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Do you spend a lot of time during the design process wondering
what users really need? Do you hate those endless meetings
where you argue how the interface should work? Have you ever
developed something that later had to be completely redesigned?
Paper Prototyping can help. Written by a usability
engineer with a long and successful paper prototyping history,
this book is a practical, how-to guide that will prepare you
to create and test paper prototypes of all kinds of user interfaces.
You'll see how to simulate various kinds of interface elements
and interactions. You'll learn about the practical aspects
of paper prototyping, such as deciding when the technique
is appropriate, scheduling the activities, and handling the
skepticism of others in your organization. Numerous case studies
and images throughout the book show you real world examples
of paper prototyping at work.
Want more information? See the detailed Table
of Contents below.
Praise for Paper
Prototyping
Carolyn Snyder has written a wonderful book with all the
practical information you need to make paper prototypes and
get cost-effective usability data about your user interface
designs. Any mid-sized design project will probably get an
ROI of several thousand percent from following the advice
in this book.
--from the foreword by Jakob Nielsen,
Principal,
Nielsen Norman Group
Paper prototyping is a critical skill for HCI
practitioners and a key method for gathering requirements,
building strong conceptual models, and eliminating embarrassing
design gaffes. Paper Prototyping: The Fast and Easy Way
to Design and Refine User Interfaces is the definitive
source for understanding this simple, but powerful technique. It
integrates the disparate literature on paper prototyping with
a wealth of consulting experience. You'll learn something
from every page and enjoy the insights of a colleague I view
as THE paper prototyping guru. If you ever plan to do
paper prototyping, buy this book and read it from cover to
cover!
--Chauncey E. Wilson, HCI
Architect
Paper Prototyping: The Fast and Easy Way to
Design and Refine User Interfaces is a "must have" for anyone
doing design or usability for software or for the web. From
her extensive experience with paper prototyping, Carolyn Snyder
gives us detailed and very practical advice with many examples
in a breezy style that makes it all easy to follow.
--Ginny Redish, Redish &
Associates, Inc.
Paper prototyping is an essential
technique for user-centered design. Up until now, practitioners
have had to learn many of the details of how to make paper
prototyping work by trial and error. This book plugs a big
hole in the literature: finally, people new to the technique
will have a manual to answer the many questions that everyone
has when they get started. In addition to solid, practical
advice about how to create a paper prototype, this book also
presents detailed information about how to prepare for, conduct,
and interpret the results of this type of testing. Carolyn
Snyder has done a masterful job of assembling the collected
wisdom and the variety of perspectives from many people in
the field. This book will go on my short list of recommended
usability texts. --Mary Beth
Rettger, The MathWorks, Inc.
Detailed
Table of Contents
PART I: INTRODUCTION
TO PAPER PROTOTYPING
These first four chapters provide an introduction to the
what, why, and how of paper prototyping – what it is,
what it does for companies, why it’s useful, and how
to prototype various interface widgets.
Chapter 1 - Introduction
This chapter starts with a definition of paper prototyping
and how it is used, including several pictures of a development
team preparing a paper prototype and conducting a usability
test. Overviews are provided of the benefits of paper prototyping,
its history, and its relationship to usability. The audience
for this book is described – readers are involved in
the design, implementation, or support of user interfaces.
This book does not assume prior experience in programming,
interface design, or usability testing.
Chapter 2 - Case
Studies
This chapter contains case studies of paper prototypes for
five different types of interfaces. These case studies show
that paper prototype usability studies reveal more than just
typical “usability issues” like confusing terminology
(although there are plenty of those), but also potentially
more serious issues such as missing or incorrect functional
requirements. Also described are two paper prototypes dating
back to the early 1970s.
Chapter 3 - Thinking
About Prototyping
This chapter explores two main topics, 1) how a prototyping
method supports (or interferes with) the process of creating
an interface and 2) the effects of paper prototyping on the
people involved in producing, testing, and refining a design.
The discussion starts with the activities involved (designing,
rendering, and coding) in creating the “look”
and “feel” aspects of an interface. Paper prototyping’s
effect on creativity is discussed, as well as its benefits
as a tool for enhancing communication.
Chapter 4 - Making
a Paper Prototype
This chapter addresses the widget-level “how to”
of paper prototyping, illustrating how to create or simulate
a variety of graphical user interface controls. First, the
materials used in paper prototyping are described, including
some less common but very handy supplies like removable tape.
