21-Apr-13

Role of Information Systems in Business Today

How information systems are transforming business
Increase in wireless technology use, Web sites (B2C) Shifts in media and advertising (decline in newspapers sales, googles

MIS - Basic Concepts

Shivani Parikh

online ad revenue has increased, all payments via credit card) New federal security and accounting laws (e.g. emails to be stored for five years, chemical exposure data to be stored for 60 years)

Globalization opportunities
Internet has drastically reduced costs of operating on global scale (24x7, suppliers, imports) Presents both challenges and opportunities (e.g. DVDs)

Role of Information Systems in Business Today

Fully digital firms are now created
Digital firms definition:
Significant business relationships with customers, employees and suppliers are digitally enabled and mediated Core business processes are accomplished through digital networks spanning across entire organization or linking multiple organizations Key corporate assets are managed digitally (travel, desk, emails) Time shifting, space shifting are a norm (e.g. Dell Computers)

Role of Information Systems in Business Today

Business firms invest heavily in information systems to achieve
the following six strategic business objectives:

1. Operational excellence 2. New products, services, and business models 3. Customer and supplier intimacy 4. Improved decision making

5. Competitive advantage

Time Shifting: Business Conducted continuously i.e. 24x7, rather than 9am to 5pm Space Shifting: work takes place globally in a global workshop (work from home, body shopping, Accenture)

6. Survival

Operational Excellence
Operational excellence:
Improvement of efficiency to attain higher profitability (e-mails, msn,
automobile industry has robots) Information systems, technology an important tool in achieving greater efficiency and productivity Wal-Marts RetailLink system links suppliers to stores for superior replenishment system

New products, services, and business models

New products, services, and business models:
Business model: describes how company produces, delivers, and sells
product or service to create wealth (production outsourced, dominos, online insurance, shaadi.com) Information systems and technology a major enabling tool for new products, services, business models Examples: Apples iPod, iTunes, and iPhone, Netflixs Internet-based DVD rentals

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Customer and supplier intimacy

Customer and supplier intimacy:
Serving customers well leads to customers returning, which raises revenues and profits Example: Mandarin Oriental in Manhattan use computers to track customer preferences and use to monitor and customize environment

Improved decision making

Improved decision making
Without accurate information: Managers must use forecasts, best guesses, luck Leads to:
Overproduction, underproduction of goods and services Misallocation of resources Poor response times

Intimacy with suppliers allows them to provide vital inputs, which

lowers costs Example: J.C.Penneys information system which links sales records to contract manufacturer (TAL Apparals)

Poor outcomes raise costs, lose customers

Example: Verizons Web-based digital dashboard to provide managers with real-time data on customer complaints, network performance, line outages, etc.

Competitive advantage
Competitive advantage
Delivering better performance Charging less for superior products Responding to customers and suppliers in real time

Survival
Survival
Information technologies as necessity of business May be: Industry-level changes, e.g. Citibanks introduction of ATMs (BoB) Governmental regulations requiring record-keeping

Example: Dell Computers (customized PCs in a day to few days)

Examples: Toxic Substances Control Act, Sarbanes-Oxley Act

Perspectives on Information Systems

Information Technology
Consists of all hardware and software business needs to achieve its business objectives Includes computers, printers, handheld PDA, Windows OS, MS Office suite etc

Information vs. data

Data are streams of raw facts Information is data shaped into meaningful form

Information system:
Set of interrelated components Collect, process, store Data, and distribute information

Support decision making, coordination, and control

Raw data from a supermarket checkout counter can be processed and organized to produce meaningful information, such as the total unit sales of dish detergent or the total sales revenue from dish detergent for a specific store or sales territory.

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Information system
Input: Captures raw data from organization or external environment (e.g. pink lux 1 unit sold at star bazaar)

Functions of an Information System

Processing: Converts raw data into meaningful form

Output: Transfers processed information to people or activities

that use it (e.g. 5500 units of pink lux sold in Mumbai in 15 days)

Feedback:

Output

returned

to

appropriate

members

of

organization to help evaluate or correct input stage

Case Study
Toyota Motors has a software that helps its top management
decide on which models are doing well and what are the latest trends in the car market. It starts with first the customer selects a car and then various options like tinted windows, navigation system, music system, seat covers, wheel caps and so on. This data is fed into a central system and it generates reports like car models that are selling well. What music system is well sold with the car. What color seat covers are more desired. How many GPS navigation systems are sold and so on. Identify the following in the above case:
Inputs Processing Outputs

Case Study
Inputs
Car models tinted windows navigation system music system seat covers wheel caps

Processing
All inputs are entered in a central software system

Outputs
Total no Total no Total no Total no Total no of of of of of cars sold per each model music system sold car seat covers sold car seat covers sold for each color available GPS navigation systems sold

Information Systems Are More Than Computers

Organizational dimension of information systems

Organizational dimension of information systems
Hierarchy of authority, responsibility
Senior management Middle management Operational management Knowledge workers Data workers Production or service workers

Using IS effectively requires an understanding of the organization, management, and IT shaping the systems. An information system creates value for the firm as an organizational and management solution to challenges posed by the environment.

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Levels in a Firm

Organizational dimension of information systems

Organizational dimension of information systems Separation of business functions
Sales and marketing Human resources Finance and accounting Manufacturing and production

Unique business processes

Unique business culture Organizational politics
Business organizations are hierarchies consisting of three principal levels: senior management, middle management, and operational management. Information systems serve each of these levels. Scientists and knowledge workers often work with middle management.

Business model

business model: How does the business make money?

