Eighth Lecture: Physical Design: Getting Concrete.

Physical Design
Physical Design is a design process that make sure the product works rightfully if the product is going to sell to global and international. It work as a process to make sure the product reach the balance before it sells to the users. This is because some design may be not on purpose but make some user felt uncomfortable. The things happen because of the different races, culture and tradition over the world.

A same thing may be have different meaning to different people. Just like the V hand sign, for some people, it is a victory sign. But for some people, it may become a foul language sign. So, a good design must be make sure that it wont make the target audience feel uncomfortable, that's why a designer have to make sure his design works well to his target audience.

Generic icon is recommended for designer, because the icon design is simple, easy to understand and memorable. Besides, the color used must not be associated with national flags or political movements. The design must up to date and make sure doesn't associated with those sensitive issues.

Using scenarios in Design.
Scenarios in Design is a prototype that works totally same with the actual product. Just like some touch screen phone design, mostly Scenarios is used. It helps users to interact with the product and test the feedback before it is manufacture.
Four roles for scenarios:
1. Basis for the overall design
2. For technical implementation
3. As a means of cooperation within design teams
4. As a means of cooperation across professional boundaries i.e in a multidisciplinary team.

Generating Storyboards from scenarios
A storyboard represents a sequence of action or event that the user and the system go through to achieve a task. A scenarios tells users how to use a product.

Card-based prototyping
It is a process using material like paper, card and etc to prototyping the product. This method is the most widely use between international to express the design idea. The process is very easy and doesn't consume much time. This prototyping helps designer can test their product easily and make sure their product is works.

Week 10 by Tai Qiu Xian

Physical design is the process of producing a detailed data model of a database and functional requirement to reach a balance. Physical interface of the product should not argue with the user while achieving test that involving any cognitive process.

A designer will be design for different culture is because the design should be respect, accept and understand to another country because culture that not all country are the same. For example The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented. It is most commonly used to represent victory, as a symbol of peace but V sign is also an insult largely restricted to Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, and the United Kingdom which it means Fuck off.

The picture above showing the v sign is peace.

 As we can see the guy showing his angry face with the v sign which it mean fuck off.

Designer should use generic icon as a guideline because generic icon is simple, easy to recognize and to let different country user easier to understand the product with the help of icon. The languages should use international languages which is English because it is only language that goes worldwide or option that allow for text expansion when translated from English.

generic icon

international languages

A scenario is a description of a person's interaction with a system. Scenarios help focus design efforts on the user's requirements, which are distinct from technical requirements.  Scenarios can be understood by people who do not have any technical background. They are therefore suitable for use during participatory design activities.

There have two types of scenarios which are plus scenarios and minus scenarios which attempt to capture the most positive and the most negative consequences of a particular proposed design solution. For example, plus scenarios are good cases that the designer understand what the user need but minus scenarios is have poor communication with user and does not satisfied the user.

According to Wikipedia, paper prototyping is a widely used method in the user-centred design process, a process that helps developers to create software that meets the user's expectations and needs especially for designing and testing user interface. It is throwaway prototyping and involves creating rough, even hand-sketched, drawings of an interface to use as prototypes, or models, of a design. Other than that, paper prototype is faster and easy to create and it is also easy to change when need any improvement. 

Seventh Lecture: Prototype

What is Prototype?

A prototype is an object or sample built before produced to test the product's concept, usage and process. Prototype aid designer to test and manipulate their product before going to the end users. Prototype work as the initial step before making or produce the product, just like built a car, the engineer will create a small prototype to test their concept and design of the product works or not, it is effective way to test idea. Prototype prevent the failure of product when it is produced in industries. Usually prototype start from sketching design, which is paper-based outline of a screen or sets of screen. After that, it will be transfer into electronic picture. Then, it will be make a 3 dimensional paper or cardboard mock up. Lastly, it will allows stakeholders to interact with the envisioned product, gain experience in realistic setting and explore. If the prototype isn't fulfill the user's need, then the design process can be easily redo.

Fidelity Prototype
There is two types of prototype in prototyping, which is low fidelity prototype and high fidelity prototype. They are not the same but work as same purpose.

