Goal Directed Design Prevents Dancing Bearware Andrew Steele

Goal Directed Design Prevents Dancing Bearware Andrew Steele twitter: ahsteele blog: http: //steelebit. com andrew. steele@sandia. gov Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin company, for the U. S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-AC 04 -94 AL 85000.

The Inmates Are Running the Asylum If you are familiar with Alan Cooper’s The Inmates Are Running the Asylum this presentation will be a refresher. 2

it is omnipresent DANCING BEARWARE 3

Look a dancing bear! The wonder isn't that the bear dances well but that the bear dances at all 4

Causes of Dancing Bearware • • • Software forgets Software is lazy Software is stingy with information Software is inflexible Software blames users Software won’t take responsibility 5

Software Solutions having one is > than not having one 6

We Ignore Collateral Costs 7

COGNITIVE FRICTION 8

Cognitive Friction Creates Two Groups Apologists Survivors 9

We’re all apologists 10

how we apologize (badly) FEATURES 11

Why do we use features? • • Features are quantifiable Can be bargained over Put programmers in control Users are not compelled by features 12

Product Feature List 1. Internal combustion engine 2. Four wheels with rubber tires 3. Transmission connecting the engine to the drive wheels 4. Engine and transmission mounted on metal chassis 5. Steering wheel 13

Product Goal List • Cuts grass quickly and easily • Comfortable to sit on 14

different than features GOALS 15

What are goals? • Goals are the reason why we perform tasks • Tasks are not goals 16

Task-Directed Design • What are the tasks? • Programmers do task-directed design – Good programmers, of necessity, see things procedurally, or task-wise 17

Examples of False Goals • • • Save memory Save keystrokes Run in a browser Be easy to learn Safeguard data integrity Speed up data entry Increase program-execution efficiency Increase graphic beauty Maintain consistency across platforms 18

how to kill the elastic user PERSONAS 19

The Elastic User 20

Persona Benefits • • • Specificity Hypothetical Precision, not accuracy Realistic look at skill levels End feature debates 21

Cast of Characters Bruce Hamilton Nancy Green 22

Bruce Hamilton • • Age 52 Engineer Prone to complaint Intolerant of complexity Computer Literate Limited recreational internet use Goal: Perform required task as quickly as possible. 23

Nancy Green • • • Age 33 Center Business Analyst (money person) Prone to complaint Power user of Microsoft office Some recreational internet use Goal: Track budgets quickly and easily. 24

you didn’t think this was all academic did you? OUR RESULT 25

Isn’t it pretty? 26

Another pretty picture. 27

Application Praise • ELA is nice and easy to use. • It doesn’t seem to work like other Sandia applications. • I am usually astounded by how our systems at Sandia are unintuitive and difficult to use, but in this case, the Enterprise License Accountability app was a pleasant surprise. 28

QUESTIONS 29