A classic example is Gillettes business model of giving away razors in order to sell blades a model that many other companies have adapted to sell everything from wireless service subscriptions to inkjet cartridges. A companys business model explains

Operating Models

operating model
Operating Model: describes how the business model will be implemented. Where will the company operate? What kinds of products will it sell? Which customers and segments will it serve? Which processes will be outsourced, or handled in-house? Which alliances will be most critical? How will decisions be made, and performance measured? Operating model: is the abstract representation of how an organization operates across process, organization and technology domains in order to accomplish its function. Operating model design should not be confused with detailed design of tactical capabilities such as processes, systems and organization structures. For example, an operating model might specify which business processes are needed and whether those processes should be outsourced, centralized as shared services or handled by the business units but would not define the details of the processes to be executed. That said, its important for all three elements (business model, operating model and tactical capabilities) to be closely aligned.

operating model
Lenovo offers a great example of the right way to restructure when push comes to shove. When the company acquired IBMs PC division in 2005, many people were skeptical. They didnt see how a regional Chinese computer manufacturer could hope to integrate and leverage one of the worlds most iconic brands. To silence the critics, Lenovo needed to create a new operating model that would fully capitalize on the merged entities combined capabilities. And it needed to do it fast. In just a few months, the company established global centers of excellence based around locations with leading talent and resources: manufacturing hubs in China, India, Mexico and Europe; R&D hubs in China, Japan and the US; hardware and software testing centers in China; and a marketing hub in India. It also established a fluid corporate structure with senior management teams culturally and physically dispersed across the globe. This new operating model directly addressed the markets fears, and provided a strong foundation for growth that has helped Lenovo become the worlds fourth largest PC manufacturer.

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How to redesign your own operating model

1. Lead with your best punch. Since time is of the essence, its smart to create a small, elite team of your most experienced and knowledgeable people to drive the overall design. There might be hundreds of people involved in the detailed design phase. But when it comes to making the 5 7 key design decisions typically required for restructuring, you need people with a broad view of how the operating model will affect the business for better or worse. 2. Put it in writing. Its tempting to start implementing your new operating model without bothering to document the design and business logic. Thats a mistake. Rigorous documentation creates a clear link between the business model and execution details such as processes, systems and organization structures. This ultimately saves time by keeping everyone focused on the same destination and providing a context and baseline for ongoing design improvements. It might seem like a nuisance in the short run, but pays big dividends in the long run.

How to redesign your own operating model

3.Keep your customers in the tent. Significant and rapid changes to your operating model can make customers very nervous, especially when your competitors start spreading rumors and fanning the flames of doubt. To keep your customers from panicking, take the initiative to contact them and explain whats happening, even if they arent directly affected by the changes.

Example P&G

Operating Models

Procter & Gamble has long been recognized as a market leader in consumer products, but is constantly striving to do even better. To that end, the company recently invested $5.6 billion over five years to make its global operating model more product-centric and agile. It restructured itself around a core of six product-based business units, simplified its management structure by eliminating layers, and established centers of excellence for

Process standardization Low Data Integration Coordination High Diversification Low Replication High Unification

Operating Models
Diversification model

Coordination Model
Organizations that require high levels of data integration across business units, but low levels of business process standardization, are in the upper left quadrant. They share data because their business units share customers, products, suppliers, or partners, or some combination thereof. Data integration improves efficiencies, as well as the overall customer experience at each organizational touch point. No matter where customers tap into the organization, local representatives know who they are, what they buy, and many other defining characteristics because theyve got the data! Process standardization is low because it would wash out the uniqueness of each service operation and commoditize the customer experience not to mention that standardization may be impossible because different products may require different processes! Low cost, which is one of the benefits of standardized processes, is usually not a primary driver of strategy for these organizations. As highlighted in Enterprise Architecture as Strategy, large financial services institutions such as Merrill Lynch (Global Private Client) and MetLife benefit from Coordination because they can integrate multitudes of products and processes without forcing standardization. They have an integrated view of customers and can interact with them via processes that fit for each product, service and business unit.

If your business units have few common customers, suppliers or ways of doing business, you have a diversified organization. Hence, you have minimal need for either data integration or standardization of processes across business units. But, fear not! You can still create major efficiencies with technology. Even in these situations, there are processes that tend to be similar across business units, such as Human Resources and Finance, and shared services are a powerful way to achieve economies of scale. The many-to-one vs. one-to-many principle comes into play here. Many-to-one means that every business unit is staffed up and technologied up to execute the same processes. Thats redundant. Major cost savings can be gained when the processes are consolidated into a one-to-many shared services unit. Thats smart business. Carlson Companies is exemplified in the book. They own Radisson Hotels, T.G.I. Fridays restaurant, Carlson Marketing Group, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, Radisson Seven Seas Cruises, and the Gold Points Reward Network. Though the companies are run autonomously, Carlson has captured cost savings and synergies with a world-class, award winning shared services capability.

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Replication model

Unification Model

The Replication model on the lower right is for organizations whose success depends on efficient and repeatable processes, but not on shared customer relationships. McDonalds and other franchise operations are clear examples of this type of organization. Repeat the process meticulously and make sure that the experience is consistent at each company outlet and youve got a winning formula for success!

Unified organizations bring it all together. Their needs for integration of data across business units and standardization of processes are both high. Dow Chemical is an example used by the Enterprise Architecture as Strategy authors. Dow cross-sells products within regions, so it needs excellent data integration, and it sells the same products, via standardized processes, in more than 175 countries around the world. Sixty percent of Dows work

Operating Models

Of course there are hybrid situations as well. Some companies employ one model for certain functions and another for others. Once youve established where you fit in, or where you should fit in from the standpoint of your operating model, defining process and IT strategies becomes much easier.

Process Mapping
Shivani Parikh

What is a Process?
A process is a group of activities which, together, achieve a specific goal. Any activity in which inputs are transformed into outputs is a Process. Examples:
Leave Application Process Cheque Deposit Process Loan Sanction Process Annual Appraisal Process

What is a Process Map?

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Process Map
Helps in understanding a process by depicting it in a pictorial fashion. Simplifies the process based on that understanding Contains Diagrams which show each step of the process

Process Maps: A Picture Is Worth 1000 Words

Operation as a Process

Input
Similar to flowcharts Visual representation allows us to view the process as a whole and

Transformation Process

Output

simplifies the redesigning the process

Material Machines Labor/people Management Capital

Feedback
Goods or Service

What is Process Mapping?

