Abstract
Aspects of usability, such as effectiveness and efficiency,
are critical for users' overall experience of an interactive
system. In response to the on-going debate on the relationship between different aspects of usability in
usability studies, we present an example of a User Interface
(UI) design case where the relationship between effectiveness and efficiency should be considered as a
requirement or design issue, rather than as variables in
usability studies. In the presented case - status reporting
from an in-vehicle support system for emergency missions -
these aspects of usability were perceived as conflicting
rather than as positively correlated. We present various
design solutions to the task of status reporting and show
how the solutions support effectiveness and efficiency in
different ways. Finally, we point out some characteristics of the case that could explain our findings and we suggest how future research may obtain more insight into which types of applications that may possess similar properties.
are critical for users' overall experience of an interactive
system. In response to the on-going debate on the relationship between different aspects of usability in
usability studies, we present an example of a User Interface
(UI) design case where the relationship between effectiveness and efficiency should be considered as a
requirement or design issue, rather than as variables in
usability studies. In the presented case - status reporting
from an in-vehicle support system for emergency missions -
these aspects of usability were perceived as conflicting
rather than as positively correlated. We present various
design solutions to the task of status reporting and show
how the solutions support effectiveness and efficiency in
different ways. Finally, we point out some characteristics of the case that could explain our findings and we suggest how future research may obtain more insight into which types of applications that may possess similar properties.