Usability Engineering Report: COSC1182 Assignment, Semester 1

This report provides a comprehensive evaluation of usability engineering principles, focusing on the analysis of two websites concerning user experience (UX) and sustainability. The study begins with an introduction to usability engineering, emphasizing its role in creating user-centric, easily navigable products. It then delves into the concept of sustainability in UX design, highlighting the importance of green hosting and reducing environmental impact. The core of the report involves a comparative analysis of two websites: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/ and https://www.imd.org/research-knowledge/sustainability/, evaluating them based on the 5Es of usability (Effective, Efficient, Engaging, Error Tolerant, and Easy to learn). The report assesses how each website communicates sustainability, organizes content, and performs. The analysis includes interview questions and findings related to UX design challenges, usability testing, and industry trends. The report concludes with recommendations, suggesting the importance of usability testing in the early design phase, and summarizes the evaluation based on the 5Es criteria, emphasizing the significance of find-ability, performance, and green hosting in UX design.

Running head: USABILITY ENGINEERING
USABILITY ENGINEERING
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
User Experience and Sustainability.................................................................................................2
Website Evaluation..........................................................................................................................2
Comparison..................................................................................................................................2
Question 2a..................................................................................................................................3
Question 2b..................................................................................................................................4
Question 2c..................................................................................................................................4
Interview Questions.........................................................................................................................4
Findings of the questions.............................................................................................................5
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
References........................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
Usability Engineering is study of developing user-centric products which is easy to use
and learn for humans. In Information technology, Usability Engineering focuses on the user-
friendly designs, which helps in achieving quantified objectives with user satisfactions. Usability
is defined, after the identification and analysis of usability requirements (Kuniavsky, 2003). The
user experience design and usability engineering can help in achieving sustainability.
Sustainability manages the responsibility of the development practices and reducing harms to the
environment. The purpose of this study to research and evaluate the sustainability in user
experience design on two websites. It also covers the identification of data to support the
assessment and designing interview questions.
User Experience and Sustainability
The designers use the project constraints to achieve a tangible solution for abstract
problems ("What is Interaction Design?", 2020). It will affect product life and its afterlife effects
both. The users should also be a proactive participant in this sustainable development of UX. In
terms of web design, find-ability of the information, performance, user experience and green
hosting are the critical areas of the sustainable design process (Egan, Benyon & Thompson,
2017). Green hosting focuses on reducing the carbon footprint of the website.
Test Description
Usability testing with an iterative approach identifies the problem domain and helps in
achieving a quality product. The examination for the website has been done with the help of 5E’s
which are Effective, Efficient, Engaging, Error Tolerant and Easy to learn. Effectiveness of a

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website can be determined by checking the expected results of action on the website. Efficient
refers to the loading time, processing and the time in which the desired information can be found.
Engaging means the interaction between the user and the website. Error Tolerant refers to have
non-problematic errors. Errors which do not affect the main processes of the system is an
example of error tolerance. If a user can learn the quickly all the contents and functions of the
website, it can be said Easy to learn.
Website Evaluation
Comparison
Website 1- https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/
The aim of the website is to provide an overview to help the government and
stakeholders to implement the sustainable development goals (Garbie, 2014). The website is
hosted by the United Nations, which can be determined as a green hosting program.
Website 2- https://www.imd.org/research-knowledge/sustainability/
This website is comprised of the research contents related to the sustainable trending
publications, newsletter etc. The website has an organization domain which is the sign of the
green hosting. The performance and process optimization are better on the UN hosted website.
Question 2a
Both the websites clearly define sustainability in terms of the UX design. The website is
responsive, and content on the page is easy to locate, which will reduce the energy of the user by
exploring pages to find the wanted information. Website 1 has the better organization of contents
which directly linked to the certain sustainable related articles and forums (Peruzzini &

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Pellicciari, 2018). It has highlighted the goals of sustainable development to achieve better
designs. United Nation has categorized some global issues to be considered to provide the
solution of the issues in a website and UX design. Conference details, 2030 Agenda, forums and
good practices have been highlighted in the menu section for better reachability of the user.
Server response and performance of the website is also better.
On the other hand, website 2 has lesser contents and links on the page. It explains the key
terms of achieving sustainability on a global level. It also contains the reports, articles and case
studies from around the world to implement better sustainable developments. It is hosted by the
International Institute for the Management development and focuses on the sustainable
development practices of global powers like China and the USA.
Question 2b
Yes, both the website gives information on sustainability and the relation with the IT
business in Australia. Website 1 is a UN hosted website which covers almost all articles which
are related to the all-world (Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform, 2020). On the other
hand, the other website has information for the IT business in an article named ‘Why all
businesses should embrace sustainability’ by Professor Knut Haanaes. The article highlights the
good sustainable practices of the banks like ANZ and Westpac by both the advance and local
communities in Australia (Haanaes, 2019). The article highlights to beware of the two gaps in
the sustainable practices.

