ENG 333 Communication for Science and Research

Jamie Larsen, Instructor

Usability Testing

Types of Usability Tests

Type of Test	Test Point	Description
Can-They-Do-It Test	Tasks	Often called a performance test , this test requires users to perform a procedure.
Can-They-Understand-It Test	Terminology	Often called an understandability test , this test requires users to provide a summary of material they have read, or provide definitions of key terms.
Can-They-Find-It Test	Document Design Strategies	Often called a read-and-locate test, this test requires users to use mocked-up portions of a manual - the index or table of contents - to find information on key topics.

Comprehensibility Test

The Cloze test dates back to 1953. This test provides an easy method to simulate reader comprehension of a piece of text. You want your most important parts of your document to be understandable. In other words, you do not want your readers guessing at what you are saying. This test is a fast way to get an idea of how effectively you are conveying your message.

Take a paragraph of text
Blank out every fifth word
Have a reader fill in the blanks (This is buy your roommate a pizza time!)
Count the number of correct words - these must match exactly the words that were in the original text - synonyms do not count
Use the following formula to arrive at a percentage: # of correct words/# of total blanks = ___%

Anything under 40% needs to be written. Readers are guessing far too much at what you are saying. 40-60% is OK, but you may want to revisit certain words that you use. Over 60% is the target that you want to achieve to ensure that you text is as comprehensible as it can be.

Sample Terminology Test

Identify what terminology you want to test by looking at the elements in your document where you perceive the following criteria met at a level of 1-5, where 1 = slightly met, 5 = very relevant.

List of Questionable Terms	Overly Technical?	Confusing Relation to Subject Matter?	Confusing Relation to User's Computer Background?	Score

This analysis suggests the following kind of test:

Match term with definition
Write definitions of selected terms
Identify known from unknown
Other: _________________

Justification: make a bullet list of reasons to justify your choice:

Document Design Test

Identify what document design strategies you want to test by looking at the points in your documentation set where you perceive the following:

Identify which of the areas you should test for document design strategies. Each area should get an assessment (1-5) as to its importance to your project. Use the descriptions of each of the features of the text and evaluate it against at least three of your document goals.

Feature	Explanation	Document goals
An index :	Test an index for consistent, recognizable terminology
Cueing patterns:	Test icons and labeling graphics that might confuse; or test potential graphical items for ease of recognition
Headings/ layout:	Test for headings too small to see, layout that hides key information
Routing:	Test for routing that doesn't match the user's usage pattern
Extraordinary document formats :	Test for special conditions.

Make a bullet list of reasons for evaluating one feature over another.