...
Screen #1 - This is the starting screen. All landmark markers start out grayed out, and selecting them makes them bright. Long pressing displays a picture and some info about that landmark. There are two buttons on the bottom of the screen. "View tours" takes you to a list of tours filtered to only include tours that contain the landmarks you selected (Screen #2). "Create new tour," takes you to Screen #4.
Analysis:
- Learnability
- A lot of text is required to explain actions
- Long presses are hard to discover, as is dragging between points
- External consistency with Google Maps
- Efficiency
- Once understood, the UI is efficient in terms of choosing landmarks you definitely want to see
- There are a lot of steps before you are actually following a tour, which is not efficient
- Long pressing to see info on every landmark might be time consuming
- Safety
- Easy to accidentally include or not include a landmark in your filter by accidentally tapping or double tapping
- Adding or removing a landmark from the filter is easily undone
- There is no way to view all selected landmarks, so there may be selected landmarks that are no longer on-screen
Screen #2 - Selecting a tour from this list brings you to a screen with more detail about the tour, including all of the stops, an estimated time for it to take depending on your method of transportation, etc. (not shown). On this other screen there will be a "Start Tour" button, which will take you to Screen #3.
Analysis:
- Learnability
- The selection of the list of tours will be straightforward and easy to understand.
- Smartphone users are used to this type of UI
- Efficiency
- There are a lot of steps before you are actually following a tour, which is not efficient
- You need to select a tour to see more detail before you can start the tour
- Safety
- Easy to go back if you select the wrong tour
- Easy to select the wrong tour, especially if the preview images and preview landmarks lists shown are similar.
Screen #3 - This screen is very similar to the iPhone directions app. It gives words on the top and a map with your path laid out for you. There are arrows to step back or forward in the directions. You can select a method of transportation as well.
Analysis:
- Learnability
- This will be familiar to users and easy to understand (external consistency with other map applications)
- Efficiency
- The arrows are fast to use, so stepping between steps is fast
- Safety
- Hard to misuse the GPS feature, since the only input is the arrows, which are easy to undo (they are a form of direct manipulation)
- Could be easy to accidentally switch mode of transportation, but it is easily undone.
Screen #4 - This is a map view with a search widget to find locations you may want to add. You drag between landmarks to create your tour, or long press on the map to drop a pin and make a new landmark. On the bottom there is a button to create the tour and give it a name.
Analysis:
- Learnability
- A lot of text is required to explain actions
- Long presses are hard to discover, as is dragging between points
- Efficiency
- Long presses and dragging are efficient and fast to use if you know they're there
- Safety
- Adding or removing a landmark from the filter is easily undone
- When dragging between landmarks, it might be easy to make a mistake, but again this is direct manipulation so it is easily undone
...
Screen #2 - When finding a new tour, this is the first screen the user will see. Allows them to input their starting location manually or to use their current position.
Analysis:
Screen #3 - After entering a starting location, the user is brought to a map showing all the registered POI's near them. Each location is marked with an icon based on the category under which is falls. The user can filter out certain types of locations if they have no interest in seeing them. Users can select places by touch to view a small pop-up window with basic information. From this window, they can continue to the location's main page for further info/actions. A button at the top takes them to a screen listing all the user's selected places.
Analysis:
- Learnability
- Unique icons for each type of location may not be implicit.
- Finding detailed info by clicking on icons shown on map may not be obvious.
- Ambiguity on "type" of location (Is a bar recreation or restaurant?).
- Map areas behave as expected (no additional learning if already familiar).
- Icons are used consistently throughout the tour process to solidify/clarify their purpose.
- Efficiency
- User cannot see selected locations while choosing additional ones.
- User cannot get an estimate on time/distance until all locations have been chosen.
- Several different screens to navigate to add a location (home page -> map page -> location page).
- Using map in substitute of address input saves time (starting spot, new location)
- Hard to add/search for a specific place if it isn't on the map (have to go to the "advanced search" page).
- Finding a "subtype" of a more general "type" can be inefficient since each location has to be looked at individually (for instance, finding an authentic Italian restaurant among a wide variety of other restaurants).
- Safety
- Requires several deliberate button presses to add an event (good for error prevention)
- Incorrectly entered address requires the user to go back and reenter the correct information
Screen #4 - Basic page for each location. Button at the top allows user to quickly add the location to the tour. Page also includes information on the location, a picture, and user reviews (if available).
Screen #5 - Page that lists the currently selected locations. User gets here by adding a location or pressing the "view selections" button from screen # 3. Allows user to return to the map to add more locations, or to generate tour based on the current selections.
Screen #6 - Main page for following a generated tour. Show current location and route to the next location(s). Also displays other POI's along the way. Still lets the user filter these suggestions. Displays estimated time of arrival at next location and the distance remaining to it.
Screen #7 - Page for adding a location to the database. Allows user to enter all of the relevant information about the place.
Analysis:
- Learnability
- Location page is very traditional. Picture, info, and review arrangement should be familiar to most users.
- Adding the location to the tour is very easy once the user gets to this page.
- Location listing page is very straightforward. The way to add/remove selections is clearly visible.
- Tour directions are given in a familiar manner.
- All the necessary fields for adding new events are clearly labelled.
- Efficiency
- One button press to add location to tour from location page.
- Easy to add/remove selections
- "Remove All" filtering option makes it easy for users to get rid of all suggestions.
- Safety
- Learnability
- Unique icons for each type of location may not be implicit.
- Finding detailed info by clicking on icons shown on map may not be obvious.
- Ambiguity on "type" of location (Is a bar recreation or restaurant?).
- Map areas behave as expected (no additional learning if already familiar).
- Icons are used consistently throughout the tour process to solidify/clarify their purpose.
- Efficiency
- User cannot see selected locations while choosing additional ones.
- User cannot get an estimate on time/distance until all locations have been chosen.
- Several different screens to navigate to add a location (home page -> map page -> location page).
- Using map in substitute of address input saves time (starting spot, new location)
- Hard to add a specific place if it isn't on the map (have to go to the "advanced search" page).
- Finding a "subtype" of a more general "type" can be inefficient since each location has to be looked at individually (for instance, finding an authentic Italian restaurant among a wide variety of other restaurants).
- Safety
- Requires several deliberate button presses to add an event (good for error prevention)
- Easy to remove unwanted locations
- Directions to locations are not very detailed (just show the map, leaving potential for user to get lost).
...