tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4667198366772137516.post3299101910907760504..comments2023-09-25T06:55:58.791+00:00Comments on The Casablanca Weblog: Designing User InterfacesPhil Whitehousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00707058659116319394noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4667198366772137516.post-13929913773648629382008-01-30T09:55:00.000+00:002008-01-30T09:55:00.000+00:00Thanks for your comments FND and Stephen.FND, as S...Thanks for your comments FND and Stephen.<BR/><BR/>FND, as Stephen mentions, the focus is on the goals, and the UI should be designed around them. But all the other stuff - the detail that gives our persona character - is still useful, because this context makes the persona believable. And when the persona is believable, UI designers become passionate about meeting their needs (much more so than with a set of standalone goals). In my experience, empathy with a persona is repeatedly a surprisingly strong tool in the design process.<BR/><BR/>Stephen, I wish we had the time and money to base our personas on primary research! This is definitely their biggest shortcoming (see my comments above). But given that we only have a month to incorporate work into RippleRap v2, I decided that creating my own personas and inviting constructive criticism was better than having no personas at all. Also, bear in mind that we're trying to use and create tools that the average open source developer can use - and I'm really keen to gather intelligent suggestions as to what can be done quickly and for free that can improve the design process under these conditions.Phil Whitehousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00707058659116319394noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4667198366772137516.post-17738513801276475322008-01-30T09:37:00.000+00:002008-01-30T09:37:00.000+00:00Ah personas - it's easy to miss the point, and ass...Ah personas - it's easy to miss the point, and assume that they're representative of a person / demographic / segment. Actually, they're most useful when they represent a clearly defined and articulated end user goal. Everything else is just fluff to help people build empathy and a user centric focus.<BR/><BR/>I've used personas with some particularly tricky clients to cement the focus on user goals rather than the business' assumptions about what their customers want from a digital experience. And if they're built on primary research (which I'm sure yours are, Phil?) then it's hard to argue with 'em.<BR/><BR/>Of course, they do take time to develop, and in certain situations, I could see how pen portraits of customers might be a more cost effective and just as adequate exercise...Stephenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06711617332725105455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4667198366772137516.post-49258703873926051772008-01-29T20:51:00.000+00:002008-01-29T20:51:00.000+00:00I like what you've done with this, Phil! (That is,...I like what you've done with this, Phil! (That is, apart from the previously discussed over-representation of Apple products - but what to expect from a cultist/fanboy... )<BR/><BR/>As for the concept of personas in general, I have to admit I don't quite get the benefit. There's little I can draw from these documents that couldn't have been expressed in a much more concise, focused way.<BR/><BR/>In fact, the whole idea sounds like something a marketing department might be interested in, but less so a developer or UI designer... !?<BR/><BR/>Don't get me wrong, I do think that usage scenarios are important in understanding and designing a product - but this somehow seems too limited to me.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4667198366772137516.post-67370312597674077832008-01-29T19:54:00.000+00:002008-01-29T19:54:00.000+00:00Thanks for your responses Kerry and Labsji!Kerry: ...Thanks for your responses Kerry and Labsji!<BR/><BR/>Kerry: That's an interesting article. I can empathise with this point of view. There are developers out there who are capable of doing great user centred design without the need for personas or other design tools. But in over a decade of managing development projects, I can tell you they are rare beasts indeed. Perhaps they have several such people over at 37Signals? <BR/><BR/>Regardless, I think they're a great tool, have used them many times before, and think that Osmosoft will benefit from them. Time will tell, eh?!<BR/><BR/>Labsji: In an ideal scenario, personas would be based on ethnographic research. There's more about this on the <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personas" REL="nofollow">Wikipedia page on personas</A>.<BR/><BR/>Established best practice is that personas are hypothetical, even when based on ethnographic research, because they are representative of a target group, while an individual in that group will never be properly representative (i.e. general, useful properties can more easily be assigned to a fictional character).<BR/><BR/>Given the time available it made sense to quickly create the personas I've shown, and then invite feedback. The biggest risk here is that (as the person who wrote the personas) I've designed the 'users' according to my convenience. Which is why I'm very much open to *specific* criticism about the characteristics I've assigned e.g. a student wouldn't want a Mac.<BR/><BR/>Keep the feedback coming!Phil Whitehousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00707058659116319394noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4667198366772137516.post-60364273949930340232008-01-29T18:41:00.000+00:002008-01-29T18:41:00.000+00:00One simple question, are these personas real or hy...One simple question, are these personas real or hypothetical?<BR/>Real = representational of existing user base. As a way to understand their need.<BR/><BR/>Hypothetical = Representational of anticipated user base. <BR/><BR/>In case it is hypothetical, how do you avoid the risk of 'Doctors running Asylum' - which is not exactly a fix for 'Inmates running the Asylum'.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4667198366772137516.post-26138366125396446022008-01-29T14:25:00.000+00:002008-01-29T14:25:00.000+00:00Just to stir up a debate, 37signals make an intere...Just to stir up a debate, 37signals make <A HREF="http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/690-ask-37signals-personas" REL="nofollow">an interesting case</A> <EM>against</EM> using personas.Kerry Buckleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02577023370378479303noreply@blogger.com