Usability Guidelines Research

Author: Monica Tasmin

 I. INTRODUCTION

The development of technology for everyday human existence has numerous

advantages, particularly for education, industry, and various other businesses. This is
undeniable, particularly during this pandemic. What would happen if we don't have such
things such video-telephony software, e-commerce, social media, and other modern and
helpful technologies around us? It is surely going to be frustrating and many parties will
nd it hard to manage that kind of situation.

In this era, more advanced technologies began to kick in. Everything is made more
simply and compactly. With the development of this technology, users certainly want to
be able to use this existing technology easily and e ectively so that they can improve on
their activities. This new, existing, and developing technology certainly does not get away
from the signi cance of the developers in creating user-friendly usability guidelines.

As stated previously, creating a user-friendly system is crucial. For instance,

during this pandemic, we certainly use gadgets frequently. Gadgets are an alternative,
particularly when we are faced with a Work From the Home circumstance, where we rely
on our gadgets to attend meetings, seminars, classes, and many more without needing to
meet the participants and the organisers. (BBC News, 2020)

The User Interface is the visual part of a website, software application, or hardware
device that ensures how a user interacts with the application or website and how
information is displayed on the screen. The user interface itself consolidates the concepts
of visual design, interaction design, and information infrastructure. The purpose of the
user interface is to improve Usability and User eXperience. (Interaction Design
Foundation, 2018)

User Interface can be a factor in whether someone is interested in visiting and

exploring our system. If they are content with our interface and their experience using our
system, then they will likely revisit our system. This is one of the results of following the
Usability Guidelines. So we generally have to pay attention to the UI of our system when
we design. Otherwise, people will not pay attention to our system if the system we build
is too complex. In other words, we lose to other systems – that is on the grounds that
users tend to use user-friendly systems rather than systems that are di cult for users to
understand the interface.
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 Therefore, it is crucial to follow the guidelines when we need to make a good
system. The importance is summarised below:

• To make users comfortable when viewing and using the system we have created.
As mentioned earlier, getting the user's attention to use and continue to use our system
is very important so that our system will not be abandoned by them and prevents them
from switching to another system. To have a good User eXperience, a user interface
that is easy to navigate and use is needed.

• To maintain brand consistency (Interaction Design Foundation, 2018b). As a good

brand, indeed, the brand pays focuses on everything that is issued by it cautiously and
perfectly. If the brand pays attention to the Usability Guidelines, it implies that the brand
is consistent, reliable, and pays attention to its products.

• As long as your user interface is easy to understand, the User eXperience of website
visitors or application users will also remain good. That way, they are also more likely to
come to your website and use your website or application.

However, meeting the intended Usability Guidelines can be challenging. Common

challenges that the designers might need to face are:

• Clash Between designer and client may occur. There are many types of clients we
might have to face. This does not rule out the possibility that we may have to deal with
aggressive and haughty clients. If our communication with the client is not good and
unsatisfactory, we are certainly in trouble and have to nd a way out.

• Knowledge of modern frameworks and platforms. Some frameworks have a rigid

development approach and some are exible. To choose a framework or platform, of
course, extensive knowledge is needed and everything must be considered.

• Sometimes, the system that is made has to contain a lot of information so that the
UI that is made looks "disorganised" and too close together. This can be a dilemma
for designers. If they load too many functions in the navigation, the user has the
potential to get confused. If not all functions are loaded in the UI, the website will be
incomplete and lack credibility.
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 II. PRESENTATION

As referenced in the introduction, gadgets are quite possibly the main thing during
this pandemic. Therefore, gadget developers from each brand are certainly contending to
be the best. Focusing on usability guidelines is not trivial.

This report will focus more on the graphical user interface (GUI) for mobile
application. GUI is a system that allows users to interact with a computer device that is
used by the user. The GUI Operating System in general will have windows, menus,
buttons, icons, and others designed to make it easier for users to interact with the
operating system or applications. Whereas in its application, the GUI is mostly used for
the needs of general users, in light of the fact that the objective is to create a User-
Friendly system. (Interaction Design Foundation, 2018b)

The top 3 crucial issues of user interfaces Key Usability Guidelines researched by
an educational organisation named Interaction Design Foundation (Interaction Design
Foundation - IxDF 2020) are:

- E ectiveness- Does it do the right thing? Does it get things done? Measuring the level
of e ciency is done by means of users studying the design of a product or service and
then testing how fast the user runs the tasks that have been given.

- E ciency- Does it do it with minimal mental and physical e ort, or does it require
unnecessary e ort? This is tested by measuring the error rate when the user is working
on a task, and if the user makes fewer mistakes, the product or service the better.

- Satisfaction- Do you feel happy using the system? When using a product or service,
the user will be satis ed if the product or service can ful l the needs of these users and
of course the user can use the product or service again and even on an ongoing basis
continuously. (Interaction Design Foundation - IxDF 2020)
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 There are also general principles for interaction design conducted by a web
usability consultant and human–computer interaction researcher named Jakob Nielsen.
(Nielsen Norman Group 2020)

- Visibility of system status- The design of the system must provide feedback
according to the circumstances at that time to the user. Thus, users can learn the
results of their interactions in real-time and determine their next steps, so that these
interactions can create trust in the brand.

