HCI Design Project Usability Evaluation Criteria Research Paper

HCI Design Project Usability Evaluation Criteria - Research Paper Example Several criteria have been established for evaluating the usability of a user interface design in the current design paradigms. For purposes of this evaluation we shall focus on the heuristic evaluation and usability testing criteria that has been supported by several authors in the field of user interface design (Madan & Dubey, 2012). Jacob Nielsen is considered the father of Heuristic Evaluation criteria. He developed a set of heuristics referred to as Jacob Nielsen’s heuristics that are used for user interface design and evaluation to date (Inostroza, Rusu, Roncagliolo, Jimenez & Rusu, 2012). According to Nielsen, the main goal of the heuristic evaluation criteria is to identify the problems that are associated with the design of a user interface. He developed the criteria based on his experience as a long serving consultant of usability engineering (Inostroza et al, 2012). Heuristics are common evaluation techniques in the field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI) that is mainly conducted in the context of typical tasks that are performed by users. The designer obtains feedback from the users regarding the compatibility of the interface with their intended use and the performance in meeting their needs (Madan & Dubey, 2012). In a study carried out to determine usability of the Bogazici University Industrial Engineering website interface, heuristic evaluation was employed for evaluation of the usability of the user interface. To accomplish this task several scenarios were created for usability testing, user groups were determined based on their computing knowledge and skills. Their performance was then evaluated based on task completion success, time spent on the task, rate of accomplishment or quittance.