A visual aid for picturing work processes which show how inputs,
outputs and tasks are linked

Key Terms used in Process Mapping

Input: Materials, money, people, information, or other factors that are essential to the process Output: The end result i.e. the product or service that a customer receives Parallel Process: Another process that can be executed at the same time

A group of activities which , together, achieve a specific goal. Any activity in which inputs are transformed into outputs is a Process

as the primary process

Primary Process:

The tasks must be carried out in order to achieve a

desired output from given inputs

Any method used to depict a process in a manner similar to the

Alternative Path: One or more options are presented that create a path off the primary path. Decision Criteria: When incorporating alternative paths into a map, there must be a choice to be made between 2 or more options; the question being asked should be specific. (e.g. which restaurant to eat is a decision) Inspection Point: A pass/fail decision to test an output in process.

way a map depicts an area

Method for depicting a process, material or information flow in a diagrammatic form. Defines key process input and outputs

Process Mapping Symbols

Action/Process
System Activity Direction of Flow Start or End Document Display

How to create Process Maps

1. Select a process
In any organization there will be various departments and numerous processes involved. Nailing down that one process that needs to be improved is essential before proceeding with the Process Mapping.

2. Define the process

A clear definition of the Process that is selected helps in building the Process Map easily and efficiently.

A
Predefined Process

On Page Connector

Off Page Connector

Problem

Causes PROCESS

Best Practices vs. existing workflow 1 Best Practice 1 GAP: 1. 2. 3. 4. Best Practice 2 GAP: 6. Importance 5. Prioritised suggestions for improvement x x
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5
Problem

Suggestion for improvement - Quick Fix

Solution Due date Effect

Cross-functional process map POLICY

TECHNOLOGY

Prioritised Action plans

Quick Fix Pr oject

Decision

PEOPLE

1. Automate.......... 2. Simplify........

----------------------- ---- ---- ---- -------------------------- ---- ---- ---- -------------------------- ---- ---- ---- -------------------------- ---- ---- ---- -------------------------- ---- ---- ---- -------------------------- ---- ---- ---- -------------------------- ---- ---- ---- -------------------------- ---- ---- ---- ----

x x

x x x x

3. Eliminate.......

Performance

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Procedure
3. Map the Primary Process
Define the tasks that will be required to reach the desired output Incorporate appropriate symbols in your Map Make sure to show parallel processes

Procedure
4. Map Alternative Processes

Map points along the primary process where decision are made

Evaluate Exam Score

Recognize one or more alternative paths

Score > or = 50

Retake Test

Example

Merge those paths back into the primary path

Recruit

Hire

Orient

Train

Deploy

Pass

Procedure
5. Use Your Map to Improve the Process

Making breakfast

Eliminate non-value-added steps

Set standards for the process What will pass and what will fail

Types of Process Maps

Process maps can be depicted in various formats.

Relationship Maps or Top Level Process Map

These maps are used to depict the customer-supplier relationship or linkages that exist between various departments of an organization. Gives a big picture

Given below is a generic classification of Process Maps:

1. Relationship Maps or Top Level Process Maps

Portrays how major functions of Business interact with one another

2. Cross Functional Maps Example: Order Fulfillment Process as given below depicts the 3. Flow Charts or Detailed Process Maps Relationship mapping between various departments in an organization e.g. 1000 Nano cars order received

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Relationship Maps or Top Level Process Map

Example for Order Fulfillment

Flow Charts or Detailed Process Maps

Flow charts are easy-to-understand diagrams showing how steps in a process fit together. This makes them useful tools for communicating how processes work, and for clearly documenting how a particular job is done.

Sales

Manufac turing

The act of mapping a process out in flow chart format helps you clarify your
understanding of the process, and helps you think about where the process can be improved.

These have been used to: Define Document

Engineering

Distribution

Analyze processes Detailed view

The example given in the next slide shows the process that is followed to
evaluate exams

Flow Chart Symbols

Elongated circles, which signify the start or end of a process.

How to draw a Flow Chart

To draw the flow chart, brainstorm process tasks, and list them in the order they occur. Ask questions such as "What really happens next in the process?" and "Does a decision need to be made before the next step?" or "What approvals are required before moving on to the next task?" Start the flow chart by drawing the elongated circle shape, and labeling it "Start". Then move to the first action or question, and draw a rectangle or diamond appropriately. Write the action or question down, and draw an arrow from the start symbol to this shape.

Rectangles, which show instructions or actions

Diamonds, which show decisions that must be made

Work

through

your

whole

process,

showing

actions

and

decisions

appropriately in the order they occur, and linking these together using arrows to show the flow of the process. Where a decision needs to be made, draw arrows leaving the decision diamond for each possible outcome, and Arrows, show the flow of the process label them with the outcome. And remember to show the end of the process

using an elongated circle labeled "Finish".

Flow Chart Example 1

Start

Flow Chart Example 2

Flow chart for the process of getting out of bed in the morning

Attend Exam

Evaluate Score

No

Score > or = 50

Yes

Pass

End

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Cross Functional Maps

How an organizations major work processes cuts across various function?

Cross Functional Map Example

Order Fulfillment

Use cross-functional flowcharts to show the relationship between a business process and the functional units (such as departments) responsible for that process.

More detailed when compared to Relationship maps

Cross Functional Map Types

Distribution

Manufactur ing

Engineer ing

Sales

Cust omer

Cross-functional flowchart Example

Horizontal

Vertical

Tips on preparing process maps

Prepare Use standard flowchart symbols Flow from top left to bottom right Bring people together who know the process to prepare

Tips on preparing process maps

Who are the customers of the process? Who performs each activity? What generates the process/task? What forms and reports are used? What computer systems and files are used? How do we do it? Why do we do it? What decisions are made in the process?

