Todd Zaki Warfel - Prototyping: A Practitioners Guide

There are countless books on how to code HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Theres also no shortage of software development books on how to program in Java, .Net, PHP, Python, or Ruby on Rails. Looking for a book on using Flash, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, or Visio to design interfaces? Yup, weve got those in spades, too.

What we lack is a short, yet comprehensive book focused solely on prototyping for user experience practitioners. That is until now.

This book is a mix of foundational prototyping theory and practical how-tos. Ive included a number of real-world case studies, some from my own work and some from other practitioners in the field. Ive also packed the book with a number of tips that will help you prototype faster, easier, and with greater success.

This book is written for anyone involved in the design or development of a product or service. If youre a visual designer, interaction designer, information architect, developer, usability engineer, product manager, or business owner, this book will show you how to leverage prototyping to improve communication within your company and avoid costly mistakes.

This book is organized into three main sections.

Section One. The first five chapters provide foundational theory and best practices for prototyping. Youll even find a few guidelines for selecting a prototyping method best suited for your needs.

Section Two. The next six chapters discuss specific methods of prototypingfrom paper prototyping to coded HTML. Each chapter starts with a matrix, showing how the specific method measures up, based on a number of important characteristics. Next, youll find a summary of the methods strengths and weakness. Finally, each chapter provides a step-by-step guided how-to prototyping tutorial packed with tips and tricks.

Section Three. The last chapter in the book will guide you through the actual process of testing your prototype.

This books companion Web site ( http://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/prototyping ) contains links to a number of prototyping resources, including articles, videos, tools, templates, and example files referenced in this book. You can also find a calendar of my upcoming talks on prototyping and a place to engage others in conversations about prototyping.

Weve also made the books diagrams, screenshots, and other illustrations available under a Creative Common license for you to download and include in your own presentations. Youll find the original illustrations and diagrams from this book at http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosenfeldmedia/sets/ , or you can just double-click the pushpin next to the image to see them in high resolution.

Frequently Asked Questions

When choosing a prototyping method, a number of deciding factors need to be considered. You should start by asking the following questions: Whats the goal of this prototype? Who is its audience? How comfortable am I with this method? Is it something I already know or can learn quickly? How effective will this method be at helping me communicate or test my design? The right prototyping method for your current situation depends on how you answer these questions. As your answers change, so might your selection of prototyping methods and tools. See Chapter 5.

Neither. Prototype fidelity is a sliding scale. Dont be concerned with hi-level or lo-level fidelity. The level of fidelity that matters is whatever is needed to help you accomplish your goal with the audience for your prototype.

A prototype, regardless of its fidelity, functionality, or how it is made, captures the intent of a design and simulates multiple states of that design. Wireframes and storyboards are static representations of a design that on their own merit do not simulate multiple states of a design. Its the simulation and multiple states part that creates the distinction.

I chose to include tools that were widely used in the field of user experience. When I started this book, I surveyed a few hundred practitioners to get a feel for the most common tools being used in the field of user experience. You can find the results of that survey in Chapter 5, Picking the Right Tool.

Some tools, like Flash, have entire books dedicated to them. Flash is a great prototyping tool, but because it is so popular, I felt other tools deserved more attention.

OmniGraffle and Balsamiq are great diagramming tools that can be used for prototyping, but at the time of this book, neither represented a large enough market share to warrant writing about them. That might change. Ill be watching.

This is probably the toughest challenge faced by those who are new to prototyping. Its not that you dont want to, or that youre scared of trying and failing. Its that you cant seem to get your boss or client to see the value in prototyping.

The first chapter in this book focuses on the value of prototyping. In that chapter, youll learn how to make the argument with your client or boss that you cannot afford not to prototype. In fact, not prototyping will cost you more in the end than the time and effort it takes to prototype. Additionally, Ive included a number of case studies and insights throughout the book, which should give you additional ammunition to make the case for prototyping.

You just jump in and do it. Dont feel like you have to learn a new tool such as Fireworks or how to code HTML. Instead, start with something simpleprototype with paper or PowerPoint. You can always work your way up to something more advanced. See Chapters 611.