Klaus Kuhn

Problems and Benefits of Requirements Gathering With Focus Groups: A Case Study

Focus group interviews are considered as a rather weak, nonquantitative method of assessing user needs, ideas, and reactions in an early stage of the interface design process (Nielsen, 1993). Given this fact, it is relevant to reflect the practical use of focus groups step by step to determine their real strengths and limitations. In this article, we share our experience of planning, running, and analyzing focus groups within the design process of a home automation system. We describe the pre- and postwork in detail so that the pros and cons of gathering requirements with focus groups become apparent.

Designing a Telephone-Based Interface for a Home Automation System

User-interface design lacks expertise in designing nonvisual user interfaces. This is surprising as there are various domains where auditory interfaces have already been proved to be helpful, such as railway information services and reading support for blind persons. We present a case study concerning the design of a telephone-based interface (TBI). It was realized within the development process of an interaction concept for a modular home automation system. The design was based on requirements gathered in user focus groups and on general guidelines for the design of TBIs. The TBIs evaluation revealed some minor (i.e., easily solved) usability problems. Questionnaires showed a positive ergonomic quality as well as a positive overall appeal. Interestingly, the evaluation indicates a potential to improve hedonic quality (i.e., non-task-related quality aspects). It may be induced by the addition of nonspeech sounds, thereby enriching user experience.