Execute

Use group facilitated sessions with process owners

Use individual interviews where appropriate Document process and technology opportunities for improvement as you go Understand cost, quality and time (processing time and elapsed time) implications as you go

What happens next? What sequence are the activities performed in?
Who reviews it and when? How long does it take? What is the nature, frequency and cause of errors/problems? How are errors/problems/exceptions handled? What is the output? How many? Where does the output go?

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Process Mapping using MS Visio

MS Visio Highlights
Helps in pictorial representation of information / activities & processes. Ease of Use Standard shapes/templates available Drag and Drop feature Helps in creating business-related diagrams such as flowcharts,

organization charts, and project scheduling diagrams.

MS Visio Template Selection

Exercise 1 Book Tickets Online

The user Logs in to the Site

The user enters the details (Age, Gender, No. of people, date, from and to destination etc.)

The user checks for the availability of tickets The system displays the results In case the tickets are available to User continues to book the tickets Else he/she modifies the details and resubmits. Make appropriate assumptions wherever necessary Use appropriate symbols wherever needed

Book Online Tickets

Exercise 2 Jeep Repair

Customer wants to repair his jeep and approaches sales team of "Popular" car repair company. Sales team prepares a work order for the same. The

Login to the Travel Website

Book Tickets Online

System displays the Homepage This is a predefined Process. The User would need to enter details like age, gender, date of travel, destination etc.

work order is sent to repair team (responsible for repairing the car) which creates a list of parts required for the repair. The repair team asks parts

Enter the details and check availability

department to create an order for parts. Parts team shall ask purchasing to
create a purchase order for parts. Parts team is also responsible for checking that all the parts have arrived from supplier. Purchasing is responsible for placing an order with the approved parts supplier for the parts, updating the

System displays results

Yes

Tickets Available

No

database on parts received (once it is confirmed that all parts are received) and preparing an invoice on completion of repairs and closing the order once

The User would need to enter details of his/ Credit card, type of card etc.

Book the tickets/Proceed to Payment

Modify the details and check availability

the customer makes the payment. Note: Steps may or may not be in the right sequence

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SDLC and Biometrics

Shivani Parikh

SDLC

SDLC: Software Development Life Cycle

Progression of phases in the life of a software project Stages involved in an information system development project Various SDLC Methodologies Methods selected specific to types of projects Documentation is crucial regardless of model (since no physical model)

Feasibility Analysis Design Coding Test Implement Maintain

Go Ahead? Project Plan Budget Estimates Gathering Reqmts Detailed Study of Business needs Changing Business Processes High Level Design Low Level Design Overall Structure is defined Critical Stage Logical System is developed at this stage Prototyping may be done Designs are translated in code Conventional programming Programming tools are used Based on type of application the right programming language is used Separate and detailed Testing for individual modules Integration Testing Ensure interfaces between module work System works on the intended platform Volume Testing User Acceptance Testing Final stage of initial development Acceptance, installation and deployment Post Implementatio n Phase Normal maintenance of the system Handling Change Requests Handling bugs and fixes Handling Version changes or upgrades Smooth running of the system to avoid major glitches

IT Security, Ethics, and Society

Information

technology

has

both

beneficial and detrimental effects on

Security and Ethical Challenges Shivani Parikh

society and people

Manage work activities to minimize the detrimental effects of information technology Optimize the beneficial effects

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Business Ethics

Categories of Ethical Business Issues

Ethics confront

questions as part

that of

managers their daily

business decision making include

Equity (executive salaries, non competitive agreements) Rights (customer privacy, employee privacy, employment at will, whistle blower, sexual harassment Infosys Phaneesh Murty, employee health screening) Honesty (inappropriate gifts, employee conflict of interest, govt contracts issue, financial and cash management procedures - Enron)

Exercise of corporate power (product safety coke, Chinese toys,

environmental issues erin brockovich, vapi , social issues raised by religious organizations e.g. Temple in Calcutta movie, workplace safety e.g. tissue papers, plant closures, downsizing,)

Corporate Social Responsibility Theories

Corporate Social Responsibility Theories

Stockholder Theory
Managers are agents of the stockholders Their only ethical responsibility is to increase the profits of the business without violating the law or engaging in fraudulent practices

Stakeholder Theory
Managers have an ethical responsibility to manage a firm for the benefit of all its stakeholders (e.g. Enron) Stakeholders are all individuals and groups that have a stake in, or claim on, a company

Social Contract Theory

Companies have ethical responsibilities to all members of society, who allow corporations to exist

Ethics Case Studies - KFC in INDIA

Ethics Case Studies - KFC in INDIA

KFC was founded by Harland Sanders in

the early 1930s he started cooking and serving food for hungry travellers who stopped by his

On receiving permission to open 30 new

outlets across the country, KFC opened its first fast-food outlet in Bangalore in June 1995 Bangalore was chosen as the launch pad because it had a substantial upper middle class population, with a trend of families eating out PepsiCo planned to open 60 KFC and

service station in Corbin, Kentucky, US

served people on his own dining table in the living quarters of his service station His chicken delicacies became popular

and people started coming just for food

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Ethics Case Studies - KFC in INDIA

Microsoft

He argued that non-vegetarian fastfood restaurants like KFC would encourage Indian farmers to shift from

Netscape Navigator was a proprietary web browser that was popular in the 1990s and had to be bought as a pack.

production

of

basic

crops

to

more

It was the flagship product of the

Netscape Communications Corporation and the dominant web browser in terms of usage share Microsoft was a late entrant into the Internet software market. Subsequently,

lucrative varieties like animal feed and meat leaving poorer sections of society with no affordable food PETA further intensified its campaign against the cruel treatment meted out

Microsoft

Microsoftcontd 1

Netscape Corporation filed a suit against Microsoft and its main contention was that Microsoft was a monopoly, which had used its monopoly power to suppress competition and gain an unfair advantage Microsoft's aggressive pricing of

