and
visit the other groups as a test user.
2 iterations with 2 different users each one
The test leader do not give hints to the user, the user should communicate with
her/him only
Think aloud protocol: what, how and why?
Come back here for group discussion and wrap up at 15hs
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

38. Reflection
What did you notice about test situation?
How did you fix your design along the way?
Observations on the roles
Think aloud protocol challenges, not giving unintentional hints
anything else?
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

39. Reading for tomorrow
Rettig, Mark (1994) Prototyping for tiny fingers.
Communications of the ACM, April 1994/ Vol.37, No.4
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero Media Lab ARTS 2014

40. WHY PAPER PROTOTYPING?
2nd
day
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero Media Lab ARTS 2014

41. TIMETABLE
1st day
22.04
Tuesday
2nd day
23.04
Wednesday
3rd day
24.04
Thursday
4th day
25.04
Friday
5th day
28.04
Monday
6th day
29.04
Friday
9.00
Introduction
of the course.
Lecture on:
Different
prototyping
techniques
9.00
Lecture:
Why paper
prototyping?
9.00
Lecture:
Meeting the
user.
9.00
Lecture:
What to
observe?
9.00 -16hs
Planning and
testing 1
more
iterations
Working on
the
presentations
10-14hs
Audio
interface for
dating service
10-14hs
Video Poem
10-16hs
Independent
work
10-14hs
Testing 1st
iteration.
Redoing the
prototype
Testing again
Working on
the
presentations
13hs
Final
presentations
14hs
Lecture:
Remix
practices and
EUscreen
14hs
Lecture:
Introducing
the exercise +
more on
remix
Designing
renmixing
tools
Planning the
1st iteration
15hs
Students
presentations
: how was the
day?

43. “Papers Prototypes are low-tech, low-cost, but highly
effective form of usability testing for web site design”
Helen M. Grady

44. usability testing at the end of the design
they find content and structural problems
re-design may be impossible
Problem

45. simple tools like paper, scissors, and
stickies.
separation of design and content
allows to be focused on content
“hands-on” designing manipulating
physically the content
the whole group can be following all
the steps
no computer skills are needed
Paper prototyping EUscreenXL- Translation tool

46. users recognizing that the
prototype is a rough model felt
freer to criticize and make
recommendations
multiple tests with small number of
users is more helpful at identifying
problems than elaborated usability
tests
paper prototyping allows to
separate content from visual design
Paper prototyping EUscreenXL- Translation tool

47. changes can be made on the fly
during the test
after several iterations of testing
and design on paper
making an interactive prototype
should not take long
the interface elements should be as
real as possible (labels, titles, etc)
Paper prototyping EUscreenXL- Translation tool

48. early focus on users and tasks
empirical measurement of product usage
iterative designed, modified and tested
usability testing with paper prototype is one technique

49. WIZARD OF OZ
The user sits at a computer and uses the system
The responses actually generated by a remote operator who manually
simulates the system
It already requires some material in digital form

50. “Pretend that your finger is a mouse and point to
anything on the page that you would like to click
on”
Nielsen
PiiaAho-Paperprototypingcourse2009

55. Hanmail paper prototype
One video

57. Suggestions for today teamwork
Make groups of 3 persons
Plan an interface to create Video Poem
adding audio to an existing silent video from EUscreenXL
Examples of video poems: 1- 2- 3
Make a prototype to test how it works. Choose a part to develop.
Make a quick scenario and the prototype for testing.
Test it
Meeting time for agreeing on project.
Reflection
Come here for group discussion at 14hs
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

58. Reading for tomorrow
Snyder, Carolyn (2003). Paper Prototyping. The fast and the easy way to design and
refine user interfaces. Elsevier Science. USA.
(choose chapters)
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