Low Fidelity Prototype
Low fidelity prototype is the one that look does not same very much like the final product. The prototype is just a very basic and simple idea and concept, it still doesn't meet the final ideas yet. And it caused the process is lower development cost. Usually, low fidelity prototype created in paper, card board or etc rather than electronic screen and metal. It tend to be simple, cheap and quick to produce. It doesn't waste much time to produce. It also support the exploration of alternative designs and ideas. Low fidelity is only a cenceptual design that will never to be use on final product. They are just for exploration and ideation stage. Usually, people use storyboard as a low fidelity prototype too. It is easy to evaluate multiple design concepts, identifying market requirements and proof of concept. But, low fidelity protoype had limited error checking, usefulness for usability test and utility after requirement established.

High Fidelity Prototype

High fidelity prototype is different than low fidelity prototype that it is expected to be almost or look much like the final product. All the material used on this prototype must be expected to be same for the final product. Example, prototype on software system developed in visual basic and paper-based mock up. Some people may also use metal or others material that closed to their final product's idea to create High fidelity prototype. It is completely functionality and fully interactive. But high fidelity prototyping is much harder than low fidelity prototyping. This is because it takes money and time to build. After that, if the prototype doesn't fulfill needed, they need to change something that they have crafted for hours. Sometimes, the software prototype makes the reviewer's expectation to high. Even just one bug, it would failed the whole high fidelity prototype. Even though it has more disadvantages, but it is useful for selling ideas and for testing out technical issues. It clearly defines navigational scheme, and it let use for exploration and test. It looks and feel much like the final product.

By, Yee Kuang Hooi, 

Hiccarus Lesselion, 1102702258.

Prototype

What is Prototype?
A prototype is an early sample or model built to test a concept or process or to act as a thing to be replicated or learned from.
In design and Modelling Prototype often used as part of the product design process to allow engineers and designers the ability to explore design alternatives, test theories and confirm performance prior to starting production of a new product.
For example, some prototypes are used to confirm and verify consumer interest in a proposed design whereas other prototypes will attempt to verify the performance or suitability of a specific design approach.

Basic Prototype Categories
Proof-of-Principle Prototype (Model)
 (in electronics sometimes built on a breadboard). A Proof of concept prototype is used to test some aspect of the intended design without attempting to exactly simulate the visual appearance, choice of materials or intended manufacturing process. Such prototypes can be used to "prove" out a potential design approach such as range of motion, mechanics, sensors, architecture, etc. These types of models are often used to identify which design options will not work, or where further development and testing is necessary.

Form Study Prototype (Model).
 This type of prototype will allow designers to explore the basic size, look and feel of a product without simulating the actual function or exact visual appearance of the product. They can help assess ergonomic factors and provide insight into visual aspects of the product's final form. Form Study Prototypes are often hand-carved or machined models from easily sculpted, inexpensive materials (e.g., urethane foam), without representing the intended color, finish, or texture. Due to the materials used, these models are intended for internal decision making and are generally not durable enough or suitable for use by representative users or consumers.

User Experience Prototype (Model).
 A User Experience Model invites active human interaction and is primarily used to support user focused research. While intentionally not addressing possible aesthetic treatments, this type of model does more accurately represent the overall size, proportions, interfaces, and articulation of a promising concept. This type of model allows early assessment of how a potential user interacts with various elements, motions, and actions of a concept which define the initial use scenario and overall user experience. As these models are fully intended to be used and handled, more robust construction is key. Materials typically include plywood, REN shape, RP processes and CNC machined components. Construction of user experience models is typically driven by preliminary CAID/CAD which may be contructed from scratch or with methods such as industrial CT scanning.

Visual Prototype (Model)
will capture the intended design aesthetic and simulate the appearance, color and surface textures of the intended product but will not actually embody the function(s) of the final product. These models will be suitable for use in market research, executive reviews and approval, packaging mock-ups, and photo shoots for sales literature.

