Experiencing User-Centered Design (UCD) Practice, Case Study: Interactive Route Navigation Map of Bangkok Underground and Sky Train. Human-Computer Interaction

Abstract: The research is aim to create MRT: Metropolitan Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (Underground Train) and BTS: Bangkok Mass Transit System Public Company Limited (Sky Train) interactive route navigation map. This map shows the whole routes of both MRT and BTS train stations which are located in the interactive manner. The design is not only a proposal for showing the whole information about direction and price information of transportation by MRT and BTS in Bangkok. But also this research took these concepts one step further, by introducing interactive map which the viewers/passengers can access the information from everywhere via the internet. The goal of this interactive navigation map is to satisfy informative. Problem space includes 2 different user groups. Regardless of age or background, they do all have the same purpose; travel with the train. The User-Centered Design (UCD) methodology has been applied in developing processes of this research. Keywords: User-Centered Design (UCD), Human Computer Interaction (HCI), Interactive, Map Problem Statement and Motivation The BTS Sky train is the comfortable and convenient way to get around Bangkok. In service since 1999, it has transformed the face of public transportation in the Thai capital, for the first time offering both residents and visitors a comfortable ride through central Bangkok. The Bangkok's second major mass transit system (MRTMass Rapid Transit: underground train) is on track for a test run on 2004 that reaches from the Northern train station of Bangsue to Hua Lumphong main railway station in a loop, connecting with the BTS on 3 different stations, namely: Silom, Sukhumvit, and Chatuchak Park 1 . MRT have a similar ticket system as BTS but both systems are for the time being not compatible. All stations of MRT can be reached via ramps and elevators, if needed, or alternatively via escalators. 1 www.bts.com The finalized system of this research is web based version of MRT and BTS interactive route navigation map. The three main problems for the tourists/residents, who travel around Bangkok, are: • The first problem is that MRT and BTS systems and services are still unknown to the tourists/residents; because the complete information of underground and sky train maps are not provided on the both MRT and BTS official web site. But there is some information that provided in web site of private organization for example, http://bangkok.sawadee.com/skytrain.htm, www.2bangkok.com, http://bangkok. sawadee.com/mrta.htm. As we can see information of MRT and BTS routes separately in • The second problem is that tourists/residents do not know the necessary details in order to using these transportation; such as, if where the train stations are, and how they connected along the train route or, how both BTS and MRT connected, How much does it cost for traveling from one station to another?. If we look at many interactive systems we can see that they have been designed by computer programmers and software engineers on the false assumption that everyone else in the world understands (or should understand) computers as well as they do. How can we make sure that interactive systems are better designed? Fig • Usability Objectives: Because we assume a wide variety of users, it is important that the system is easy to use. • User experience Objectives: First and foremost we wish the user to have a nice and easy experience using the public online interactive map. We try to imagine; a user on the station who looks at the interactive route pop up from inactive background and sees the clear train route. Maybe he can see the reality location of all the train stations. The users know at any given time where their closest station is located, our goal of making a service that is informative has been met. • Publication Objectives: As the main industry in Thailand is tourism Interactive Manners and User-Centered Design (UCD) Interaction design aims to reduce the learning curve and to increase accuracy and efficiency of a task without diminishing usefulness. The objective is to reduce frustration and increase user productivity and satisfaction. Interaction design tries to understand certain users' requirements and then designing to gather and go above them by observing who wants to use it, and how they would like to use it. Relating users, designers gain the ability to better understand user goals and experiences. There are also positive side effects which include enhanced system capability awareness and user ownership or sometimes called participatory design. To enhance overall approval of the final product by adding a sense of ownership, because users who have been dynamic contributors in a system's development are more expected to feel that they are the owner of the product. The powerful, interactive systems will be relevant to its intended users, will support the tasks for which it is intended and make good use of technology. Useful means that the system supports user objectives, Usable means that it is supports these objectives in easy-to-use ways, Accessible means that it can be used by the full range of intended users. In order to accomplish these concepts, the UCD is the answer of how we come up with the system that can perform these essential concepts. Combining with a new methodology which is prototyping, the final result of prototyping studies would be directly convertible into efficient application code. On the usability evaluation side, the scenarios and prototypes would be readily converted into a simulation that would support human studies of effectiveness of the resultant designs The designer cannot passively go through a number of stages in linear manner, doing each stage once before signing it if and moving on like waterfall model. In UCD, by contrast, the designer and the design process must both work interactively. The emphases are design and evaluation as an interactive cycle. Designers cannot become stuck with their initial ideas and assumption, but must respond to data about what works and what does not. UCD forces designers to be explicit about decisions made, reviewing them through prototype and storyboards with the team and potential users. Designers need ways of sharing design thinking by producing physical representations of design ideas. These could be working computer-bases prototypes or as simple as a paper sketch There is certainly the current high level of interest in multimedia interaction parts from up to date technical advance. While guidelines and research findings exist, so do large and significant gaps in knowledge. This is due to the inherent problem of predicting how system features will succeed or fail in realistic task setting. Moreover, iterative design and testing method are necessary 5 Case Study Walk Through: The Development Processes In less well-defined projects, many designers have found real scenarios helpful to characterize that happen when users perform classic tasks. During the early design stages, data about current performance should be collected to provide a baseline. UCD is a flexible process for software development projects that enables teams to more effectively meet the needs of users and customers. In this version, the UCD activities are broken down into simple four phases: Analysis, Design, Implementation and Deployment, with suggested activities for each phase. They are as following: Analysis and Design Finding the objectives of the research: It should focus on usable, universal, and useful. Developers brainstorming Developers who have experience in coding for 5-7 years, got together to discuss the experience on using the similar accessible system. One of the developers did not have any experience in using or creating the interactive map at all. Consequently they discussed how the system should work in their own perspective. The first problem occurred in this phase is that the requirements are not clear to developers. And as we set the methodology as UCD, then they must turn to users in order to get what users really need. They all have their own area of expertise such as some are very good in design, or coding, or graphic design. Learning from the other available systems, developers have the good design from these three accessible train interactive systems which are the Paris interactive map 3 , the Seoul Metropolitan Rapid Transit interactive map 4 , and the Tokyo interactive map 5 as see in the Regardless of the method we choose to identify the appropriate tasks and requirements for your Web site, it is important that we conduct these activities before implementing any new design or major redesign of a site. This critical first step in the Web site design process will ensure that final design is user-friendly, flexible and adaptable, and will eliminate expensive and unnecessarily frequent redesigns. Finding what the users need; Introduction an integral part of an effective user-centered design (UCD) by IBM; process is the gathering of requirements and the identification of common user tasks. This part of the UCD process is just as important in Web site design and it is in software design. Interview user and focus group techniques had been applied in this stage. User questionnaires are familiar, inexpensive and generally acceptable companion for usability tests and expert reviews. The keys to successful questionnaires are clear goals in advance and development of focused items that help to attain those goals. Experienced questionnaire designer knows that care is also needed during design, administration, and data analysis The results from the questionnaire conclusio