Download - Scratchpad Requirements Exercise
Scratchpad Requirements Gathering Exercise
Sarah Phillips
BackgroundICT Team performed an option analysis on the architectural design of eMonocot
Consensus decision reached and ratified by Project Board in May 2011
New content will be gathered and edited in Scratchpads
Content will be aggregated from these Scratchpads alongside existing source systems (Palmweb, CATE-Araceae, GrassBase) in a read-only Portal
Eliminates any duplication of effort since the only read-write interface is in the Scratchpads
Leaves maximum time for the Oxford/Kew team to focus on the Portal
Leaves the Kew Content Team and other contributors having to use a tailored Scratchpad that may not support all their needs
Question
Are Scratchpads fit for purpose for eMonocot?
9 Testers each given an eMonocot Scratchpad
Each User was asked to upload and edit content
Tasks were based on the Scratchpad training guide Data and Images were provided
Tasks
• Create a home page• Add new users• Navigate the
classification• Edit the
classification• Curate Taxon page• Import a
bibliography
• Add specimens and locations
• Add Images• Add taxonomic
descriptions• Add a country map• Search the data
How easy they found Each Task (Very Hard/Hard/OK/Easy/Very Easy)
What improvements were necessary with the process
If they wanted to do something but could not
What additional functionality a Scratchpad should have
Any other content they would want to add
Any other improvements they would like to see
Overall how hard they found the experience
Feedback
Results
On average users rated their overall experience of using the scratchpad as OK Although the average of individual tasks was Easy
Identified approx. 130 requirements
There were a number of common themes that the feedback identified
Improve Usability and Help
Difficult to navigate around the site, not intuitive
Number of steps (clicks) that a user needs to perform a task seems to be greater than necessary
Needs improved and more comprehensive Instructions
Need more visual representations e.g. screen shots
Technical language and Scratchpad terms used in the Help difficult for beginners
Classification tree difficult to navigate – small indents
Hard to edit the classification in the taxonomic editor
Limited search options to find the content that you want
A lot of effort is needed by a user to curate and make attractive taxon pages
Editing content in the matrix editor difficult because of the small window for the editor
Autotagging the bibliography on import
Difficult Tasks
Improve Display of Content
Unsatisfactory display of Synonymy - can not quickly see all the synonyms of a particular name
Clearer display of Type specimens and their images
Content should automatically fit neatly in the Widgets
Display text as a string as opposed to separate fields and their headings
Country maps – More interactive allow zooming in
What Scratchpads can not doAutomatically move names in the classification tree when you associate them to a different accepted name
Ability to move more than one name at a time in the classification tree
Save users search results – can bookmark search Alter the names or order of the tabs in the Taxon description - will break EOL export
Restrict users to be able to edit or contribute data to selected taxa only
ConclusionNo Showstoppers found so far
Room for improvement in terms of usability and display of Content
Improvements should be seen in Scratchpad 2
More feedback and requirements will be gathered when content team and communities start adding content