Functional Prototype (Model)
(also called a working prototype) will, to the greatest extent practical, attempt to simulate the final design, aesthetics, materials and functionality of the intended design. The functional prototype may be reduced in size (scaled down) in order to reduce costs. The construction of a fully working full-scale prototype and the ultimate test of concept, is the engineers' final check for design flaws and allows last-minute improvements to be made before larger production runs are ordered.

Reference
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prototype

Prototype by Tai Qiu Xian

What is Prototype?

Prototyping is the process of building a model of a system. Prototypes are employed to help system designers build an information system that intuitive and easy to manipulate for end users. It allow stakeholder to interact with an envisioned product, gain experience in realistic setting and explore imagined uses. The purpose of prototype is aid when discussing ideas with stakeholder, communication device among team members and effective way to test idea.

There have two type of prototype which is low fidelity prototyping and high fidelity prototyping. Low fidelity prototyping uses materials that are totally different from the intended final product such as storyboard, sketching and cardboard rather than electronic screens and metal. It should be simple, cheap and quick to produce for support the exploration of alternative designs and ideas.

High fidelity prototyping is the opposite of low fidelity prototyping. It uses material that almost the same of final product. For example if we have to do a prototype for a phone, in high fidelity prototyping we have to make an example model that using software almost same like the final product.

The advantage of low fidelity prototype is save time, save cost and it also useful communication device because it sketch the idea on the paper or storyboard and easy to let user understand. The disadvantage of low fidelity prototype is less detailed specification to code to and limited usefulness for usability tests because normally sketches is just state the main things inside not all details inside.

On the other hand, the advantage of high-fidelity prototype is fully interactive, clearly defines navigational scheme, and the prototype will look almost same with the final product. But nothing is perfect, everything have it disadvantage. The disadvantage of high-fidelity prototype is it need use a lot of time to create, not effective for requirement gathering and it need to use a lot of development cost.

What Are Requirement?

In engineering, a requirement is a singular documented physical and functional need that a particular product or service must be or perform.
It is most commonly used in a formal sense in systems engineering, software engineering, or enterprise engineering.
It is a statement that identifies a necessary attribute, capability, characteristic, or quality of a system for it to have value and utility to a user.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Requirement)

In  own words "Requirement" means the need of getting through a path that should be followed by ones.A discribe in dictionary,
  : something required:
a : something wanted or needed : necessity <production was not sufficient to satisfy military requirements>
b : something essential to the existence or occurrence of something else : condition <failed to meet the school's requirements for graduation>

Functional requirements
describe the functionality that the system is to execute; for example, formatting some text or modulating a signal. They are sometimes known as capabilities.

DATA REQUIREMENTS
To identify and document the entities within the project scope and the preliminary data characteristics that will influence the definition of the technology infrastructure.

Environmental Requirements
inevitably dictate whether one particular "family" of worms will be suitable for culture in any given circumstance.

User characteristics
This covers the characteristics of users in three senses: the end user who will interact with the machine translation system; the end user of the final product of the translation process which may include for example, post-editing; the organisation deploying the machine translation system.


Usability Goals
Usability goals help focus attention and resources on the user and their issues. They challenge the design team to innovate and provide the basis for design tradeoffs. In addition to guiding design, usability goals are useful in customer interactions, evaluation, and testing.
Usability goals rely upon the development of realistic scenarios and add the dimensions of metrics and acceptance criteria.

Sixth Lecture: What Are Requirement?

What are requirement?
Requirement is a statement about how a singular subject do, function and performing. In other words, it is thing that tells when it is fulfills the needs and desires. It is like in order to get A in your exam, you have to get your marks over 80 marks. Requirement should be very specific, unambiguous and as clear as possible. Example like exam marks, 80 marks above to get A , 60marks above to get B.

There is 2 types of requirements in Software Engineering:
1. Functional Requirements
2. Non-functional requirements

Functional requirements is telling that what the system they create should do. Example like some document writing software, what the software does is providing variety of font, paragraph, character and etc.
Non-functional requirements is what are the constraints there are on the system and its developments. Example like those system software have to be need some target platform such as PC, MAC, processor, graphics performance, Memory RAM and etc.

In Interaction Design, there is 5 different types of requirements:
1. Functional requirements
2. Data requirements
3. Environmental requirements
4. User characteristics
5. Usability goals and user experience goals.

