User experience and research
Guest lecturers:
Matthew Diaz, User Experience Analyst, The New York Times Anh Dang, Lead Experience Strategist, The New York Times
Assignment (Group - Due Thursday, 2/27):
- Conduct two preliminary interviews (these will count towards your 8 total interviews) using a revised research plan based on the feedback from class. One interview should be focused on mobile, the second on desktop.
- Submit a Google Doc with a summary of each interview, including details about the subject, an outline of the interview with key quotes and conclusions drawn from the interview). Also submit links to video recordings.
- Describe any adjustments you’ll make for the remaining interviews. (You may want to start scheduling those now.)
Assignment (Individual — Due Tuesday, 2/18)
Scenario: You’re a Web editor for a travel magazine after graduation. Your editor wants to put together a list of the hottest travel destinations for summer. Your job is to compile a list of 10 places and present them on a page.
At a minimum, you’ll need a headline and summary for the page, and something compelling for each location. I don’t want just a UL/LI of 10 names. Make this visually interesting.
Things to consider:
Art. You need it. Use any relevant photos/video/illustration you want that you have permission to use. Copyrighted art that you don’t have rights to are not acceptable. Creative Commons licensed photos are a good place to start. You can search Flickr for just Creative Common licensed photos. Make sure you adhere to the licensing/attribution terms of any art you use. Write some sample copy for your presentation. You don’t have to do a fully researched/reported piece, but give us a sense of what tone and length of text you have in mind. If you have 10 places on your list, come up with copy for one place. Use filler text for the others, if you like. Type. We’ve been talking about type a lot in class. This is a great exercise to practice. Type selectors. Class selectors. Use them. If you want to get fancier than we’ve done in class, go for it. Don’t worry about branding the magazine. You can if you like, but I’m more interested in the individual story. Be prepared to present your assignment on Tuesday. Many of you will be asked to.