Week 7

During this week I submit the assessment and discussed it with my tutor, deciding to add some data to complement it, providing to the reader information about how long does it take to borrow a book from the library. From that decision I started to time 10 different people using the machine and borrowing and returning a book, so I can provide some definitive data. A big difference among the people has been registered, what supports the idea that people's impression is purely relative and depends of various factors. This data proves the information collected before in the survey and gives perspective to it.
With this, the research part of my project is basically finished and now I start to redesign the screen. Let the drawings begin.

Week 6

During the week 6 I analysed the results from the survey and concluded that a change in the library self-checkout screen is needed. Despite the results had not been as expected, almost a third of the interviewed students demonstrated dissatisfaction with the current screen design. Therefore, as Levitt (1981) says “The most important thing about intangibles is that customers usually don’t know what they’re getting until they don’t get it.”, so we decided to go ahead in this project, since changes were obviously shown to be needed.

 

Besides that, I continue to read the book Thinking design, from S. Balaram, and collected more similar interfaces to compare similarities and differences and evolve a pattern of my own. 

Week 5

During the week 5 I received the information requested from the library staff, providing me the numbers of how many people goes to the library and borrow books monthly. With that in mind, I chose the last month (June) to base myself, as it is the most recent one and also the closest to my reality of interviewing 1% of this value, due to this short time available. It is possible to see the data below:

Month	No. of people using the Britannia Mill Library	No. of books issued using Self-service Units at Britannia Mill
Sept 2012	4521	1781
Oct 2012	12163	6075
Nov 2012	14550	5384
Dec 2012	8118	3165
Jan 2013	9241	3881
Feb 2013	10445	4220
Mar 2013	9449	3965
Apr 2013	9553	3681
May 2013	11248	2465
Jun 2013	5104	1680

Besides that, I finish the questionnaire and collected the answers from 51 people, representing 1% of the users. It wasn't possible collect the answers directly in the library cause most of the students were away for the summer and the library was practically empty, so I did an online survey and ask students from all over the place to answer it and share it with other students. The questionnaire is show below:

QUESTIONNAIRE

This questionnaire aims to identify the efficiency of this library Self-checkout machine according to the users’ perception. Please answer the questions below as honestly as possible. It will be used in a project which objective is to evaluate the function of this machine and enhance the user’s experience, proposing any changes who prove to be needed.

1. Regarding the Self-checkout machine, classify the items below in a scale from 1 to 5, 1 being Very poor, 2 – Poor, 3 – Good, 4 – Very good, 5 – Excellent.

Speed: 1       2       3      4      5

Ease to understand: 1       2       3      4      5

Ease to use: 1       2       3      4      5

Screen adequacy to the environment: 1       2       3      4      5

2. Do you use to study in the library?

Yes (  )                        No (  )

SOCIAL

             3. You are:

             Male (  )                      Female (  )

                   Undergraduate (  )      Post-Graduate (  )

             British (  )                    Foreign (  )

Week 4

On the week 4, with the scope approved, I started thinking about the questionnaire structure, to be applied with library users, specially students, and how many people is necessary to interview. After discussing a few questions and its relevance, a first draft was made and sent to the tutor to be seen and commented. Also, I asked for the library staff for information about the number of people who borrow books daily, monthly and annually to base the percentage of my sampling.  At the same time, the book Thinking Design, from S. Balaram started to be read.

Third week

On the third week information regarding the machine, such as photos, screen shots of each screen, and ergonomics - height, depth, length - were collected, at the same time as the book Total Design, from Gillian Hollins, was read and marked with some quotes for posterior use. Besides that, the final adjustments to the project scope were finished and it was approved.

Some Quotes

“A service is any activity or benefit that one party can give to another that is essentially intangible and does not result in the ownership of anything. Its production may or may not be tied to a physical product.” (Kotler, 1986)

“The most important thing about intangibles is that customers usually don’t know what they’re getting until they don’t get it.” (Levitt, 1981)

“It is important that we design not for just the product but the environment in which it is used… making everyday life more comfortable and more accessible and reassuring.” (Colin Clipson, 1988) 

Second week

During the second week some changes were made in my research scope and the limitations of its range was identified, being decided that the main focus of the project is to redesign the screen composition, rearranging and adapting the elements shown to the user. Besides that, the environment should be taken in consideration.

SCOPE

·         Observe how the machine function:  its speed, safety, ergonomics, visual information, and adequacy.

·         Interview students and staff to collect information and experience other points of view.

·         Trace the problem’s priority in the user’s mind, based on the survey answers.

·         Propose a solution for the problems encountered.

·         Propose a new interface for the machine 

OBJECTIVES

•          Analyse the library self-checkout machine in its ergonomic and interface adequacy
•          Collect information about the users experience and opinion of the service through a survey
•          Identify the problems
•          Suggest improvements
•          Propose a new interface for the screen, to be presented as a Power Point file

SUMMARY

This project aims to analyse the library self-checkout machine, excluding the programming issues, implement changes to the way it function or make physical changes in its height and accessibility for disabled people, despite the acknowledgement of its eventual necessity and consideration during the redesign. It is not a concern to propose improvements to the current technology and physical structure of the machine.

First week

First week of research, I did my project scope and the schedule of work to be done during the summer, then discuss it with my tutor and we made a few adjustments. It has been decided to focus in the library self-checkout machine and analyse it as a service provided, interviewing people and comparing the data with my own observations, then generating charts of more and less urgent problems. After identifying the problems, solutions will be proposed and designed, according to necessity.

SCHEDULE

When	What
Week 01	Define goals and the scope of the project.
Week 02	Collect information regarding the machine.
Week 03	Read Thinking Design, from S. Balaram
Week 04	Read Total Design, from Gillian Hollins
Week 05	Read Service Operations Management, from Christine Hope
Week 06	Read Human Factors in Engineering and Design, Mark Sanders
Week 07	Finish the reading and prepare a questionnaire about machine friendliness and people’s usability.
Week 08	Apply the questionnaire with students and staff. Analyse the results and generate graphics.
Week 09	Identify the urgent problems. Propose alternatives to improve its function. The ones beyond my reach would be mentioned but not developed.
Week 10	Create new friendly interface, according to necessity.
Week 11	Test the new interface. Generate graphics.
Week 12	Analyse the results and compare them. Organize all the data in one final document.