Microsoft's 'Enterprise licensing' enabled clients to get unlimited use of Windows NT, Office and BackOffice, as well as its upgrades for a single price. This tied down the customer to other Microsoft products. In June 2000, the US District Court gave its ruling that Microsoft had

products, its offers of free software to

grab market share and its attempts to

violated

the

US

antitrust

laws

by

Baazee.com

Coke

Avnish Bajaj Passout IIT Kanpur did MS in US joined Apple Computer as a Software Engineer then did MBA from Harvard Business School In late 1999 he was living in the U.S. and noticed the success of then nascent eBay. He returned to India that year to start a

Dr. John Pemberton, an Atlanta-based pharmacist, developed the original formula of Coke in 1886 The ingredients were refined to create a refreshing carbonated soda. Coke went on sale for the first time in the Joe Jacobs Drug Store The product slowly gained acceptance after a heavy outpouring of free sample

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Coke

Coke also faced problems in the 1970s when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) harmful cancer. The controversy Springs, intensified Colorado, further sent a ruled and a that saccharin, in Coke, source an was of important ingredient

Critics

said

that
the

these
growing

contracts
trend of

represented

commercialization on school campuses. When students saw products advertised in their schools, they frequently thought that it was something that the schools were endorsing. By displaying its logos prominently in public schools, Coke hoped to re-

potential

when a district administrator of Coke in Colorado

Coke

Coke

Teenagers today drank twice as much soda as milk Questions:

Vending machines in schools created a

preference for soda over milk, juice, and water." overweight children tend to consume

Is

Coke

ethical

in

their

marketing

strategy of having exclusive contracts with schools?

more calories from soda than those who

were not. Childhood obesity rates in the US had

Principles of Technology Ethics

Proportionality
The good achieved by the technology must outweigh the harm or risk; there must be no alternative that achieves the same or comparable benefits with less harm or risk

Responsible Professional Guidelines

A responsible professional
Acts with integrity Increases personal competence Sets high standards of personal performance Accepts responsibility for his/her work Advances the health, privacy, and general welfare of the public

Informed Consent
Those affected by the technology should understand and accept the risks

Justice
The benefits and burdens of the technology should be distributed fairly. Those who benefit should bear their fair share of the risks, and those who do not benefit should not suffer a significant increase in risk

Minimized Risk
Even if judged acceptable by the other three guidelines, the technology must be implemented so as to avoid all unnecessary risk

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Computer Crime

Hacking

Computer crime includes

Unauthorized use, access, modification, or destruction of hardware, software, data, or network resources The unauthorized release of information The unauthorized copying of software Denying an end user access to his/her own hardware, software, data, or network resources Using or conspiring to use computer or network resources illegally to obtain information or tangible property

Hacking is
The obsessive use of computers The unauthorized access and use of networked computer systems

Electronic Breaking and Entering

Hacking into a computer system and reading files, but neither stealing nor damaging anything

Examples: phishing at ICICI bank

Cracker
A malicious or criminal hacker who maintains knowledge of the vulnerabilities found for private advantage

Unauthorized Use at Work

Internet Abuses in the Workplace

Unauthorized
resource theft
Doing private consulting Doing personal finances

use

of

computer

General email abuses

Unauthorized usage and access Copyright infringement/plagiarism Newsgroup postings Transmission of confidential data Pornography Hacking Non-work-related download/upload Leisure use of the Internet Use of external ISPs

systems and networks is time and

Playing video games

Unauthorized use of the Internet or company networks

Software Piracy

Viruses and Worms

A virus is a program that cannot work without

Software Piracy
Unauthorized copying of computer programs

being inserted into another program

A worm can run unaided

Licensing
Purchasing software is really a payment for a license for fair use

These programs copy annoying or destructive routines into networked computers

Copy routines spread the virus

A third of the software industrys revenues are lost to piracy

Site license allows a certain number of copies

Commonly transmitted through

The Internet and online services Email and file attachments Disks from contaminated computers Shareware

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The Cost of Viruses, Trojans, Worms

Privacy Issues

Cost of the top five virus families

Nearly 115 million computers in 200 countries were infected in 2004 Up to 11 million computers are believed to be permanently infected In 2004, total economic damage from virus proliferation was $166 to $202 billion Average damage per computer is between $277 and $366

The power of information technology to store and retrieve information can have a negative effect on every individuals right to privacy
Personal information is collected with every visit to a Web site Confidential information stored by credit bureaus, credit card

companies, and the government has been stolen or misused

Opt-in Versus Opt-out

Cyberlaw
Laws intended to regulate activities over the Internet or via electronic communication devices
Encompasses a wide variety of legal and political issues Includes intellectual property, privacy, freedom of expression, and jurisdiction

Opt-In
You explicitly consent to allow data to be compiled about you This is the default in Europe

The intersection of technology and the law is

Opt-Out
Data can be compiled about you unless you specifically request it not
be This is the default in the U.S.

controversial
Some feel the Internet should not be regulated Encryption and cryptography make traditional form of regulation difficult The Internet treats censorship as damage and simply routes around it

Cyberlaw only began to emerge in 1996

Debate continues regarding the applicability of legal principles derived from issues that had nothing to do with cyberspace

Other Challenges
Employment
IT creates new jobs and increases productivity It can also cause significant reductions in job opportunities, as well as requiring new job skills (e.g. SBI when implemented internet banking)

Other Challenges

Individuality (online personality and offline one are different) Dehumanizes activities and because depersonalizes computers

Computer Monitoring
Using computers to monitor the productivity and behavior of employees as they work Criticized as unethical because it monitors individuals, not just work, and is done constantly Criticized as invasion of privacy because many employees do not know they are being monitored

eliminate human relationships

Inflexible systems

Working Conditions
IT has eliminated monotonous or obnoxious tasks However, some skilled craftsperson jobs have been replaced by jobs requiring routine, repetitive tasks or standby roles

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Health Issues

Ergonomics

Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs)

Disorders suffered by people who sit at a PC or terminal and do fastpaced repetitive keystroke jobs

Designing environments

healthy

work

Safe, comfortable, and pleasant for people to work in

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Painful, crippling ailment of the hand and wrist Typically requires surgery to cure

Increases employee morale and productivity Also called human factors engineering

Protecting Yourself from Cybercrime

Business Continuity Planning

Business Continuity Planning (BCP)

Need for BCP?