The purpose of a background is explained, with examples for
different types of interfaces. Many common interface widgets
are illustrated, and simulation of interaction (tooltips,
scrolling, etc.) is covered. This chapter also explains how
to include hardware, documentation, and even human actors
into a paper prototype usability test.
PART II
PROCESS: CONDUCTING A USABILITY STUDY WITH A PAPER PROTOTYPE
The chapters in this section describe the process of using
a paper prototype to conduct usability tests. This is all
the “how-to” material, and it assumes you’ve
made a decision to try paper prototyping on a real project.
If you’re still debating whether paper prototyping is
an appropriate technique for your interface and circumstances,
read Part III first.
Chapter 5 - Planning
a Usability Study with a Paper Prototype
This chapter describes the process of conducting a usability
study (a series of usability tests) using a paper prototype:
- An
overview of the activities
- People
to involve
- The
kickoff meeting, which includes a discussion of risks/concerns
about the interface
- User
profiles (including several examples)
- User
recruitment
- Scheduling
Chapter 6 - Task
Design
Good tasks are essential to a successful usability test.
This chapter describes the characteristics of a good usability
task. It outlines a 7-step process for creating tasks using
the template provided on the Downloads page. Several examples
of real tasks are provided.
Chapter 7 - Preparing
the Prototype
This chapter provides more detail about the process of creating
a paper prototype:
- An
overview of the process (listing the components needed,
dividing up the work, holding periodic walkthroughs
- Whether
to prototype your existing application or a new design
- When
to use screen shots vs. hand-drawn versions.
- Greeking
and other forms of simplification –what they are,
and when it is appropriate to use them.
- How
much to prototype (anticipating possible user paths and
errors)
- Tips
for organizing the prototypes
- Walkthroughs
of usability tasks using the paper prototype
Chapter
8 - Introduction to Usability Test Facilitation
This chapter is intended for those with little experience
in usability testing who want to learn the basics of test
facilitation (for any type of interface):
- The
legal and ethical responsibilities of the test facilitator,
including the use of an informed consent form
- The
three facilitator roles of flight attendant, sportscaster,
and scientist and how these roles guide the trade-off decisions
that facilitators must make during every usability test
- Co-discovery
(two-user) testing – its pros and cons, and why co-discovery
is especially useful in paper prototyping
- Common
testing challenges, including getting users unstuck and
dealing with a nervous user
- Tips
for new facilitators
Chapter 9 - Usability
Testing with a Paper Prototype
This chapter focuses on the specifics of testing a paper
prototype: The test facility, including seating of the users,
Computer, facilitator, and observers
- Reasons
to videotape paper prototype tests (or not), and tips for
doing so
- How
to prepare users for the experience of testing a paper prototype
- How
the “Computer” behaves during the usability
test
- Differences
in facilitating a paper prototype test (for instance, assuring
users that it’s OK to write on the prototype). This
chapter includes sample checklists and scripts for conducting
paper prototype tests that you’ll find in the Downloads
section
- Modifying
the paper prototype, both during and between usability tests
Chapter 10 - Observers
Because paper prototyping makes use of a human Computer,
it is an inherently social activity. This chapter explains
why it’s useful to have observers in the room, and addresses
the concerns people often have about this method.
- Benefits
of In-Room Observers
- Concerns
about In-Room Observers
- Rules
for in-room observers, and how to explain them to people
- Preparing
users for in-room observers
- How
observers and users interact, including several examples
of the kinds of questions to avoid
Chapter 11 - Data:
Capturing, Prioritizing, and Communicating
The best-run usability test is useless if no one retains
the lessons learned from it. This chapter explains how the
observers should take notes during a usability test, and what
to do with the information afterward.
- What
observers should look for and write down (includes examples
of test notes)
- The
differences among observations, inferences, and opinions
- Whether
to type notes or write them by hand
- The
affinity diagram method of prioritizing usability test issues
- Why
success rates and statistics are often not useful in paper
prototype usability studies
- Methods
of communicating and documenting the results
PART III
DECIDING WHETHER TO USE PAPER
Like any technique, paper prototyping works well in some
situations but may not provide sufficient value in others.
These three chapters provide an in-depth look at the strengths
and weaknesses of paper prototyping, the political issues
you may face when introducing the technique into your organization,
and factors that can argue for or against the use of paper
prototypes in real-world project situations.