59. MEETING THE USER
3rd
day
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

60. TIMETABLE
1st day
22.04
Tuesday
2nd day
23.04
Wednesday
3rd day
24.04
Thursday
4th day
25.04
Friday
5th day
28.04
Monday
6th day
29.04
Friday
9.00
Introduction
of the course.
Lecture on:
Different
prototyping
techniques
9.00
Lecture:
Why paper
prototyping?
9.00
Lecture:
Meeting the
user.
9.00
Lecture:
What to
observe?
9.00 -16hs
Planning and
testing 1
more
iterations
Working on
the
presentations
10-14hs
Audio
interface for
dating service
10-14hs
Video Poem
10-16hs
Independent
work
10-14hs
Testing 1st
iteration.
Redoing the
prototype
Testing again
Working on
the
presentations
13hs
Final
presentations
14hs
Lecture:
Remix
practices and
EUscreen
14hs
Lecture:
Introducing
the exercise +
more on
remix
Designing
renmixing
tools
Planning the
1st iteration
15hs
Students
presentations
: how was the
day?

61. GENERAL ISSUES
Things can go wrong that affects both test quality and user happiness.
Respect the user - they are helping you to do your work
Test situation might be stressing to the user: it's up to you to help to keep
the stress to a minimum. For example the test leader should act as
confident and relaxed as possible.
A typical test setup involves a test leader and additional staff who operate
the equipment, take notes etc.
The user typically only communicates with the leader - the others should
not disturb. Be out of sight preferably.

62. RECRUITING THE USER
Might be hard to get especially if you want statistical results and/or the user
group is very specialized
Might be from the target company, your company or external recruits
Should naturally represent the target group - not your workmates
Novice users become experts by time so you possibly need to find new
ones to get relevant results
These days computers and mobiles are everywhere so finding complete
beginners is getting hard - on the other hand less relevant as a target
group

63. BEFORE MEETING THE USER
Have everything ready. Extra hassle is both unprofessional and distract the
user
Test the equipment
Turn off your mobiles!
Offer refreshments, chat with the user informally to relax the situation
The test leader introduces himself and the other persons
Ask for permission to video tape the user and to use the test material (ethical
issues)
Tell her that she may stop whenever she wants or ask questions
Emphasize that you're testing the system and NOT the user.

64. Some videos
Usabiity test with paper prototype
Iphone app paper prototyping
EI NÄIN - Opetusvideo Käytettävyystestauksesta

65. DURING THE TEST
Give clear instructions. You might give the tasks to the user on a piece of
paper one at a time.
Ask if it's okay to start.
Tell the user when a task is completed - easy to misinterpretate
Speak the user's language - no slang or terms invented by you
Start with an easy task - it gives the user confidence.
Encourage the user to think aloud if it doesn't come naturally (if the protocol
is used)

66. DURING THE TEST
Questions like:
- What do you see now?
- Where would you go next?
- What are you looking for?
It's surprisingly easy to (unconsciously) help the user with gestures,
sounds etc. Observe yourself on the tape and try to learn out of it.
If the user gets stuck you may gently interrupt the task so that they
don't get overly stressed or help them complete the task and mark it as
failed
Sessions should not last longer than an hour if possible:
- drop out tasks if necessary

70. TIPS
you can test different parts of the systems
or you can give an scenario to the user
(you want this and this)
focus on having the users behave naturally
60-90 minutes of user interview
focus on what they do, not in what they say

71. Refreshments, again. Not during the test.
Time for a post-test questionnaire or free-form discussion
Have time for questions and comments
Thank the user for her cooperation
Often some sort of little prizes are given. Preferably not money.
After the test

72. Suggestions for today teamwork
Plan a remix tool for EuscreenXL
Take in consideration the restrictions of not downloading content
Independent work
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

73. Reading for tomorrow
Buchenau, Marion and Fulton Suri, Jane (2000)
Experience prototyping. DIS ´00, Brooklyn, New York.
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

74. WHAT TO OBSERVE?
4th
day
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

75. TIMETABLE
1st day
22.04
Tuesday
2nd day
23.04
Wednesday
3rd day
24.04
Thursday
4th day
25.04
Friday
5th day
28.04
Monday
6th day
29.04
Friday
9.00
Introduction
of the course.
Lecture on:
Different
prototyping
techniques
9.00
Lecture:
Why paper
prototyping?
9.00
Lecture:
Meeting the
user.
9.00
Lecture:
What to
observe?
9.00 -16hs
Planning and
testing 1
more
iterations
Working on
the
presentations
10-14hs
Audio
interface for
dating service
10-14hs
Video Poem
10-16hs
Independent
work
10-14hs
Testing 1st
iteration.
Redoing the
prototype
Testing again
Working on
the
presentations
13hs
Final
presentations
14hs
Lecture:
Remix
practices and
EUscreen
14hs
Lecture:
Introducing
the exercise +
more on
remix
Designing
renmixing
tools
Planning the
1st iteration
15hs
Students
presentations
: how was the
day?