Business the

continuity

planning to

Y2k (9th Sep 1999, Leap years) 9/11 Little tolerance for any downtime or business disruption Loss of revenue (e.g. e-commerce, POS goes down, online travel

(BCP) is planning which identifies organization's assets exposure to internal and external threats and synthesizes provide

effective prevention and recovery for

the organization, whilst maintaining competitive advantage and value system integrity

insurance system is down) High profile disasters such as

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BCP Concepts
Disaster Recovery: primarily involves protecting IT infrastructure and data from disabling data loss after an equipment or site failure. It is a part of BCP Separation distance Since the BC events against which we are planning frequently result in loss of access to or destruction of a location it is necessary to ensure that electronic and other records are duplicated at another geographically separated location in a form that allows them to be accessible and recovered for use within business-defined timescales. Greater geographical separation decreases the likelihood of two sites being affected by the same incident There is no minimum or correct distance for separation as the ability of worldwide infections and computer viruses to cause concurrent incidents demonstrates. Also dependent on how much distance employees would travel (e.g. 9/11) E.g.: Call centers at 2 locations Mumbai and Bangalore with SLAs set for them,

Threat analysis

Some common threats include the following:

Disease (what is the difference between disease and the others, SARSonly calls, conjunctivitis) Earthquake Fire Flood (non-salinated and contamination-free water, 26th July food

example) Cyber attack Sabotage

Hurricane
Utility outage (power, telephone lines etc) Terrorism

Agenda

Testing Definition
Objectives and Goals of Testing Why do we test? Testing Principles Levels of testing Testing Phases Two Approaches to Testing Test Cases Testing Principles

Software Testing

Shivani Parikh

Software Testing
Software Testing is an activity that helps in finding out bugs/defects/errors in a software system under development, in order to provide a bug free and reliable system/solution to the customer.

Software Testing real life examples

First U.S. space mission to Venus failed. (reason: missing comma in a Fortran do loop) December 1995: AA, Boeing 575, mountain crash in Colombia, 159 killed. Incorrect one-letter computer command (Cali, Bogota 132 miles in opposite direction, have same coordinate code) June 1996: Ariane-5 space rocket, self-destruction, $500 million. (reason:

Software testing is used to measure the quality of developed software.

The process of analyzing a software item to detect the differences between existing and required conditions (I.e., bugs) and to evaluate the features of the software item Examples: While inviting guests home for dinner you would taste the food cooked to make sure its fine. While buying a pen you would test if the pen is working fine. FOREX calculations we check for real time exchange rate pick ups Loan processing software to be tested for intensive calculations E.g. Gillette razors

reuse of software from Ariane-4 without recommended testing).

Australia: Man jailed because of computer glitch. He was jailed for traffic fine
although he had actually paid it for 5 years ago. Dallas Prisoner released due to program design flaw: He was temporary transferred from one prison to another (witness). Computer gave him temporary assignment.

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Objectives and Goals of Testing

Objectives Testing is obviously concerned with errors, faults, failures and incidents. A test is the act of exercising software with test cases with an objective of Executing a program with the intent of finding an error. A good test case is one that has a high probability of finding an as-yet undiscovered error. Goals of Testing Evaluate properties of software

Objectives and Goals of Testing

Software testing is used in association with verification and validation

Verification: Have we built the software right? (i.e., does it match the specification). Validation: Have we built the right software? (i.e., is this what the customer wants).

Reliability
Performance (Eg: Page Loading, EOD in a bank e.g. Citibank EOD failure) Memory Usage (E.g.: LOC) Security (e.g. authorization) Usability (e.g.: Navigation should be simple, Banking users do not want mouse related functionality)

Why do we test?
Provide confidence in the system (e.g. autopilot)

Testing Principles
All tests should be traceable to customer requirements.

Identify areas of weakness

Tests should be planned long before testing

begins. Establish the degree of quality

(after

requirements

model

is

complete)

Establish the extent that the requirements have been met, i.e. what the users asked for is what they got not what someone else though they wanted

Testing should begin in the small and

progress toward testing in

the large.

To prove it is both usable and operable

Exhaustive testing is not possible.

To be most effective, testing should be

conducted by an independent third party.

(companies have testing department, there

are external testing agencies)

Levels of Testing
Prgm 1 Prgm 2 Prgm n Prgm 1 Prgm 2 Prgm n

Testing Phases
Unit Test
A unit is a piece of software implemented by a single programmer - typically

Unit Test C ases 1

Unit Test C ases 2

Unit Test C ases n

Unit Test C ases 1

Unit Test C ases 2

Unit Test C ases n

single functions or small groups of functions that work together to accomplish some simple task.
Programmers are usually responsible for testing units alone during their

Module 1

Module 2

Prgm 1 Module Test C ases 1 Unit Test C ases Module Test C ases n

Prgm 2

Prgm n Module Test C ases 2

implementation before they are integrated with other parts of the system.

Unit Test C ases

Unit Test C ases

Integration Test When several units are brought together to form a module, or system, they are tested as a group.

Module n Application Under Test

Integration Test C ases

Integration Test C ases

Integration Test C ases

Requirements C onfiguration H/w, S/w, OS

Requirements Performance, Scalability..

Requirements Operational, Disaster Recovery

Software components may be integrated in an iterative way or all together ("big

bang"). Normally the former is considered a better practice since it allows

interface issues to be localized more quickly and fixed.

Application System System Test C ases System Test C ases System Test C ases

User Acceptance Document

Acceptance Test C ases

Acceptance Test C ases

Examples: Marriage, Login-Inbox-Compose, Core Banking software has various modules like loans, nostro, Cheque management etc..)

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Testing Phases contd..

