An Investigation on the Design of Interface Function and Sidebar Style of Desktop Widget

• Main Authors: Wei-Yin Su, 蘇瑋茵
• Other Authors: Chien-Hsiung Chen
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/51962517940956260134

碩士 === 國立臺灣科技大學 === 設計研究所 === 97 === Widget application is the latest online service under the Web2.0 developing trend. Along with the technological environment and the changes of users’ living habits, the Website is not only an access to information, but also a platform for users exchanging information, sharing resources, and presenting themselves. Widget application provides various functions, including entertainment, working, and learning, which can be created by the users, downloaded freely, and also can be solely executed on the desktop. But whether or not the existing functions and the interface design of Widget fit into users’ situations and demands while using; whether they could effectively assist users when interacting with the computer desktop; and whether they could immediately present information and provide feedback; those are the issues worthwhile to be discussed in-depth. The purposes of this study are: (1) through analyzing the relevant literature, the function of Widget, the current use of the interface of Widget; and the Website service of Widget, the author investigated users’ demands and feelings from the perspective of user customization. (2) According to the above-mentioned results, a new Widget user interface design, compared to its testing sample, was proposed to be more suitable for users’ mental models. Besides, the interface prototype of Widget application which has better pleasurability and usability facilitated during its testing. (3) Proposing an evaluation of the interface prototype and research results of Widget application. This study, from a point of view of users’ demands, first focused on analyzing literature which is related to Widget, simultaneously by using questionnaires to survey users’ current situations, preferences, and demands when using Widget; and then according to the literature review and in connection with those three representative Widget service Websites, i.e., Yahoo Widget Tool, Google Desktop Gadget, and Windows Life Gallery, the author could better understand the overall Widget service from a wider perspective, and also users’ feelings when interacting with the Widget. After that, the author investigated the experience of using Widget on a computer desktop by means of questionnaires and interviews. Finally, according to the literature review, analysis of current situation, demands of users, and the results of survey on users’ experience, the author designed two kinds of Widget user interfaces, and three prototypes of sidebar interface: (1) control group: referring to a typical Widget interface design; (2) group with a high interactive interface: dynamic presentation and materialized style; (3) group with a interface of high practicability: flexible for storage and display. The author had experimented 2 (the degree of the dependence on Widget) x 3 (the way how the three groups of Widget sidebar present) mixed factorial design. The research results are as followings: (1) From the questionnaire on users’ pleasurability, there were significant differences between single and multi-functional Widget on ‘security’, ‘excitement’, ‘satisfaction’, and ‘entertainment’. The author could see that multi-functional Widget obviously stimulated users’ pleasure while they interacting with the Widget interface; thus, the result fits with the author’s expectation. (2) Single and multi-functional Widget on the item - ‘the degree of fitting with the behavioral model of users’, there were significant differences on ’instant joy’, ‘sufficient satisfaction’, and ‘expected memory’; which shows that multi-functional Widget fits more with users’ behavioral models. It not only provided users instant results and feedbacks, but its functions were also complete and easy for users to understand without learning it in advance. (3) There were significant differences on ‘security’, ‘satisfaction’, and ‘entertainment’, and ‘freedom’ toward the three types of Widget sidebar interfaces on the questionnaire regarding users’ pleasurability. The score of the high interactive Widget sidebar was the highest, which showed that users were willing to accept the materialized Widget interface and the new experiences of interactive model. However, after having used for a long time, users considered whether Widget would affect normal operation when using desktop. (4) On the item - ‘the degree of fitting with the behavioral model of users’, there were significant differences among the three types of Widget sidebar interfaces: ‘secure exploration’, ‘conventionality’, ‘spacial memory’, ‘smooth repetition’. The score of the highly practical sidebar was the highest, which showed that high practicability of the Widget sidebar interface fits most with users’ behavioral models. On the part of ‘the degree of the dependence on Widget’, there was a significant difference on ‘instant joy’. The participants who were highly dependent on Widget were more able to grasp instant information and feedback than those who were lowly dependent. (5) Three types of Widget sidebar interfaces on the items of the QUIS users’ satisfaction toward interaction, there were significant differences on the following five dimensions: overall feelings to the interface; the screen; wordings used and the information on the interface; and capacities for learning, and for software. The score of the highly practical sidebar was the highest, which showedthat the overall satisfaction of users toward the highly practical Widget interface was the highest.