Interactive system developers spend most of their time and resources on user interface evaluation in traditional usability laboratories. Since the network itself and the remote work setting have become parts of usage patterns, evaluators do not have unlimited access to representative users for user interface evaluation. Reproducing the user's work context in a laboratory setting is also difficult. These problems have led to the concept of Remote usability evaluation that takes interface evaluation of any application beyond the laboratory setting. The main aim of this thesis work is to develop a tool that can record problems faced by remote users in the form of text and video. The text report and video, which is a sequence of the user's actions while encountering the problem, would help evaluators in preparing usability problem descriptions. This thesis reports the development of the remote usability evaluation method and the process of usability evaluation performed in enhancing features offered by the tool. / Master of Science

Much traditional user interface evaluation is conducted in usability laboratories, where a small number of selected users is directly observed by trained evaluators. However, as the network itself and the remote work setting have become intrinsic parts of usage patterns, evaluators often have limited access to representative users for usability evaluation in the laboratory and the users' work context is difficult or impossible to reproduce in a laboratory setting. These barriers to usability evaluation led to extending the concept of usability evaluation beyond the laboratory, typically using the network itself as a bridge to take interface evaluation to a broad range of users in their natural work settings. The over-arching goal of this work is to develop and evaluate a cost-effective remote usability evaluation method for real-world applications used by real users doing real tasks in real work environments. This thesis reports the development of such a method, and the results of a study to: • investigate feasibility and effectiveness of involving users with to identify and report critical incidents in usage • investigate feasibility and effectiveness of transforming remotely-gathered critical incidents into usability problem descriptions • gain insight into various parameters associated with the method. / Master of Science

The aim with this thesis is to investigate two different methods used to test usability on web-sites to determine the advantages and disadvantages of two methods and compare the results. The two selected methods are the think aloud method and asynchronous remote method. Re-mote usability testing has existed for more than ten years but the possibilities with this meth-od needs to be explored more. To achieve the purpose of this thesis a case study was conducted on an e-commerce site and for the online remote usability testing software was used. The results of this study show that think aloud usability testing encounter more issues with the website than the remote usability testing.

In today’s era online social networks are getting extensive popularity among internet users. People are using online social networks for different purposes like sharing information, chatting with friends, family and planning to hang out. It is then no surprise that online social network should be easy to use and easily understandable. Previously many researchers have evaluated different online social networks but there is no such study which addresses usability concerns about online social network with a focus on Facebook on an academic level (using students as subjects). The main rationale behind this study is to find out efficiency of different usability testing techniques from social network’s point of view, with a focus on Facebook, and issues related to usability. To conduct this research, we have adopted the combination of both qualitative and quantitative approach. Graduate students from BTH have participated in usability tests. Our findings are that although think aloud is more efficient then remote testing, but this difference is not very significant. We found from survey that different usability issues are in Facebook profile, media, Picture Tagging, Chatting etc. / We have identified different usability issues in Facebook such as issues in media, chatting, facebook profile, changing profile name etc. Here we can say that although think aloud protocol is more efficient then remote testing but this difference is not very significant. We have also suggested some extension in usability testing techniques. If participants of usability test do not verbalize while interacting with the system and keep their focus on performing the test. After completion of each task participants can express their thoughts and opinions what they did. Furthermore we sent our founded results to developer for validation purpose. Developers replied that the results of this research are satisfactory. / Tariq Alam Address: Folkparksvagen 18:19, 37240 Ronneby, Sweden E-mail: chochoswati@hotmail.com, Muhammad Ali Address: Folkparksvagen 18:19, 37240 Ronneby, Sweden E-mail: alijpjgujrat@yahoo.com

