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Usability of Complex Information Systems: Evaluation of User Interaction

Usability of Complex Information Systems: Evaluation of User Interaction

Usability of Complex Information Systems: Evaluation of User Interaction

Usability of Complex Information Systems: Evaluation of User Interaction

Overview

Why do enterprise systems have complicated search pages, when Google has a single search box that works better? Why struggle with an expense reimbursement system that is not as easy as home accounting software? Although this seems like comparing apples to oranges, as information and communication technologies increasingly reach into every industry the demand for easy-to-use work tools continues to grow. An exploration of cutting-edge approaches for evaluating the usability of complex user interaction, Usability of Complex Information Systems: Evaluation of User Interaction focuses on improving design and communicating content to the end user.

The book continues the conversation about the evolution of usability, asking how we can design and evaluate these complex systems and the complex work they support. It describes and analyzes approaches to teaching, testing, analyzing, or managing usability studies—approaches that involve technical communicators making novel contributions to how we think about and evaluate increasingly complex systems. The book contains case studies on different types of complexity, including:

  • A complex work environment, requiring collaboration among different people or a goal sustained over time, and often in the face of distractions, interruptions, and planned pauses
  • A complex information context, one with no single answer, where the data changes dynamically or where the best answer may rely on other aspects of a fluid environment
  • A complex technology, in which people use many different applications in their work and collaboration
  • A complex topic, requiring advanced technical or domain knowledge

Even systems that seem simple are, in fact, complex. The shopping interface for an e-commerce system may not be complex, but the databases, business processes, and logistics behind it certainly are. The examination of different aspects of designing and examining complexity presented in this book brings you a step further in developing a deeper understanding of what it takes to make complex systems work.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781439828946
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Publication date: 10/15/2010
Edition description: New Edition
Pages: 400
Product dimensions: 6.20(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Michael Albers, Brian Still

Table of Contents

List of Figures vii

List of Tables xi

Foreword xiii

About the Editors xvii

Contributors xix

About the Contributors xxi

Section I Comprehending Complexity: Solutions for Understanding the Usability of Information

1 Usability of Complex Information Systems Michael J. Albers 3

2 Combining Rhetorical Theory with Usability Theory to Evaluate Quality of Writing in Web-Based Texts David Hailey 17

3 Language Complexity and Usability Nathan Jahnke 47

4 Innovation and Collaboration in Product Development: Creating a New Role for Usability Studies in Educational Publishing Tharon W. Howard Michael Greer 67

Section II Theorizing Complexity: Ideas for Conceptualizing Usability and Complex Systems

5 Mapping Usability: An Ecological Framework for Analyzing User Experience Brian Still 89

6 Usability and Information Relationships: Considering Content Relationships and Contextual Awareness When Testing Complex Information Michael J. Albers 109

7 Continuous Usability Evaluation of Increasingly Complex Systems Vladimir Stantchev 133

8 Design Considerations for Usability Testing Complex Electronic Commerce Websites: A Perspective from the Literature Julie Fisher 157

Section III Designing for Complexity: Methods of Conceptualizing Design Needs of Complex Systems

9 An Activity-Theoretical Approach to the Usability Testing of Information Products Meant to Support Complex Use Heather Shearer 181

10 Designing Usable and Useful Solutions for Complex Systems: A Case Study for Genomics Research R. Stanley Dicks 207

11 Incorporating Usability into the API Design Process Robert Watson 223

Section IV Practical Approaches: Methods for Evaluating Complexity

12 Tapping into Desirability in User Experience Carol M. Barnum Laura A. Palmer 253

13 Novel Interaction Styles, Complex Working Contexts, and the Role of Usability David Golightly Mirabelle D'Cruz Harshada Patel Michael Pettitt Sarah Sharples Alex W. Stedmon John R. Wilson 281

14 Information Usability Testing as Audience and Context Analysis for Risk Communication Donna J. Kain Menno de Jong Catherine F. Smith 305

15 Usability Testing, User Goals, and Engagement in Educational Games Jason Cootey 333

Index 363

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