76. Positive discoveries - what worked well?
Problem situations
- incorrect navigation paths
- long pauses
- getting stuck
Observe users' gestures
Did your prototype convey a correct mental model?
What corrections did you make?
Your reflections on the method itself
OBERSERVING

77. Error rates, task completion times, navigation steps etc.
Straightforward to analyze statistically
Enables direct comparison of two systems such as prototypes or improved
versions
Presented through numbers, charts, graphs ...
Pros: Precise, convincing, easy to understand, brief, often can be collected
automatically
Cons: Might be laborious to collect by hand, does not tell much about the user’s
thinking, feelings or support a creative progress
QUANTITATIVE DATA

78. Real-life use cases or test cases used to build up a story
Anecdotes and video clips serve as the material
Make notes, look for emerging patterns, group
Verify your findings with the users
Free-form, rich, convincing, user-oriented - but: not too exact
QUALITATIVE DATA AS STORY

79. Look for patterns and incidents: delays, user made errors, got stuck
Form categories
Multiple persons work on the same data
MAKING CATEGORIES

80. Description of a problem or an observation, possibly a screenshot
Again: grouping
0-3 scale (comment, cosmetic, adequate, fatal)
Sorting criteria: part of system, importance, type of problem
Possible suggestions
REPORTING A PROBLEM

81. What to videotape?
The user, the hands,
computer screen?
DOCUMENTING WITH VIDEO

82. Prototyping produce great amount of data: video/sound clips, photos, sketches,
diaries, notes etc.
What should we do with all the data?
Analyze and document, learn from it
Who are you writing to? Different stakeholders need different information in
different orders of precision.
What are the possible target groups? (managers, software/interface designers,
customers)
Always offer an overview where the most important findings are presented in a
compact way
Remember to report positive findings as well!

83. REPORT
Please write a learning diary about your activities in this workshop. The
report
should be at least four pages of A4 (1,5 line spacing, 12pt font) and
include the following:
- Description of your work with the construction of three different
prototypes and test tasks
- Experiences you got on the different roles (leader, computer, observer)
- Improvements your group made based on the observations
- Reflections on the methods (paper prototypes and Wizard of Oz)
Although this is not a learning diary, please elaborate in the end on how
one or more of the topics discussed in class are relevant (or not
relevant) to your work. The report is to be written individually, not in
groups.
Deadline:, submit the document by email to mariana.salgado@aalto.fi
Format: PDF written report with images.
(This is not meant to be the same document as your group's final
presentation on Tuesday!)

84. Suggestions for today teamwork
user tests- observations- redoing the prototypes- more user tests
Tutorial sessions with groups
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

85. Kiitos! Thanks!
Mariana Salgado and Andrea Botero- Media Lab- ARTS 2014

86. TIMETABLE
1st day
22.04
Tuesday
2nd day
23.04
Wednesday
3rd day
24.04
Thursday
4th day
25.04
Friday
5th day
28.04
Monday
6th day
29.04
Friday
9.00
Introduction
of the course.
Lecture on:
Different
prototyping
techniques
9.00
Lecture:
Video
Prototyping
by Ville
Tikkanen.
9.00
Main task
description
and
introduction
Remix tool
9.00
Lecture on
testing
9.00 -16hs
Planning and
testing 2
more
iterations
10-14hs
Audio
interface for
dating service
10-14hs
Video Poem
(Wizard of
OZ)
10-16hs
Independent
work
10-14hs 13hs
Final
presentations
14hs
Lecture:
Remix
practices and
EUscreen
14hs
Lecture:
formats and
tools for
remixing
15hs
Students
presentations
: how was the
day?