World Wide Web has attained a significant role in the communication, information sharing and services delivery within some years. The web based applications now contains the information for different organizations, academics, medical and many more. Online business in the form of E-commerce is widely using the concepts of web based business very efficiently. Due to wide use of web applications, the usability and User Experience (UX) play important roles. The organizations often concentrate less on usability evaluation of web applications due to which the users encounter problems while using the product like page loading time, accessibility, font size etc. The bad usability influences the user experience. Usability evaluation of web application helps the companies to develop more user friendly and accessible products which also improve the market positions of their products. There are different Usability Evaluation Methods (UEMs) which can be used to evaluate the product. The appropriate UEM at appropriate time during product development ensures the high quality of product. Due to different definitions of usability and UX it is difficult to evaluate the usability and UX. Furthermore there are some organizational issues like time to market, evaluator's expertise, budget etc which restrict the deployment of UEMs in web development. This thesis study is focused on the identification of different definitions of Usability and UX. The relationship between Usability and UX is also investigated. Interviews are conducted in order to identify the factors which restrict the adoption of UEMs. The results of interview are analyzed by using Grounded Theory. Some recommendations are given on the basis of empirical study that how appropriate usability inspection method(s) can be adopted during the product development. / World Wide Web har uppnått en betydande roll i för kommunikation, informationsutbyte och tjänster leverans inom några år. Den web-baserade applikationer nu innehåller information för olika organisationer, akademiker, läkare och många fler. Online-verksamhet i form av e-handel är allmänt använda begreppen webbaserade business mycket effektivt. På grund av omfattande användning av webbapplikationer, användbarhet och User Experience (UX) spelar en viktig roll. Den organisationer koncentrera ofta mindre på användbarhet utvärdering av webbapplikationer beror på vilken användare stöter på problem när du använder produkter som är likadana sidan lastande tid, tillgänglighet, textstorlek etc. dåliga användbarhet påverkar användarupplevelsen. Användbarhet utvärdering av webbprogram hjälper företag att utveckla mer användarvänliga och lättillgängliga produkter som förbättrar också marknadspositioner produkter. Det finns olika Usability Evaluation Methods (UEMS) som kan användas för att utvärdera produkten. Den lämplig UEM vid lämplig tidpunkt under produktens utveckling säkerställer en hög kvalitet på produkten. Grund olika definitioner av användbarhet och UX det är svårt att utvärdera användbarheten och UX. Vidare finns Vissa organisatoriska frågor som tid till marknaden, Utvärderarens kompetens, budget etc. som begränsar utplacering av UEMS inom webbutveckling. Här avhandlingen Studien är inriktad på identifiering av olika definitioner av användbarhet och UX. Den Förhållandet mellan Användbarhet och UX är också undersökts. Intervjuerna är gjorda för att identifiera de faktorer som begränsar införandet av UEMS. Resultaten av intervjun analyseras med hjälp av Grounded Theory. Vissa rekommendationer ges på grundval av empiriska studie att hur lämpliga användbarhet kontrollmetod (s) kan antas under produktutvecklingen.