- User control and freedom- If the user happens to make mistakes accidentally, the
feature to return to the previous page is very useful and can foster a sense of freedom
in using the system.

- Aesthetic and minimalist design- The interface should only contain the information
the user roughly needs. The visual elements of the interface must support the main
goals of the user. In the GUI, the existing icons must be relevant to each function.

- Consistency and standards- Jakob law states that people spend most of their time
using digital products other than yours. Therefore, User eXperience really determines
which system the user will choose. (Nielsen Norman Group 2020)
 III. JUSTIFICATION

In order to understand more about good Usability Guidelines for Mobile Application
with Graphical User Interface, Let's look at some good User Interface recommended
designs by Apple Developer (According to an article published by ZDNet toward the end
of 2020, the most widely used gadget is the Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max. Followed by Apple
AirPods Pro, then Tile Pro. The fth rank is again occupied by the Apple MacBook Pro.
(Kingsley-Hughes, 2020). This might imply that people these days are satis ed with Apple
Products, that the Usability Guidelines should be very good that people enjoy using Apple
products.)

1. The content layout must t the device screen. Here's a good example:

For example, there's an information/

text page. It is good to create
content like the example on the left
side rather than the right side. The
user does not need to scroll
horizontally to view the page
thoroughly.

(developer.apple.com, 2021)

2. Good touch controls. Make users feel comfortable using your application

The example on the left is

de nitely better than the one
on the right because it will
make it easier for users to nd
the user by simply searching
for the date without having to
bother clicking on small dates
in the calendar.

(developer.apple.com, 2021)

This also relates to User control and freedom –they are free to go back to the previous
date / option without frustration.
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 3. High Resolution and quality images will obviously catch users' attention to use the
system. All images should be high-resolution, therefore the images won't appear blurry.
The image must also match the desired aspect of the image will not be distorted.
(developer.apple.com, 2021)

4. Consistency and standards should be maintained. We can see whether the users are
satis ed enough with the system of an application by seeing the rating on Google
PlayStore/Apple AppStore. Here are some examples (JUSTTM Creative, 2020):

(screenshots taken by Author)

From these four examples, we can tell that these applications have medium to high
ratings. This is one of the indicators that the developers have successfully made good
applications -User eXperience is good, therefore most people are satis ed with the
systems. If other applications happen to get unsatisfactory ratings, they need to x them
and follow the guidelines(all things discussed in this study can be considered)

5. Aesthetic and minimalist design –eye-catching designs for 2021 such as:

- Dark mode: Some mobile applications that apply dark-mode feature (Discord and Instagram
respectively)

(screenshots taken by Author)

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- ID Authentication: Some mobile applications that apply ID Authentication feature (LINE, Crypto
respectively)

(screenshots taken by Author)

- Voice User Interface Interaction: Some mobile applications that apply Voice User Interface
Interaction feature (WhatsApp, Talking Tom)

(screenshots taken by Author)

6. Hit Targets. The distance between one control and another control should not be too close to

each other. Create controls that are at least 44 points x 44 points in size so that the user can press

the target button accurately and not press the wrong one.

For example, Instagram gives a gap

between like, comments, and share
controls. The icons are also related
to the functions of each button.

(screenshot taken by Author)

IV. CONCLUSION

The user interface of a system is not merely created as an "intermediary" between

the user and the application used. Many things should be considered by designers to
create a User-friendly User Interface –As the user sees our system, they can simply do
the physical interaction (click/tap, etc) as the response without frustration and doubt. It
will leave a pleasant experience while using our systems rather than being unsatis ed and
using other systems.

In conclusion, the developer should be updated with the Interface Guidelines and
follow them. It needs to be done in order to meet client's expectations, build good
relationships with clients, maintaining brand consistency, and a form of loyalty to
the customers so they won't leave our systems just because our systems do not satisfy
clients.

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V. REFERENCES

- BBC News (18 March 2020) Coronavirus: How can we stay in virtual touch with
older relatives? BBC, accessed 25 March 2021.

- Interaction Design Foundation (2018). What is User Interface (UI) Design? Interaction
Design Foundation, accessed 25 March 2021.

- Interaction Design Foundation (2018). What is User Interface (UI) Design? The
Interaction Design Foundation, accessed 27 March 2021.

- Computer Hope (2019). What is a GUI (Graphical User Interface)?

Computerhope.com. accessed 27 March 2021.

- Kingsley-Hughes, A. (27 December 2020). Hardware 2.0: Most used gadgets of 2020.
ZDNet. accessed 29 March 2021.

- Nielsen Norman Group. (15 November 2020). 10 Usability Heuristics for User
Interface Design, Nielsen Norman Group. accessed 29 March 2021.

- Interaction Design Foundation - IxDF (8 Jun 2020). '3 Key Usability Guidelines You
Have to Follow' [video] Interaction Design Foundation - IxDF, YouTube, accessed 29
March 2021.

- developer.apple.com. (2021). UI Design Dos and Don’ts - Apple Developer. accessed

31 March 2021.

- JUSTTM Creative. (10 December 2020). 10 Top UI/UX Design Trends For 2021
JUSTTM Creative. accessed 31 March 2021.