This 2nd stage test was conducted using the 1st working version of the application on a mobile phone. Again, we walked around the area, this time users were able to search as well as ‘tag’. We had to ‘simulate’ the GPS functionality. We did this by entering location ‘codes’ in place of this being done automatically by the GPS device. This test focussed more specifically on interface usability, however, it did give the testers a better idea of what the product really means –
"It was nicer than last time because it was the real thing… It’s something that would make you feel closer to home if you find something that’s related to you, for example if you’re away backpacking" (user 1)
"It’s nice to give your opinion about a place, that you can say what you think" (user 2)
Signing up:
Users found the ‘sign up’ process too long, and would prefer to do online, so we added information to the sign up page stating users could also sign up online. They also noted that after signing up, they still had to login in, so we changed it to automatically log them in.
Searching:
Users were unsure whether they needed to fill out all fields, so we created mandatory and non-mandatory fields and indicated the mandatory ones with an asterisk.
Users wanted to ‘add’ to an existing search to broaden their search, although this is not possible, by showing that ‘communities’ and ‘keywords’ are optional, they can leave ‘communities’ blank and simply input several different keywords.
Users weren’t sure whether selecting the links would ‘clear’ a current search. We made this clearer by changing ‘search’ to ‘new search’.
Search results:
Users were confused by links appearing at the top of the screen- they weren’t sure if the results were below or on another page, so we moved the links to the bottom of the page.
Users were confused when they didn’t see results at the top of the page, which was rectified by moving the links and also removing the logo from the top of the screen (which also made results load faster, and made data transfer smaller, thus decreasing cost for users).
When multiple results were shown, users weren’t sure which ones they’d already read, so we implemented visited links in a different colour (although unfortunelty this is not supported by all phone browsers).
Tagging:
Users found it difficult to read the message they were typing, so we enlarged the size of the ‘message’ field.
The Langitude & Longitude fields (only included to simulate the GPS) confused users, so we moved them to the bottom of the screen.
Tagging process was too long, so we indicated that not all fields are mandatory. The ‘subject’ field was also confusing, so we re-named this ‘name of place’
Logout:
No real problems here, all users knew to navigate to the ‘home’ page to log out, however, we decided to add a ‘logout’ link on all pages to save cost for users (as each page loaded costs them money)
We did some quick follow-up tests after implementing the above changes, to see if they helped. These were on previous testers, as well as new, to give impartiality.
New and previous users alike found the system easy and quick to master and use, with previous users stating they noticed definite improvements in ease of use, and stating there was nothing more they would change.
Only two observations came up-
Firstly the ‘communities’ list was not alphabetical – which could be a problem when the communities list becomes longer, which we’ve now changed.
Secondly, after adding a keyword using the ‘popular keywords’ and going back to the search screen, the community button had became unselected. This couldn’t be changed as it would require Javascript not supported by mobiles, however, an easy solution was to move the ‘keyword’ field above the ‘communities’, so users would choose ‘popular keywords’ before selecting a community.