User experience starts with the term "user", the individual that is using some technology or artifact to accomplish a goal.
Interface
The interface is the mediation of the user's task (Ut) and the system's (S) Core function. The user enters input (I) into the interface to complete a task (output-O).
User Experience
User experience, the individual's ability to use that interface will be related to his personal characteristics. By this, we mean age, we mean education level, comfort with technology, physical constraints. At the group level, adoption of a system may have to do with how that individual characteristic affects other users. If there is an early adopter for example, then perhaps he might influence others to try the new system. This may even be related to the emotional aspects of computing. For example, I've heard a number of elders say that they text because that's the way that they can communicate with their grandchildren.
The goal of User Experience Design
- Design interfaces that are useful and usable
- Useful: allows a user to complete a task
- System actually produces the desired outcome
- Usable: refers to the effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction with which users can achieve tasks when using an interface
- Input is easy to understand
-Output can actually complete the task
User Interface Design Cycle
Requirement gatherings
- In this phase, the designer aims to understand how users are currently completing tasks
Designing alternatives
- In this phase designers are able to develop novel interfaces to successfully complete the tasks because the designers have sound requirements for the system.
Developing prototypes
- In the third phase, the designer takes the best designs from phase two and actually builds models or prototypes that the user will be able to engage with. These models meet the core aspects of the task.
Evaluation
In the fourth phase, we take one of the designs from phase three and we actually test the system's usability and usefulness with either users or experts who can provide us with feedback about how to improve the system.