ah teaches information design (Understanding Context lecture)

Understanding Context

Lecture outline

The importance of research to help understand context in a design process. Lecture slides will be made available on the day of the lecture (October 1).

PSA: SIAT Undergraduate Town Hall

SIAT has a number of curricular changes coming up. Hear from faculty, ask questions and provide feedback at 12:30pm on Tuesday, October 15 (2024) in SRYC 5140. Free food and beverages will be provided.

Recognizing the impact that the loss of Russell Taylor has had, SIAT Advising and other SFU student support will be present at the meeting.

Please RSVP at siats.ca/townhall2024

Any questions about the event can be directed to Andrew Hawryshkewich (UCC Chair) at andrew_h@sfu.ca

In preparation for lecture...

Please close up any laptops, cellphones, iBooks, Oculus Rifts and other 'beep-boop' devices.

Today's critique

Our approach

We will be taking the approach of asking questions of the work for today's critique: Please frame each critique as a question.

Today's critique is solo

This week I would like you to form your critiques individually.

Context

The relationship between a user and all the parts of their environment, as they perceive it.

Mobile context

How would you describe the relationship between you, your mobile device, and your environment?

You have 2 minutes to chat with a neighbour.

Layers of information

1. Physical: A user's relationship to their environment.
2. Semantic: Messages or meaning established for others.
3. Digital: Encoded/computer-centric messaging.

Physical layer

Methods of interpreting information

• Visual
• Auditory
• Kinesthetic

Alternative layers

The physical, semantic, and digital layers are not the only ways to think about context:

1. Our perception and cognition
2. Spoken language
3. Written or visual language
4. Designed or organized information
5. Digital information

Connections and humans

We're lazy, er, or efficient

"...users have time to read [on average] 20% of words on a page."

Affordances

Affordances are the properties of an object that suggest a complementary action.

Affordances are learned.

Patterns and chunking

Giving us consistent and reasonable chunks of information makes it easier for us to use.

Patterns and chunking

A visual example

Considering content

Research from Google shows that 90 percent of people start a task using one device, then pick it up later on another device...

Appropriate content

We want to make sure the content we provide is right for the user and/or their context.

Useful content

Our content should fulfill a clear and specific purpose for the user.

Labels

Consider in what context the buttons below make sense (or not).

Labelling

When you are creating new titling and categories remember the considerations of good labelling:

• Be clear: Use straight-forward unambiguous language.
• Be specific: Make sure categories are specific and not 'catch-alls'.
• Be inclusive: The terms used sould be accessible and welcoming of all.
• Be consistent: Use similar syntax and terminology.

Images, video, and audio are content too

Just like we think about text user experience, we can also think about photo experience (or video, audio...)

Content should be user-centered

We want our content to focused on what the user needs or understands.

Bring P1 to lecture

Please bring your P1 final deliverables to next week's lecture for a large in-class peer critique.

Next lecture (October 8)

Bare Bones

An introduction to interaction design and wireframing.