System Test
Once a system has been completely integrated, it must be tested as a whole. System testing

Testing Phases contd..

Acceptance Test

Alpha testing
Alpha testing is simulated or actual operational testing by potential users/customers or an independent test team at the developers' site. Alpha testing is often employed for off-the-shelf software as a form of internal acceptance testing, before the software goes to beta testing.

exercises a program with input generated from system

requirements that may not reflect the use of the system by its intended users.

Acceptance Test (UAT: User Acceptance Testing) Whole system is exercised with data reflecting use of the system by its intended Beta testing Beta testing comes after alpha testing and can be considered a form of external user acceptance testing. Versions of the software, known as beta versions, are released to a limited audience outside of the programming team. The software is released to groups of people so that further testing can ensure the product has few faults or bugs. Sometimes, beta versions are made available to the open public to increase the feedback field to a maximal number of future users

users.
Often small groups of users participate in acceptance testing in an effort to provide a more realistic trial of the software.

Two Approaches to Testing

Black-Box Testing (Behavioral Testing)

Black box testing takes an external perspective of the test object to derive test

Black-box: external view

cases.

The test designer selects valid and invalid input and determines the correct

output

There is no knowledge of the test object's internal structure.

White-box: internal view

Various types of Black-box Testing

Functional Testing

Various types of Black-box Testing

Usability Testing

In this type of testing, the software is tested for the functional requirements. The tests are written in order to check if the application behaves as expected.
Load Testing

This testing is also called as Testing for User -Friendliness. This testing is done if User Interface of the application stands an important consideration and needs to be specific for the specific type of user. Companies offering this service online. (e.g. Dubai Bank spelling mistake)
Recovery Testing

The application is tested against heavy loads or inputs such as testing of web

sites in order to find out at what point the web-site/application fails or at what
point its performance degrades. It is conducted in a test environment identical to the production environment

Recovery testing is basically done in order to check how fast and better the application can recover against any type of crash or hardware failure etc. Type or extent of recovery is specified in the requirement specifications. Examples: Power failure (transactions goes back or completes)
User Acceptance Testing

Examples: Exam results posted on net, ATM software testing, a word processor or graphics editor can be forced to read an extremely large document; or a financial package can be forced to generate a report based on several years' worth of data UAT is a process to obtain confirmation by a Subject Matter Expert (SME), preferably the owner or client of the object under test, through trial or review, that the modification or addition meets mutually agreed-upon requirements. In software development, UAT is one of the final stages of a project and often occurs before a client or customer accepts the new system.

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White Box Testing

White-box Testing Advantages/Disadvantages

Advantages
As

the knowledge of internal coding structure is prerequisite, it becomes very easy to find out which type of input/data can help in testing the application effectively. in optimizing the code

The other advantage of white box testing is that it helps It helps in removing the extra lines of code, which can

bring in hidden defects.

Disadvantages
As knowledge of code and internal structure is a

our goal is to ensure that all statements and conditions have been executed at least once

prerequisite, a skilled tester is needed to carry out this type of testing, which increases the cost.
And it is nearly impossible to look into every bit of code

to find out hidden errors, which may create problems, resulting in failure of the application

Black Box vs. White Box Testing

Test Cases
A test case in software engineering is a set of conditions or variables under

which a tester will determine if a requirement or use case upon an application is SELECTED INPUTS RESULTANT OUTPUTS DESIRED OUTPUT partially or fully satisfied. It may take many test cases to determine that a requirement is fully satisfied.
Test cases are often incorrectly referred to as test scripts. Need to decided which bugs to be given priority (UI / functional etc.)

BLACK BOX TESTING

SELECTED INPUTS

RESULTANT OUTPUTS INTERNAL BEHAVIOR WHITE BOX TESTING

DESIRED OUTPUT SOFTWARE DESIGN

Identifying an efficient Team Mix for Testing

Exercise 2
Login Test Cases

Exercise 2
Login Test Cases 1.Enter right user ID and right password 2.Enter wrong ID and wrong password 3.Enter right ID and wrong password

You have an account on Gmail and you need to login to the same. Conditions given are your user ID should be Alphanumeric and less than Length of 30 characters and password should be Alphanumeric and special characters and its

4.Enter wrong ID and right password

5.DO not enter user ID and enter password 6.Enter user ID and DO NOT enter password 7.Leave user ID and password blank and click on enter 8.Try to enter special characters in the user ID box 9.Try to enter user ID greater than 30 characters 10.Try to enter password less than 3 characters 11.Try to enter password greater than 12 characters 12.Check if the Password is masked by asterisk

Length should be > 3 and <12. Password should be masked by asterisk

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Business processes
Business processes
Sets of activities, steps
May be tied to functional area or be cross-functional (e.g. leave application, Ordering a hamburger at McDonalds, eating Italian food at a high end bistro)

Types of IS
Shivani Parikh

Businesses: Can be seen as collection of business processes Business processes are at the heart of every business

Examples of Business processes:

Applying for a drivers license at the RTO Hiring a new employee this can be broken into various steps such as placing ads in newspaper and online, contact employment agencies, collect resumes, review resumes, interview candidates, rank candidates, make employment decision, offer letter to candidate, enroll employee in company

Business processes
Examples of functional business processes
Manufacturing and production
Assembling the product (raw materials, production, quality)

Exercise 1
Identify which of the following are processes and which are not:

1. Scanning documents 2. Printing of letters 3. Leave application by employee 4. Filing of document in a filing cabinet 5. Checking for Quality 6. Ordering for stationary in an organization

Sales and marketing

Identifying customers (cold calling)

Finance and accounting

Creating financial statements (P&L, Balance sheet, Annual reports)

Human resources
Hiring employees

Exercise 1
Processes
Leave application by employee Checking for Quality Ordering for stationary in an

Business Processes and Information Systems The Order Fulfillment Process

Non-processes
Scanning documents Printing of letters Filing of document in a filing cabinet

organization

Fulfilling a customer order involves a complex set of steps that requires the close coordination of the sales, accounting, and manufacturing functions.