Functional Requirements
Functional requirement in interaction studies tells and capture what the product should do.
It decides a product's functions and how it works.

Data Requirements
Data requirements decides and capture the type, volatility, size/amount, persistence, accuracy and value of then required data. Example, It share- dealing application - data must be up to date, accurate and change many times a day.

Environment Requirements
Environment requirements is the circumstances in which the interactive product will be expected to operate. There are four characteristics of environmental requirements:
-Physical environment
-Social environment
-Organisational environment
-Technical environment

User Characteristics
It is capture the key attributes of the intended user group.
The user's abilities and skills, nationality, educational background, preferences, personal circumstances, physical or mental disabilities are the key attributes. Any products may have a different amount of user profiles that the product should sell to.

Usability Goals and User Experience Goals
Usability Goals is the effectiveness, efficiency, safety, utility, learnability and tracking that connected to user's performance.
User experiences Goals is about the fun, enjoyable, pleasurable, aesthetically pleasing and motivating that connected to User's Perception.

Data Gathering for Requirements

To collect sufficient, relevant and appropriate data so that a set of stable requirements can be produced.
Data gathering will need to expand, clarify and confirm initial requirements.
There is many types of data gathering:
-interview
-focus groups
-questionnaires
-direct observation
-indirect observation
-studying documentation
-researching similar product.

By, Yee Kuang Hooi.
Hiccarus Lesselion, 1102702258.

What are requirement?

What are requirement? 

Requirement is a statement that list out all the NEED and SHOULD, a requirement should be list out all the NEED and SHOULD as clear, specific as possible. A requirement must know how to tell when they have been fulfilled. For example: when we download an object, it must state how much space that is object need and how long it need to download.

There are 2 types of requirement in software engineering, that is functional requirement and non-functional requirement. In functional requirement, it always shows what the system should do. For example when we write an article using software it will say that we should support a variety of formatting style by the paragraph, character and etc. In non-functional requirement is another kind of statement. Non-functional requirement show that what are the constraints on the system. For example with the same software write an article it will state that what must be able to run that target  platform such as PC, MAC and etc or target platform must have at least 2 GB RAM.

On the other hand, requirement has several types in interaction design. It is functional requirement, date requirement, environmental requirement, user characteristic, and usability goal and user experience goals.

Functional requirement:

Functional requirement is all about to state what the product should do

Data requirement:

In data requirement is to state the type, size, accuracy, value and other necessary information of the required data. For example when transferring a file to another place it must state that it still need how many mb or gb more to transfer the file.

Environmental requirement:

Environmental requirement is about the circumstances in which the interactive product will be operated. 

User characteristic 

User characteristic is to state or show the intended user group or open few profile for different type of users (persona) for the target users. For example: the user’s skills and ability, educational and etc.

Usability goals and user experience goals

Usability goals are the safety, efficiency, effectiveness, utility and etc. User experience goals are all about the fun, the excitement and the enjoyable. 

Fifth Lecture: User Centered Design

What is User Centered Design?
User Centered Design (UCD) is a design philosophy and a process in which the needs, wants and limitations of end users of a product are given extensive attention at each stage of the design process (from: Wikipedia). It means the UCD is a process for designer to study and analyse user's needs for and problem solving on designing something that will fulfill and how likely the users will like the product.

What is Simplicity?
Simplicity is not simple.
Simplicity are something are other than simple but simple. It make something look simple but it has complicated means behind the simple-look cover. It has its quality of being simple that make it different than just simple. Just like some of the logo designs, may be it looks simple, but actually it has many meaning behind it. So, simplicity make things not simple but simple. It is not just simple or simplistic.

There is several Human Perception that will affects a human's likes.
And they are:
Chunking
In psycology, Chunking is a phenomenon whereby individuals group responses when performing a memory task (from: Wikipedia) The elements of perception + memory are equal to chunks. Presentation of information is simplified by dividing it up. Just like if there is a group of 26 alphabets that arranged randomly, it is most likely harder for us to memorize part of them. But when they are divided into groups, people will be easier to memorize them group by group. By dividing the elements, human are easier to memorize and recall.