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Question 2c
Based on the multiple browsing and reading sessions on both the websites, I would rate
8.5 out of 10 to the second website and 8 out of 10 to the first UN hosted website for the overall
Usability for finding relevant information
Tasks
Hallway testing: It uses random people to use and test the website rather than the people who
have high knowledge of website testing. It is a great task to evaluate newly developed websites.
Random people can be organized and tasks can be given to them, such as finding any articles or
report on the given website.
Eye Tracking: Using an eye tracking device, it can be observed that on which part of the web
page user has looked along with the duration. This task can be successful in evaluating which
part of the web design is highly usable and which part is less usable. It is a great way to observe
users while testing the usability.
Interview Questions
i. What are the 5E’s of the website evaluation?
Ans: The 5E’s of the website evaluation are Effective, Efficient, Engaging, Error Tolerant and
Easy to Learn for the users.
ii. What are the biggest challenges for designers?
Ans: The main challenges for the designers are gathering usability requirements, product quality
and Usability of the product after development.

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iii. How can we achieve high Usability for a design?
Ans: A balanced approach of 5Es and user-centric method can achieve high Usability.
iv. What are the biggest trends in the UX design industry?
Ans: The biggest trends in UX design industry are Augmented Reality, Personal User Interface,
Video contents and Apps design for different platforms.
v. How can users judge a UX design?
Ans: User can judge a UX design on the basis of the presentation, fidelity, style and main goal of
the design.
vi. What is Usability Testing?
Ans: Usability testing is a set of tests which is conducted in a realistic environment to check how
well it is engaging with the users.
vii. How is Usability Engineering related to Software development?
Ans: Usability Engineering is a method and part of the software development to improve
processes which reduces the probability of changes after development.
Findings of the questions
The findings of the interviews questions are based on the usability engineering processes.
It explains the challenges, user’s perspective, design usability testing etc. According to the
Whitney Quesenbery, Usability can be defined as the quality of the product and user-centric
approach can help in achieving the high usability products (Quesenbery, 2004).

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Recommendations and Conclusion
Usability testing is recommended to be done in the initial phase of the design. There are
many usability tools which check the navigation, click testing and surveys for the feedback from
the user to evaluate the website. By performing particular tasks on a website, these parameters
can be checked. In this scenario, the find-ability of the information regarding the relation
between IT business in Australia and Sustainability.
Usability evaluation and comparison of the two websites have been done on the basis of
the 5E’s criteria of the evaluation. However, the main criteria of the assessment are to find
sustainability of the UX designs (Kuniavsky, 2003). The performance, find-ability, green hosting
etc. are the metrics which are evaluated for both the websites. The report successfully explains
the evaluation along with the designing interview questionnaires. Lastly, the outcomes of the
report are concluded in the form of assessment and findings of the interview questions. It is the
best method to ensure that the product supports the customers to achieve their goals quickly and
effectively.

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References
Egan, C., Benyon, D., & Thompson, R. (2017, July). Permaculture as a foundation for
sustainable interaction design and UX. In Proceedings of the 31st International BCS
Human Computer Interaction Conference (HCI 2017) 31 (pp. 1-6).
Garbie, I. H. (2014). An analytical technique to model and assess sustainable development index
in manufacturing enterprises. International Journal of Production Research, 52(16),
4876-4915.
Haanaes, K. (2019). Why all businesses should embrace sustainability. Retrieved 10 March
2020, from https://www.imd.org/research-knowledge/articles/why-all-businesses-should-
embrace-sustainability/
Home .:. Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. (2020). Retrieved 10 March 2020, from
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/
Kuniavsky, M. (2003). A Practitioner's Guide to User Research.
Kuniavsky, M. (2003). Typhoon. Observing the User Experience, 3–8. doi:10.1016/b978-
155860923-5/50028-0
Peruzzini, M., & Pellicciari, M. (2018). User experience evaluation model for sustainable
manufacturing. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing, 31(6), 494-
512.
Quesenbery, W. (2004). Balancing the 5Es of Usability. Cutter IT Journal, 17(2), 4-11.

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What is Interaction Design?. (2020). Retrieved 19 March 2020, from https://www.interaction-
design.org/literature/article/what-is-interaction-design