Nailing it down: Specifying experience design so it can be built

Nailing it down
Specifying experience design so it can be built

UX Australia
Joe Sokohl
@mojoguzzi

CONFIDENTIALITY
The concepts and methodologies contained herein are proprietary to Regular Joe Consulting LLC.
Duplication, reproduction or disclosure of information is this document without the express written
permission of Regular Joe Consulting is prohibited. Enjoy the work. We hope you find it useful.

Friday, August 27, 2010

A bit about me

2


A bit about me

http://www.uxaustralia.com.au/conference-2010/design-thinking-is-this-our-ticket-to-the-big-table
2


My Aussie props

3


Agenda

Defining the damn things

What’s the problem

What are some solutions

What’s your story

4


So what’s the big deal, anyway?

Determining what the problem is

5


Who this talk applies to

Agencies

Independent UXers

Highly regulated areas: healthcare, government,
military
Anyone working with distributed teams (including
cross-border, multiple time zone teams)

6


Who this talk might not apply to

Heterogenous teams

UXers who also do front-end development

Co-located, nimble teams who don’t have a need to
retrace steps

7


Who this talk might not apply to

Heterogenous teams

UXers who also do front-end development

Co-located, nimble teams who don’t have a need to
retrace steps

Then again....

7


Typical documentation approaches

 Research artifacts such as competitive reviews, heuristic analysis, mental models/
affinity diagrams, and personas
 User/task matrixes

 Annotated wireframes

 Concept models

 Card sorts

 And on and on and on...

8


FiveDs Summary

Discover Design Define Develop Deliver

Define project goals, Further define a Refine design details, Build and integrate Complete the
business reqs, set of requirements create final design and front-end and commercialization of
and initial scope. and create systems obtain signoff. back-end systems. the product
and UX models

Activities Activities Activities Activities Activities

• Define goals • Brainstorming • Merge visual and • Image and page • Acceptance testing
functional design creation
• Key success factors • Scenario building • System and
• Final content • Content integration knowledge transfer
• VOC workshops • Wireframes
• Test scenarios • Coding • Product deployment
• EOC interviews • Visual direction
• Object analysis, • Unit testing • Marketing campaign
• B/U/S requirements • HL Info Architecture
modeling, design
• System staging in
• Site analysis • HL Sys Architecture
• Database analysis QA environment
• Audience analysis • Define technology and design
• Incremental QA and
• Initial use cases • Design testing on multiple
• Business processes documentation platforms

08/27/10

What’s the difference between reqs & specs?

 Requirements

 Requirements cannot be “gathered”

 Requirements are not features

 Requirements are not specifications

 Specifications

 “Effective documentation combines text and
images to describe the anatomy and physiology
of a product.”

11



 Requirements




 Specifications

of a product.”
 My definition? A specification is

11



 Requirements




 Specifications

of a product.”

 The body of information that conveys sufficient
detail to communicate that which can be coded.

11



 Requirements




 Specifications

of a product.”

 Just enough detail to enable the developer
to understand the UX designer’s intent.

11


Where do they break? Why

12


Where do they break? Why

Spec need

Team proximity or regulatory need (or both)

12


Requirements masquerading as specifications

Traditional approach
 1.1.1. The system shall allow the teacher to click a control which displays the first
answer in the lesson.
NOTE: Subsequent answers can be accessed by individual controls after the first
answer is displayed. The “Show Answers” and “Show First Answer” controls shall be
displayed outside of lessons in a toolbar in the Learning Environment. Answers
should be displayed to both the teacher and student.

User story approach
As a clinician and/or front desk assistant, I need to record the writer, provider(s),
assistant(s), as well as the date and time of entry for every clinical note, so that I can
maintain accurate clinical records.

13


A bridge to nowhere?

14


“ is not it at all,
That
That is not what I meant, at
all. . . . . .

”

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2009/3/30/1238371335802/TS-Eliot-003.jpg
15


Big, grandiose statement

Anything that specifies user
behavior or activities that
affect users belongs to the
user experience team

16


Solutions

More detail at the right time

17


Requirement: Turn indicators

1.3.2.5a: The system shall
include the ability for the
operator to indicate a changed
direction of travel

18


Requirement: Turn indicators

18


Sketches provide documentation

19


Sketches provide documentation

The genius in our styling department is that they not only have a great feel for
design, but also for the fact that the design needs to function properly on a
motorcycle. That melding of functionality and styling is what makes our
motorcycles very, very special

19


Detailed sketches

20


Embeded specifications

21


The finished product

22


Prototypes help, too

23


What Are Some Solutions

 Frameworks

 Style guides and pattern libraries

 Accurate diagrams and traceable notes

 A proverbial seat at the table.

24


Embedding Specs with Wireframes or Prototypes

25


Embedding Specs with Wireframes or Prototypes

26


But...but...what about Agile?
27


Sometimes specs fall into the wrong hands

28


Special order 191

29


Special order 191

Major Taylor will proceed to Leesburg, Va., and arrange for transportation of the sick and
those unable to walk to Winchester, securing the transportation of the country for this
purpose. The route between this and Culpeper Court-House east of the mountains being
unsafe will no longer be traveled. Those on the way to this army already across the river
will move up promptly; all others will proceed to Winchester collectively and under
command of officers, at which point, being the general depot of this army, its movements
will be known and instructions given by commanding officer regulating further movements.

III. The army will resume its march tomorrow, taking the Hagerstown road. General
Jackson's command will form the advance, and, after passing Middletown, with such
portion as he may select, take the route toward Sharpsburg, cross the Potomac at the
most convenient point, and by Friday morning take possession of the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad, capture such of them as may be at Martinsburg, and intercept such as may
attempt to escape from Harper's Ferry.

IV. General Longstreet's command will pursue the main road as far as Boonsborough,
where it will halt, with reserve, supply, and baggage trains of the army.

V.General McLaws, with his own division and that of General R. H. Anderson, will follow
General Longstreet. On reaching Middletown will take the route to Harper's Ferry, and by
Friday morning possess himself of the Maryland Heights and endeavor to capture the
enemy at Harper's Ferry and vicinity.

29


http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/antietam/maps/antietammap3.html
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“ In preparing for battle, I have always
found that plans are useless...

31


“ In preparing for battle, I have always
found that plans are useless...

...but planning is indispensable. ”
—Dwight Eisenhower
31


So...

32


So...

A specification is

32


So...

A specification is
 Just enough detail to enable the developer
to understand the UX designer’s intent.

32


What’s your story?

33


Many thanks!

Joe Sokohl
Joe@RegularJoeConsulting.com
1.804.873.6964
@mojoguzzi


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