Abstract

This tutorial will enable participants to recognize the differences between website and web application design. The tutorial will review different usability standards and guidelines for both types interfaces. Participants will use actual websites and web applications to illustrate the differences and understand the implications for usability standards and guidelines.

Learning objectives:

The learning objective for this tutorial include the following:

• Understand the difference between website design and web application design
• Understand the different usability standards for website and web application design
• Understand the differences in usability testing of a website versus a web application
• Design a low fidelity prototype for a website and a web application
• Construct a usability test for both a website and a web application

How tutorial will be conducted:

The tutorial will be conducted utilizing interactive participation, samples of websites and web applications, different usability standards and guidelines for websites and web applications. Each participant will receive a notebook that includes the content for the tutorial and exercises to insure that the material is understood and mastered. There will also be break out sessions into small groups so that each group will have the opportunity to apply the information to building a website, a web application, construct the appropriate usability tests for each and actually conduct the usability tests they constructed.

Detailed Description of Material Covered by Tutorial and a Schedule of Events

Module 1: Introduction to Tutorial and Instructors

• Introduce the presenters;
• Overview of tutorial structure;
• Introduce the participants: who, where from, experience, why taking tutorial and expectations, etc.
• Divide the group up into groups of 6-10 (depending upon the number of participants).

Module 2: Differences between website and web application design

• Present basic visual design, user interaction principles, and functionality for website design
• Present basic visual design, user interaction principles, and functionality for web application design
• Small group activity: Differences and overlaps in website and web application design

Module 3: Usability standards for website vs. web application design

• Usability standards and guidelines for website design
• Usability standards for web application design
• Small group activity: Key differences that affect the type of usability test to construct

Module 4: Usability testing of a website versus a web application

• Usability methods used to test websites
• Usability methods used to test web applications
• Small Group activity: Key differences between the usability methods

Module 5: Construct a usability test for both a website and a web application

• Examples of websites and web applications (lo-fidelity prototypes) will be provided by the instructors.
• Small Group Activity: Actual design and execution of a usability test for a website and a web application

Module 6: Group Presentations, Debriefing, Summary

• Each group will present their usability test plan and the results of their usability test.

Instructors' Biographies

David Hirning, Pres./Cofounder of OnCenter Consulting, has extensive experience in all aspects of software development, including web-based applications (Symantec, HP, RemoteNet). David participated in NIST Workshop for Usability Standards for W3C.

Virginia Lang, CEO/Co-founder of OnCenter Consulting, has an extensive background in usability, HCI, and participatory interface design. spanning both academia (University of Maryland, Binghamton University, Wichita State University, National University) as well as the public sector (Bellcore, Motorola, Symantec, AOL, RemoteNet, SunAmerica). Recently, she participated in NIST Workshop for Usability Standards for W3C.

Ron Perrault, Lead Consultant, OnCenter Consulting, has extensive experience in web-based design/development. Ron has created award winning Web sites for companies such as: Symantec, RemoteNet, Company DNA, AT&T, Eli Lilly and Sympatico. He attended the Ontario School of Art, majoring in Communication & Design.