Final Exam

Spring Semester 1998

Write you name, date and "BCS 228 Final" on each bluebook.

Put all answers in your bluebooks.

PART A. In your blue-book, write short (two sentence Maximum) definitions of each of the following terms:

1. Low-fidelity prototype.



2. Leading (in the context of typography)



3. Out-of-the-box usability test.

PART B. In your blue-book, write short (two sentence Maximum) answers to each of the following questions:

1. Who was Hewell Murell briefly explain his contribution to the field of ergonomics.



2. Approximately when was the Human Factors Department founded at Kodak. What is the significance of this?



3. List two good reasons for capturing users on video tape interacting with a product / prototype when performing a usability test.

PART C. Answer just ONE of the following three essay questions (1 or 2 or 3).

1. Icons are often used to prevent the need to have words translated in a user interface. Explain the risks associated with attempting to design such a text-free interface.



2. Discuss the pros and cons of user interaction standards and guidelines from the perspective of the end user.



3. Macintosh is considered by many to be a truly revolutionary product. Explain the evolutionary roots of this product as discussed in class and from the related reading.

PART D. Answer just ONE of the following four essay questions (1 or 2 or 3 or 4).

1. Explain how an environmental factor (such as heat, noise, or ambient light) can sometimes lead to an increase and some times lead to a decrease in human performance.



2. Explain how position and posture can effect maximum voluntary contraction (use the in-class example of grip strength from Paul Hickey’s lecture on work physiology).



3. Explain the re-routing of blood flow within the human body that occurs when heavy work is required.



4. Why is sitting, working at a computer terminal often so physically demanding? How do people injure themselves in these seemingly benign desk jobs?

PART E. Answer just ONE of the following five essay questions (1 or 2 or 3 or 4 or 5).

1. Your company is developing two products: (1) an electronic personal communications product for 8-12 year old kids and (2) an electronic pill dispenser for Alzheimer’s patients. Explain how you might go about recruiting subjects for a usability evaluation for one of these two products. List a few of the special concerns might you have to address in testing such products with representative users from these target populations?



2. Perform a hierarchical task analysis for cleaning dishes (by hand). Explain how this might be useful in designing an automatic dishwasher.



3. There is some overlap between techniques used for task analysis and techniques used for usability evaluation. Imagine you are interviewing some one for a job to work on your product design team. The candidate has performed usability tests on finished products for years at Consumer Reports, Inc. This person has never actually participated in the development of a new product. Explain to this person using the spiral model of product development and your knowledge of usability testing and task analysis how their skills might be used throughout the entire product development cycle.



4. What are "performance aids" and how do they relate to Donald Norman’s idea of reducing the demands of "memory in the head."



5. Explain why design should be considered an iterative process. What is the role of usability testing in this process.