Which do you think you can recall easier?

Contrast
Contrast is a difference in visual properties that makes something in an object occurs to be stand out better than other elements of the object. Most likely it often can be seen in photography or images. Contrast is irregularities in design that communicates information and makes elements stand out. These occurs mostly when we watching on an object that has complementary colors. Not just colors, some others elements like the size also can be contrast.

Flower in photography often use contrast technique to stand out the flower.

Visual Variables
Visual Variables are used for communication by encoding data and drawing distinctions between visual elements. There are 2 ways that visual variables work on perception, one of it is selectivity and another one is associativity.
Selectivity
It is degree to which a single value can be selected from the entire visual field. Which means from the entire part of an object, there will be a single part that will most attracting the user's attention. Mostly the selectivity used the position, size, orientation, hue, value, texture to perform and attract the attention at the certain part. Example like the picture shown, all the attraction will be focus on the eel that out of the net but not those eel in the net, that was because it is different than the others.

Associativity
Associativity is opposite of selectivity. It make easy to ignore the variable and let it all blend in to one another. Just like the whole object doesn't have anything that will constantly attract your attention but the whole object are look blending together and doesn't have any focusing part. Like the picture shown below, may be the colors are different but the object of all the picture are blend together and there does not say which of the picture are more likely attracted your attention because all of them are even.

There is some graphic design guidelines,
The design must have:
1. Simplicity but not simplistic
2. Good contrast
3. Good control of white space
4. Balance
5. Alignment

By, Yee Kuang Hooi.
Hiccarus Lesselion, 1102702258.

User Centered Design

What is SImplicity?
Simplicity is the state, quality, or an instance of being simple.

Huaman Perception
Chunking
A term reffering the process of taking individual units of information and group them into larger units.
Most common example of chinking are phone numbers.
It often a useful tool when memorizing large amounts of information.
By saperating disparate individual elements into larger blocks, information become easier to retain and recall.

Contrast
To show the unlikeness on comparison with something else. Differences along a visual dimension (size or color)
Contrast is irregularities in design that:-
-Communicates information
-Make elements stand out

Visual Variables
Visual Variables are used for communication by encoding data + drawing distinctions between elements.
Two ways that visual variable work on perception:-
-Selectivity
-Associativity

Selectivity

A person will select a single value out of the whole visual field.
Put it in simple way, on a visual field which part attract the viewer the most, using position, size, orientations, hue, value and texture.

Associativity

Assiociativity is opposite from selectivity, a picture/ photo apply assiociativity, meaning that the picture, subject, colour, position all blend together. Another definition is very hard to spot where the subject is...

Week 6 - User Centred Design

What is simplicity?
Simplicity is about do or show something simple but not simply, simplicity is also  something that easy to understand in contrast or something complicated. Simplicity is not something simple. For designer designing simplicity is a process of elimination and forces designer to have a good reason for everything because they have to explain how does the product works with the design. "If you cant explain it simply, you don't understand well enough" Albert Einstein

Chunking
Chunking is a type of memorizing, in psychology is phenomenon whereby individuals group responses when performing a memory task. The chunking is the combination of perception and memory. This method is to let people more easy to memorizing the subject.
For example,
4 3 3 4 9 6 5 9 3 5 7 5 7 3 7 5 8 6 7
433 496 593 575 375 867

Contrast
Contrast is a person or thing showing the differences when compared with another. Contrast is to make element stand out.The use of opposing elements, such as colors, forms, or lines, in a design an intensified the effect in a work of art. The difference in brightness between the light and dark areas of a picture, such as a photograph or video image.

Visual Variables
visual variables are used for communication by encoding date and drawing. There there are 2 ways that visual variables work on perception
-selectivity
-associativity

Selectivity
A good designer will select a better single value from the entire visual field. Visual field is to make it more attractive and get most attention from the audience by using position, size, orientation, hue, value and texture.

Associativity
Associativity is the opposite of selectivity.a picture with associate is a picture that blend image, object, colour and placement all together. In another words, the object is very hard to stand out.

