College of Information Sciences and Technology The ...

[Pages:15]College of Information Sciences and Technology The Pennsylvania State University

Analysis and Suggestions for Happy Valley Tickets

Team 12 Garrett Barch gab5014@psu.edu Matt Finuoli mvf5139@psu.edu

Eric Hang eih5146@psu.edu

Matt White mpw5216@psu.edu

5 May 2015

Phone +1 (814) 865-3528

Fax +1 (814) 865-5604

College of IST, 332 Information Sciences and Technology Building, University Park, PA 16802

Class Project for IST 331 Instructor: Frank Ritter Frank.Ritter@psu.edu

1

Analysis and Suggestions for Happy Valley Tickets Team 12

Garrett Barch gab5014@psu.edu

Matt Finuoli mvf5139@psu.edu

Eric Hang eih5146@psu.edu

Matt White mpw5216@psu.edu College of Information Sciences and Technology The Pennsylvania State University

5 May 2015

Abstract Two of the most important aspects of usability fall under the category of interface appearance and interface functionality. We use these two aspects to examine a website interface and provide numerous improvements that will increase ease of use. We run a task analysis to provide a strong understanding of user interaction with a website. Our task analysis test studies four different subjects purchasing tickets on two different sites providing key insight on numerous aspects of usability. A perception analysis will also be used to gain insight on how a system's display such as color and font affects usability. This is done by running multiple visual tests with multiple users using different color schemed grids.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: 2. Problem One: Appearance Problems

2.1 Font Size 2.2 Colors 2.3 Gray Scale Map 2.4 White Space 3. Problem Two: Functional Problems 3.1 Misuse of Productive Space 3.2 Focusing on the Search Feature 3.3 Filters 3.4 Fixing Small Code Problems 3.5 Improving Fluidity 4. Recommendations 5. Conclusions 6. References

2

3 4 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 9 10 12 12 13

3

1. Introduction:

This paper will provide a thorough analysis for the ticket website based out of State College, PA. Customers use Happy Valley tickets in order to find wholesale prices for tickets, primarily for tickets to Penn State sporting events. Happy Valley Tickets is not limited to Penn State events. They offer tickets for other sporting events at both the college and professional level, as well as tickets to concerts and theaters throughout the country. As a website that describes itself as "fans" on the homepage of their website, they also allow their customer to select where in the event location they would like their seat. Happy Valley Tickets focuses on users that want to select for themselves how they want to experience the event that they are buying a ticket for, while also getting a wholesale price.

In our group's testing of Happy Valley Tickets we found that it compared favorably to the site StubHub. Although the majority of test subjects preferred to use StubHub, some subjects greatly preferred to use Happy Valley Tickets. The problems that test subjects experienced were generally minor, and some small fixes could greatly increase the sites user experience.

-Matt White, Garrett Barch

4

2. Problem One: Appearance Problems 2.1 Font Size

On the Happy Valley ticket website, a major issue we found was that the font sizes were too small to read easily, even on a large monitor. Attempting to use a laptop or smaller monitor made the text nearly unreadable. The text that was the most difficult to read was the listing of tickets. The ticket information is what the users have come to the site to find. Small text at the bottom of the screen does not call the attention of the user. If the site put more of an emphasis on the information the user could navigate the site faster. Also the use of pop out effects, such as bolding key information in the text block, would improve the user's ability to quickly find the information they are looking for. According to a study in the Foundations for Designing User-Centered Systems the use of larger fonts or more readable fonts could improve the user's ability to identify the information they are looking for. (Garvey et al. 1998).

