Artifact: User-Interface
Prototype
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A user-interface prototype is an example of the user interface that is built in order to explore and/or validate the user-interface design. | |
| Role: | User-Interface Designer | |
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| Optionality/Occurrence: | Optional. Built during the Elaboration phase. | |
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| Examples: | ||
| UML Representation: | Not applicable. | |
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| Input to Activities: | Output from Activities: |
Purpose
The following roles use the user-interface prototype:
- user-interface designers, to explore and/or validate the user-interface design before too much is invested in it
- requirements specifiers, to understand the user interface for a Use Case
- system analysts, to understand how the user interface impacts the analysis of the system
- designers, to understand how the user interface impacts and what it requires from the "inside" of the system
- managers, to plan development and testing activities
User-Interface Prototypes can be used to explore an achievable and suitable user-interface design that fulfills the requirements, helping to close the gap between what is required (expressed through requirements elicitation) and what is feasible. The main purpose of creating a user-interface prototype is to be able to "test out" the user-interface design, including its usability before the real development starts. This way, you can ensure that you are building the right system, before you spend too much time and resources on development.
Properties
User-Interface Prototypes may be formal or informal, executable or non-executable, low fidelity or high-fidelity prototypes. For example, a User-Interface Prototype may range from a series of pictures representing screen shots to a set of interactive HTML pages. The format the UI prototype takes is not the issue. What is important to keep in mind is the purpose of the User-Interface Prototype (to explore and/or validate a user-interface design), and what skills are required to produce the prototype (a User-Interface Prototype requires some user-interface design skills).
Timing
The User-Interface Prototype is built during early Elaboration phase, before the whole system (including its "real" user interface) is analyzed, designed, and implemented.
The User-Interface Prototype is produced after some initial requirements have been defined and an initial user-interface design has been proposed (or is at least being considered). The User-Interface Prototype can be used to clarify any ambiguities in those requirements through exploring the design. However, the main purpose of the User-Interace Prototype is NOT to elicit requirements.
The User-Interface Prototype is usually built in conjunction with the development of the initial user-interface design, in order to visualize, test out, and get feedback on that design.
Responsibility
The User-Interface Designer role is responsible for the integrity of the User-Interface Prototype, ensuring that the prototype contributes to a usable user interface.
Tailoring
Decide whether a prototype is suitable for your project. Decide on how much of the user interface to prototype, and the depth and realism of any interactivity. Decide whether the prototype is purely throwaway, or whether some aspects are intended to evolve into the end product.
Keep in mind that in order to achieve the goal of early testing of the user interface, the prototype must be significantly cheaper to develop than the real system, while having enough capabilities to be able to support a meaningful use test.