User Centred Design

According to Wikipedia, User-centred design is a design philosophy and a process in which the needs, wants, and limitations of end users of a product are given extensive attention at each stage of the design process. A good design is not always satisfied customer because only customer know what they need and what they really want it. A design is a collaboration between designer and customer because designer is design for the customer so designer have to know and understand what the customer  need and what they really want with the design of the product.If the information from user is wrong,then the system will suffer. Designer have do more research of the information and different which is the correct or wrong information from the customer. Sometime designer will misunderstand the information from the customer,so one of the easiest way to prevent designer received wrong  information from customer is to have a good communication with customer.

Week 6: User Centre Design

Simplicity

Well for me simplicity can be either good or bad. For example, a designer is designing a logo, website, artwork and much more cannot apply simplicity in it, because design required simple not simply, the outcome of simply will be a bad design, but for simple design is a good design, "Simple but not Simply".

But simplicity fro designing also can be good as well, simplicity is a process of elimination, simplicity forces you to have a good reason for everything, "Simplicity is not Simple".

"If you cant explain it simply, you don't understand well enough" Albert Einstein

Chunking

Chunking is psychological term, in psychology, is a phenomenon whereby individual groups perform a memory task. Chunking also can be define as method of memorizing.

Example:

2 7 4 7 9 3 2 1 6 8 3 3 6 8 2 3 4 0 7 4 6

274 793 216 833 682 340 746 

Visual Variable: Selectivity

A person will select a single value out of the whole visual field.

Put it in simple way, on a visual field which part attract the viewer the most, using position, size, orientations, hue, value and texture.

Example:

Which part of the picture attract you the most?

Is it the sun that you see first?

Assiociativity

Assiociativity is opposite from selectivity, a picture/ photo apply assiociativity, meaning that the picture, subject, colour, position all blend together. Another definition is very hard to spot where the subject is...

Example:

Pattern

Can you find the cat in this picture?

Forth Lecture: Graphic Design

Now, we are learning about graphic design which has been taught by Mr. Radzi Bedu.
What is Graphic Design?

Graphic Design is defined as the art or profession of visual communication that combines images, words, and ideas to convey information to an audience. It can be work with drawn, painted, photographed or computer-generated images (pictures), but they also design the letter forms that make up various typefaces found in movie credits and TV ads; in books, magazines, and menus; and even a computer screen.

What is Graphic Design for?
Graphic Design is designed for visual communication and presentation.

The Graphic Design communicate with the audience with just the graphic in the form of picture, painting, photograph and so on. It also brings the meanings and message through the media to audience.

So, Graphic Design can be seen often in advertising and poster.

A great Graphic Design can successfully bring the message to audience even without their notices.

Normally, graphic design arranges info visually using typography and illustration in such a way that it successfully tasks the concept to visual look. Here some example of Graphic Design.\

By, Yee Kuang Hooi.

Hiccarus Lesselion, 1102702258.

Week 5: Graphic Design

First thing first, what is Graphic?
Graphic is a visual presentation art form on a surface, paper, canvas, computer screen and so on.
Example, drawing, photographs, line arts, typography and so on.

Now, what is graphic design?
Graphic design require a designer with a creative brain to create an art called graphic design. Graphic design can be a photograph, combination of graphic and typography, and most importantly they are mostly created by computer software.

A graphic design shows a lot of thing, "A picture worth a thousand words" yes its true. Through a graphic design contains emotions, feeling, story, message and much more. Designer create this graphic design mostly is for music album, movie poster and advertisement.

Example:

Graphic with Typo

Typography

Photograph with graphic

Pure Typography

Pure Graphic Design

by: Koh Soo Hong

      1102700466

Graphic Design

What Graphic Design mean ?

Graphic design which include text and illustration which are creatively compose together to create a art form. The whole field involve in Visual Communication that art or design communicate with client such as in the form of icon, symbol and index. Graphic Design also can bring the mean of designer communicate to a client or a product to communicate with a user through its visual design.

Every designer of a graphic art aim to their target audience and target market, to them their design are mainly attract to the own interest user and not overall user as now the market getting wider and wider.