-Matt White

2.2 Colors

Another issue we found is in regard to the website's color pattern. Happy Valley Tickets uses a blue and white color scheme over the whole site, including using both backgrounds and text in shades of blue. The use of a wider color scheme could make the website appear more visually interesting, which could improve user experience. Our testing also indicated the use of these color schemes decreases usability on the sight. Tests showed that the fastest text recognition occurs either with white text set with a mild blue background, or with black text set against a high contrast blue background. According to the Foundations for Designing User-Centered Systems, "if your system has displays that rely on widespread use of color, and there is meaning associated with the different colors, you should check to make sure that the exposure to the dominant color on the screen is not

5

adversely affecting the perception of some of the other (possibly more important) colors" (Ritter 100). Following that guideline, we determined the use of pale blue on a white background should be avoided in order provide the best readability for the user. Happy Valley Tickets also does not take into account the population with color blindness or difficulties in differentiating shades. There is no accessibility options for this population thus making the website unreadable and unusable for a number of users.

-Matt White

2.3 Gray Scale Map

The grayscale map for selecting states was particularly difficult to read. The shades used to separate the states were too similar. The use of increased contrast would ensure that the map would provide the user with a just noticeable difference. A just noticeable difference is the minimum amount of variance required for the user to see a difference. Currently the map lacks this quality, particularly for users with vision difficulties. Increasing contrast and adding more color to the map would fix this issue.

-Garrett Barch

2.4 White Space

The home page contains large borders of blank white space. During our analysis test, subjects mentioned frustration that space was being wasted right next to text blocks that were too small to read easily. Test subjects also complained that the white space gave the site a washed out look that decreased the appeal of the site, compared to StubHub which has a more vibrantly colored homepage. Expanding the list of events being displayed in the center of the home page would improve the readability of the list and give the homepage a more polished appearance. Unused space

6

on the homepage could be used more productively by adding more menu options and adding more types of search. That way users would have multiple options for navigating the site.

-Garrett Barch

3. Problem Two: Functional Problems 3.1 Misuse of Productive Space

Being able to utilize the space included within the website is important. To be able to present as much information or tools as possible from a site page, it is important to reduce the number of keystrokes the user can make, but it is also important that Happy Valley Ticket does not attempt to fill in all the space with clutter and information. Based on our Task Analysis Lab, the test subjects found that familiarizing Happy Valley Ticket was easy because it kept the productive space conservative and did not clutter the homepage with less productive information. However, it was a factor for the actual time it took to complete as compared to StubHub. The subtask of checking out tickets was much faster and required less keystrokes on StubHub. As a result, the productive space should be expanded for more options per page. To remain competitive, it is important to note the productivity of using more space in each page, such as the homepage and the ticket page. When on the NFL ticket page, the page lacked a filters tab

7

and availability of subsections beyond major teams. Giving users more access to information per page would allow for faster viewing and a reduction in the number of keystrokes.

-Matt Finuoli, Matt White

3.2 Focusing on the Search Feature

Our testing showed that users benefited heavily from having a profound search bar when searching for tickets. On Happy Valley Tickets, we found users would try to navigate through menus since the search feature was not made profound. By doing this, users became frustrated when they were unable to find the results they desired using menus. Users would then use the search feature which they found preferable. We found on StubHub searches for tickets was conducted using primarily the search feature. This is largely in part to StubHub making the search bar the central point of the interface. This draws users to use it and in turn gives users the tickets they want. Happy Valley Tickets would benefit greatly from using a similar model like that of StubHub. Happy Valley Tickets should make users want to use the search feature when they first enter their website. By doing so, users can be led towards the quickest option to purchase their tickets and avoid the possibility of not finding what they are looking for in an endless sea of menus.

-Matt Finuoli

3.3 Filters

Filters are a fundamental component needed to organize large amounts of information for a user. We found on Happy Valley Tickets the attempt to do so is lackluster. Filters are used by both StubHub and Happy Valley Tickets to hone in on the event the user would like to attend. Currently Happy Valley Tickets uses a filter at the top of its page that only asks for dates. Having only one filter option really restricts how the user searches for the event for which they wish to purchase tickets. Competing sites like StubHub include options like location and keyword to further optimize the

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download