SIGIA-L Mail Archives: Re: SIGIA-L: HTML and IA
Re: SIGIA-L: HTML and IA
From: T. Karsjens (tkarsjens1_at_uswest.net)
Date: Wed Sep 20 2000 - 12:14:13 EDT
Christina,
I am quite adamant about prototyping. The process that I work under, does
not user test until almost the end. This, in my humble opinion, is wrong.
One of the first things that I do on a project, so that I can do a better
job of planning and problem solving, is create a "vision" prototype. This
is an HTML, no images, single page which represents just the navigation.
>From that, I create the initial site map, changing things in the prototype
as I go through the lifecycle of the project. When I start mapping the
information flow, I also take a small amount of time to create base pages
for the different areas within to prototype. That prototype is then a
stepping stone into mapping out the entire site in a full blown, detailed
prototype.
Through this small process, there are usability reviews. I completely agree
with your point about things breaking down when you "think" you have it
right in visio (or illustrator). Everytime I have worked with someone who
wanted to do everything in Visio or Illustrator, the actual prototype
*breaks* very easily. Creating an iterative prototype ensures several
things; your vision of the navigation is *your vision* not the designers,
you get a vision of what *works*, you can use the iterative process to solve
problems very easily on the fly, and it proves *extremely* efficient.
Plus, afterall, HTML is easy. Never let someone tell you that HTML is
inflexible. Most web editors have *global* search and replace for the
actual html code.
Point take, point agreed with.
Thanks!
T. Karsjens, IA
----- Original Message -----
From: christina <cwodtke_at_eleganthack.com>
To: <sigia-l_at_asis.org>
Sent: Wednesday, September 20, 2000 9:59 AM
Subject: SIGIA-L: HTML and IA
> idle question: who here prototypes as part of their design process?
>
> Because the company I work for does user testing at the architecture
phase,
> I get a prototype built fairly early in the process. I'm amazed at how
many
> solutions that looked great in Visio start to break when implemented. Just
> the act of building the prototype allows me to solve a great deal of
> problems, even before the users start chewing on it. I've noticed when
folks
> talk about their process, it's all site maps and wireframes...
>
>
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