The creation of low-cost representations of the user interface to a system as a method of brainstorming , creating, testing and communicating ideas about the system being developed.
A prototype is a model of something to be further developed. The higher the fidelity the more representative is the prototype. Rapid prototyping implies that there is a short time between conceiving an initial notion and modeling it in physical form and between successive iterations. A popular method is to use paper to create the prototype (Snyder 2003) which can be done without programming skills and which has the look of work in progress thus encouraging users to comment on it. Software prototypes can then be developed when the ideas have been thought through and tested on paper. These can then be used for usability testing.
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Originators/Popularizers
Low fidelity prototyping seems to have been advocated around 1990 by authors such as Jakob Nielsen, Bob Virzi and Tom Tullis. A few high-tech companies were using the technique during the 1980s as described by Robin Kinkead.
Authoritative References
Kavanaugh, R. and Soety, J. (2000) Prototyping using Visio, Usability Interface < , 7(1).
Leone, P., Gillihan, D. and Rauch, T. (2000) Web-based prototyping for user sessions: Medium fidelity prototyping. Proceedings of the Society for Technical Communications 44th Annual Conference , pp231-234. Toronto, Canada: STC.
Nielsen, J. (1993) Usability engineering < , Morgan Kaufman: Academic Press.Contains a number of general references to prototyping as part of a general usability engineering process.
Rudd, J., Stern, K., and Isensee, S. (1996) Low vs. high-fidelity prototyping debate. Interactions , January: pp76-85.
Snyder, C. (2003) Paper prototyping , The fast and easy way to design and refine user interfaces , Elsevier Science.A comprehensive source for understanding a simple but powerful technique.
Tullis, T.S. (1990) High-fidelity prototyping throughout the design process. Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 34th Annual Meeting, p266, Santa Monica, CA: HFES .
Uceta, F. A., Dixon, M. A. and Resnik, M. L., (1998) Adding interactivity to paper prototypes, Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 42nd Annual Meeting (Chicago) , pp506-511. Santa Monica , CA: HFES.
Published Studies
See Snyder (2003) and Tullis (1990) for example case studies.
Related Subjects
Paper prototyping: The user may be asked to interact with a paper prototype comprising a series of paper elements representing different parts of the interface and controlled by the evaluator or assistant. The user may point to interaction elements of the prototype or speak their inputs, which are then manipulated accordingly by the evaluator. The paper prototype provides enough detail to perform an evaluation relating to the function and flow of the interface, but not the look.
Wizard of Oz : A user interacts with a computer system that is actually operated by a hidden developer - referred to as the 'wizard'. The wizard processes inputs from the user and responds with simulated system output. The approach is particularly suited to exploring design possibilities which are demanding to implement such as intelligent interfaces possibly featuring agents or advisors, and/or natural language processing.
Video prototyping: Here a prototype is developed and it is videoed with an end user interacting with it. The video is then shown to end users to obtain feedback.
Storyboard : A storyboard is a series of illustrations that represent a process, such as the steps of interacting with a computer or website. Storyboards can be used for checking that the steps of a process make sense to the user once the details are sketched.
Detailed description
How To
Special Considerations
Facts
Types: Paper prototyping, Wireframing
Also called:
Early prototyping, Low fidelity prototyping
Sources and contributors:
Nigel Bevan, Chauncey Wilson.