Evaluation of user interfaces : EVADIS II-a comprehensive evaluation approach

As a result of the importance of the usability approach in system development and the EC's ‘Directive concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for VDT workers’ (EWG 1990), there is an accepted need for practical evaluation methods for user interfaces. The usability approach and the EC Directive are not restricted to user interface design, as they include the design of appropriate hardware and software, as well as organization, job, and task design. Therefore system designers are faced with many, often conflicting, requirements and need to address the question, ‘How can usability requirements comprehensively be considered and evaluated in system development?’ Customers buying hardware and software and introducing them into their organization ask, (How can I select easy-to-use hardware and software?’ Both designers and customers need an evaluation procedure that covers all the organizational, user, hard- and software requirements. The evaluation method, EVADIS.II, we present in this paper overcomes characteristic deficiencies of previous evaluation methods. In particular, it takes the tasks, the user, and the organizational context into consideration during the evaluation process, and provides computer support for the use of the evaluation procedure