Samtidigt som utvecklingen av IT teknologier ständigt går framåt (allt frånprogrammeringsspråk, en ny sökmotor eller en processor) betraktar man sällan denteknologiska utvecklingen ur användbarhetsochfunktionalitetsperspektiv. Vad enprocessor har att göra med användbarhet eller funktionalitet kan vara bland detförsta som kommer på fråga. Genom att först förstå vad dessa begrepp innebär ochbryta ut de viktigaste egenskaperna, växer det fram en insikt att så gott som allateknologier berör något av de attributen som tillhör antingen användbarhet ellerfunktionalitet, eller också båda av dem.Detta arbete utgår ifrån ett kronologiskt upplägg och avser att belysa användbarhetoch funktionalitet på webben som analyseras under perioden 19912013.Början avperioden valdes för dess rika teknologiska utveckling som skedde med enspektakulär hastighet. Den långa perioden bryts ner till mindre delar om ca 5 år,dels för att kunna jämföra perioderna och dels för att för att kunna skapa en känslaav att dessa olika perioder kännetecknar olika steg i den mer än 20 år långatidsperiod.Genomgången av litteratur beträffande användbarhet och funktionalitet har visatatt betraktningsvinkeln av problemet som används i studien är unik. Det sattesinga begränsningar för vilka olika typer av teknologier som skulle inkluderas iundersökningen. Varken mjukvara eller hårdvara prioriterades mer än den andrautan de enda kriterierna som innefattades i analysen var popularitet och ävenspridning av teknologin.Studien bidrar med några intressanta slutsatser som kunde påverka ellerkomplettera de framtida forskningarna kring användbarhet och funktionalitet.Studien visar att det är tveksamt om det finns någon teknologi som lämnaranvändbarhet och funktionalitet opåverkad utan den eventuella skenbara frånvaronav påverkan tyder snarast på en ofullständig analys. Genom analysen avscriptspråkens påverkan på användbarhet och funktionalitet framkommer dettydligt hur pass viktiga dessa var för webbutveckling. Transformeringen till den såkallade Web 2.0, som handlar mycket om användbarhet och funktionalitet, blevmöjlig mycket med hjälp av programmeringsspråk som JavaScript och PHP. Enannan viktig aspekt är att studien gör det lättare att förutse en tänkbar utvecklinggenom att ge en inblick om hur användbarhet och funktionalitet påverkas av deolika teknologierna. Analysen gör det lättare att bedöma hur stor användbarhets ochfunktionalitetspotential olika teknologier har. / As the developments of IT technologies are continuously evolving (it could beanything from a programming language, a new search engine or a processor) thetechnological development is seldom considered from a usability and functionalityperspective. The first thing which you think about is; how can a processor influencesuch parameters as usability and functionality. By first understanding what theseconcepts means and extracting the main features, it becomes clear that almostevery technology affects some of the attributes belonging to usability orfunctionality.This work has a chronological approach and takes a special focus on usability andfunctionality of the Web, where period 19912013is analyzed. The beginning of theperiod was chosen due to much technological advancement which occurred with an impressive rate. This long period is divided into smaller parts, about 5 years each,to easier be able to compare the periods and to make an impression that thesedifferent periods characterizes different steps of evolution in the 20 year old longtime.The review of the literature regarding usability and functionality has shown that theway the problem is analyzed is unique. No restrictions were set on the types oftechnologies participating in the survey, software and hardware technologies weretreated equally, and the only criteria’s which were essential were the popularity andthe spread of the technology.The research provides some interesting conclusions that could affect or complementthe future researches regarding usability and functionality. The study shows thatthere are doubtfully any technologies which don’t get affected by usability andfunctionality but the absence of the effect could instead mean an incompleteanalysis. Furthermore by analyzing impact of script languages on usability andfunctionality it becomes clear how very important they are for the evolution of theweb. The transformation to the socalledWeb 2.0, which has big focus on usabilityand functionality, became possible due to languages like JavaScript and PHP.Another important aspect is that the study makes it easier to predict the possibledevelopment by making it clear how usability and functionality are affected bydifferent types of technologies. Also, it becomes easier to evaluate which usabilityand functionality potential the technologies have.

Användbarhet är ett centralt begrepp i webbutveckling vid utvecklandet avtillgängliga och användbara webbsidor. Användbarhet strävar efter effektivitet ochtillfredställelse. Webbsidans användare ska kunna utföra ärende utan ansträngningeller större tidsåtgång för att slutligen känna en tillfredställelse med sig själv ochdet framgångsrikt utförda ärendet.I detta examensarbete kommer användbarhet på world wide web behandlas ur tvåinfallsvinklar, experters uppfattning respektive vardaglig användares uppfattning påbegreppet. Arbetet ämnar lyfta fram tolkningar för begreppet användbarhet och hurstort värde det har vid webbutveckling, i synnerhet en global navigations värde somverktyg för orientering på en webbsida.Frågeställningen besvaras genom en analys och likhetsgranskning först mellanmålgrupperna, sedan mot tidigare studier i sektion 5.Examensarbetet kommer främst baseras på en tidigare studie som även denifrågasätter riktlinjer för användbarhet i en intervjustudie med utvecklare inomwebbutveckling.Genom intervjuer kommer vardagliga användare och experters tolkningar jämförasmot tidigare studier och forskning för att betona det värde som användbarhet harför en välutvecklad och funktionellt framgångsrik webbsida med fokus på globalnavigation. Resultatet av undersökningen ämnar styrka eller sänka hypotesen omatt satta riktlinjer för användbarhet behöver uppdateras och korrigeras efteraktuella uppfattningar hos så väl experter så väl som vardagliga användare idag.Det finns idag ingen känd forskning inom ämnet där användarens tolkning avanvändbarhet involveras vilket öppnar nya möjligheter till att förbättra existeranderiktlinjer ytterligare.Resultatet av studien visar att målgruppernas uppfattningar kompletterar varandramen tolkas på olika sätt. Medan experter, målgrupp 1, definierar användbarhet someffektivt, tillförståeligt och tillgängligt beskriver användarna, målgrupp 2, begreppetsom något enkelt och något som finns lättillgängligt och brett. Studiens främsta ochmest användbara resultat är att målgrupp 1 utvecklar efter normer framförriktlinjer, och målgrupp 2 vill ha produkter byggda på standarder och normer. / Usability is a central and common concept in the process of developing a usableand easily understood website for world wide web’s users. Usability strives förefficiency and satisfaction, the website’s users should be able to perform their taskswith minimum effort and within a reasonable time limit.This bachelor thesis will review the need of usability and how experts and usersinterprete the concept. How can the different interpretations of usability affect theneed of usability online on the world wide web, and how important is a navigationdesigned with usability in mind?This thesis will be based on a former study within the subject usability, aninterview study that is questioning the guidelines of usability today.The understandings on usability will be determined through interviews with eightinterviewees, four experts and four users. The examination aims to strength orlower the hypotes “Existing guidelines for usability needs an update andreformulation to fit the understandings from experts and users of world wide webtoday.”There is no earlier studies on the matter where users are asked to define usability,it is more common to ask users what they think of the usability on a specificproduct.The results of this study shows that the two audiences understandings completeseach other but are interpreted differently. Audience 1, the experts, defines usabilityas something efficient and easily learnable, while audience 2, the end-users, definesthe concept as something simple that is easily accessible and widely spreadthroughout the world wide web. The most interesting result of the study is theresults that shows how the experts develop with norms and standards in mindinstead of guidelines and the end-users wants products built on standards thatthey recognize.