Chapter 12 - What
Paper Is (and Isn’t) Good For
This chapter examines the type of interface problems that
paper prototypes are likely and unlikely to find. It does
so by examining the dimensions of a prototype, how various
methods of prototyping have strengths in different dimensions,
and how to select an appropriate method based on what your
questions are.
- Why
the term “low-fidelity prototype” can be misleading
- The
four dimensions of a prototype (breadth, depth, look, and
interaction), and why only three of them are useful in comparing
prototyping methods
- Comparison
of four methods of prototyping for an e-commerce site (working
HTML prototype, slide show, paper prototype, and DENIM)
- Which
prototype dimensions are important based on the questions
you have about your interface
- What
types of problems paper prototypes will likely find, may
find, and probably won’t find
- Finding
problems through inspection
- The
kinds of problems that usability testing won’t find
Chapter 13 The
Politics of Paper Prototyping
The real challenge in paper prototyping often lies in convincing
others to try it. Even people who recognize that paper prototyping
is useful often have concerns about it, which tend to fall
into four categories: validity, bias, professionalism, and
resouces. The material in this chapter provides a framework
for addressing these concerns.
- Overview
of research studies that examine paper prototyping’s
validity as a technique for finding real problems
- Case
studies that describe the use of paper prototyping on real
projects
- The
many sources of bias in usability testing, including users,
tasks, test setting, the test facilitator, observers, analysis
and reporting, and (last but not least) the paper prototype
itself
- A
qualitative analysis technique for examining which source(s)
of bias are affecting the results
- Professionalism
– what programmers are afraid of, and how to alleviate
these fears
- Resource
constraints – how to estimate whether paper prototyping
will introduce additional work or save you work
- A
technique called the efficiency ratio for weighing the benefit
of a paper prototype (or any other kind of prototype) against
the effort needed to create it
- Tips
for dealing with skeptics
Chapter 14 -
When to Use Paper
Although paper prototyping is a useful technique, in some
circumstances its benefits are more compelling than in others.
This chapter first describes several “war stories”
that illustrate the things that can go awry in computer-based
usability testing. Looking at the underlying causes of these
war stories gives rise to a checklist of factors to help predict
how vulnerable a project is to particular kinds of risks.
- People
and logistics (composition of the development team, location
of the users, rescheduling costs)
- The
development context (stability of the technology, coordinating
usability testing and development, and the test environment)
- Tasks,
data and test scenarios (control of content, reset procedures,
installation/configuration tasks, real-world consequences,
and user-defined tasks)
- Timing
and scope of development
- Hybrid
(paper + software) testing
PART IV
BROADENING THE FOCUS
Most of this book focuses on the specifics of paper prototyping.
But paper prototyping fits within the larger context of user-centered
design, which also includes techniques like usage scenarios,
contextual inquiry, participatory design, etc. Although the
techniques themselves can be sophisticated, they share an
innate simplicity: They help product teams understand users.
Chapter 15 - Examples
of User-Centered Design
Paper prototyping is just one means of user-centered design.
This chapter looks at three additional case studies, not just
of paper prototyping, but how paper prototyping was used as
one activity within a larger context of product development.
- The
MathWorks:
In developing MATLAB 6, the development team first conducted
contextual interviews (with the help of some studies who
received course credit for their efforts) to better understand
the problems the tool was intended to solve. They then created
and tested paper prototypes, followed by additional usability
testing of a working version. Also described are “usability
nights,” a technique for getting informal usability
feedback from a group of customers.
- IBM:
Storyboards are used during the early stages of the project
to capture various kinds of information about users and
their work. The team then creates rough paper prototypes,
following them up with PowerPoint presentations and “mid-fi”
prototypes.
- Dictaphone:
In creating a handheld microphone for physicians, the development
team first created usage scenarios to help them understand
how various proposed features would benefit users. The earliest
microphone models were created using wood blocks and stickers,
which helped the development team explore different ways
of laying out the controls. The team then progressed to
Fome-Cor mockups and then true 3D foam models. Each step
of the way, the team gained new insights about the design,
before going to the expense and risk of producing a working
microphone.
Chapter 16 -
Final Thoughts
Some of the author’s own unanswered questions about
paper prototyping.
About the Author
Carolyn Snyder is an internationally recognized usability
consultant with 10 years of experience in usability and another
10 as a software engineer and project manager. She has taught
usability testing and paper prototyping to development teams
at dozens of companies. For more information about Carolyn
and the services offered by her company, visit www.snyderconsulting.net.
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