Traditional in lab usability evaluation has been used as the 'standard' evaluation method for evaluating and improving usability of software user interfaces (Andre, Williges, & Hartson, 2000). However, traditional in lab evaluation has its drawbacks such as availability of representative end users, high cost of testing and lack of true representation of a user's actual work environment. To counteract these issues various alternative and less expensive usability evaluation methods (UEMs) have been developed over the past decade. One such UEM is the Remote Usability Evaluation method. Remote evaluation is a relatively new area and lacks empirical data to support the approach. The need for empirical support was addressed in this study. The overall purpose of this study was to determine the differences in the effectiveness of the two evaluation types, the remote evaluation approach (SREM) and the traditional evaluation approach, in collecting usability data. This study also compared the effectiveness between the two methods based on user type, usability novice users and usability experienced users. Finally, the hypothesis that users, in general, will prefer the remote evaluation approach of reporting to the traditional in-lab evaluation approach was also tested. Results indicated that, in general, the synchronous remote approach is at least as effective as the traditional in lab usability evaluation approach in collecting usability data across all user types. However, when user type was taken into consideration, it was found that there was a significant difference in the high severity negative critical incident data collected between the two approaches for the novice user group. The traditional approach collected significantly more high severity negative critical incident data than the remote approach. Additionally, results indicate that users tend to be more willing to participate in the same approach as the one they participated previously. Recommendations for usability evaluators for conducting the SREM approach and areas for future research are identified in the study. / Master of Science

The purpose of this thesis is to explore and study the usability issues within Technical Data Management Systems (TDMS). The research has been conducted as a single case study at the gardening and landscape maintenance company Husqvarna. The inductive research led to conducting 10 interviews, 2 expert focus groups and a observational study. An artefact was produced during the research to emulate a potential system. During the research, the researchers identified ten heuristic usability issues within TDMS. Fur- thermore the functional and non-functional needs of Husqvarna have been identified. The artefact was created, based on existing usability guidelines, addressing the usability issues and the needs of Husqvarna. The artefact was used to answer if the applied guidelines have solved the identified usability issues. The conclusion was set, that the applied guidelines had solved the identified issues. With the research being conducted with a single case study, the result may lack generalisability. Future researchers are encouraged to conduct a multiple case study to further identify issues within the research area.

Researchers in the area of web usability dwell on the importance of simplicity in a website design so that users can achieve a specific task with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction. If a banking website misses one of these characteristics of usability users may get lost in the middle of the website or become frustrated and “will seek information elsewhere”. This study assesses what are the main issues behind the current banking websites through a questionnaire with 74 participants the result of this questionnaire shows that there are still unsolved problems in the current banking websites that impacts the quality of use. This study performs a thorough theoretical study to find out more about the subject understudy and by combining together with qualitative interviews; the study comes up with a proposed solution to improve banking websites’ usability – by implementing a user-centered design. / Program: Masterutbildning i Informatik