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Business Processes and Information Systems

Information technology enhances business processes in two main ways: 1. Increasing efficiency of existing processes
Automating steps that were manual (password management systems, passport office forms, balance enquiry in call center, bank statements)

Types of IS (functional perspective)

Each firm has a different system for conducting e-mail campaigns to ads placed on Google. Systems from a functional perspective

2. Enabling entirely new processes that are capable of transforming the businesses
Change flow of information making it more possible for more people to access and share information (Amazon.com: book ordering) Replace sequential steps with parallel steps (pay before drink, pay and

1. Sales and Marketing

2. Manufacturing and production systems

3. Finance and accounting systems 4. Human resources systems

park)
Eliminate delays in decision making

Sales and Marketing systems

Sales and marketing are responsible for selling the organizations products and services Marketing is concerned with identifying the customers for firms products and services, determining what customers need or want, planning and developing products and services to meet their needs and advertising and promoting these products and services

Manufacturing and production systems

Manufacturing and production functions is responsible for actually
producing the firms goods and services

Manufacturing and production systems deal with the following: Planning, development and maintenance of production facilities, (robotics) Acquisition, storage and availability of production materials (RFID) Scheduling of equipment, facilities, materials and labor required to finish

Sales is concerned with contacting the customers, selling the products and
services, taking orders and following up on sales Sales and marketing systems

Help monitor trends, analyzing advertising and promotional campaigns (Italian restaurant in LA did analysis of trends) Helps locating prospective customers (e.g. sms on cell phones) Tracking sales (e.g. Onida gave cell phones to sales agents) Processing orders

products

Example: Inventory Management System

Providing Customer service support (e.g. online service by ICICI)

Examples: POS devices

Finance and accounting systems (F&A systems)

Finance is responsible for managing the firms financial assets such as cash, bonds, stocks. Also responsible for managing capitalization of the firm To determine whether the firm is getting best ROI Accounting function is responsible for maintaining records like receipts, disbursement, depreciation, payroll, to keeping an account for flow of funds within the firm Senior Management uses F&A systems to establish long term investment goals and long term forecasts on firms financial performance Middle Management uses F&A systems to oversee and control firms financial resources Operational Management uses F&A systems to track flow of funds in a firm through transactions such as payroll, payment to vendors, security reports and receipts

Human resources systems

HR is responsible for attracting, developing and maintaining the firms

workforce
HR information systems help in identifying potential employees,

maintaining records on existing employees and creating programs to develop employees talents and skills. Example: Online Training

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Types of IS (constituency perspective)

Systems from a constituency perspective

Transaction processing systems

Transaction processing systems

1. Transaction Processing Systems 2. Management Information Systems 3. Decision Support Systems 4. Executive Support Systems

Perform and record daily routine transactions necessary to conduct business

Examples: sales order entry, hotel reservation, payroll, air tickets reservation

Allow managers to monitor status of operations and relations with external environment Serve operational levels Serve predefined, structured goals and decision making TPS are so central to a business that TPS failure for a few hours can lead to a firms demise and perhaps other firms linked to it

TPS Example
A Payroll TPS

Management information systems

Serve middle management

Principle question addressed by MIS is Are things working well? Provide reports on firms current performance, and predict future performance based on data from TPS that are produced on regular schedule

The basic data from TPS are compressed and usually presented in reports Provide answers to routine questions with predefined procedure for answering them

A TPS for payroll processing captures employee payment transaction data (such as a time card). System outputs include online and hard-copy reports for management and employee paychecks.

Typically have little analytic capability Example: Tickets sold on each route

Sample MIS Report

Decision support systems

Decision support systems

Serve middle management

Support non-routine decision making Example: What is impact on production schedule if December sales doubled?

Often use external information as well from TPS and MIS

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Executive support systems

Support senior management Address non-routine decisions requiring judgment, evaluation, and insight Incorporate data about external events (e.g. new tax laws or competitors) as well as summarized information from internal MIS and DSS Example: ESS that provides minute-to-minute view of firms financial performance as measured by working capital, accounts receivable, accounts payable, cash flow, and inventory

Systems from a constituency perspective

Transaction processing systems: supporting operational level employees

Management information systems and decision-support systems: supporting managers (middle management)

Executive

support

systems:

supporting

executives

(senior

management)

Information Systems Function in Business

Information systems department:
Formal organizational unit responsible for information technology services Includes programmers, systems analysts, project leaders, information systems managers

Information Systems Function in Business

Small firm may not have formal information systems group
Larger companies typically have separate department which may be organized along one of several different lines:
Decentralized (within each functional area)

Often headed by chief information officer (CIO), also includes chief security officer (CSO) and chief knowledge officer (CKO) Separate department under central control Each division has separate group but all under central control

End-users:
Representatives of other departments, for whom applications are developed

Organization of the Information Systems Function

Organization of the Information Systems Function

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Organization of the Information Systems Function

Usability
Shivani Parikh

User interface
A user interface is a collection of techniques and mechanisms to interact with machines (e.g. Washing Machine, AC, Computer explain how are

User interface
User interfaces should be designed to match the skills, experience and expectations of its anticipated users

these used)
The user interface includes hardware (physical) and software (logical) components User interfaces provide a means of: Input, allowing the users to manipulate a system, and/or (e.g. ATM) Output, allowing the system to indicate the effects of the users' manipulation Goal is to produce a user interface which makes it easy, efficient, and

e.g. designing a website for heart attack or diabetes - old people prefer
fewer clicks and tend to focus more on bullets, tables E.g. designing a website for a citys public transportation system

System users often judge a system by its interface rather than its functionality (discuss about NMIMS placement cell example)

A poorly designed interface can cause a user to make catastrophic errors

enjoyable to operate a machine in the way which produces the desired

result. This means that the operator needs to provide minimal input to achieve the desired output, and also that the machine minimizes undesired outputs to the users

(e.g. plane)

Poor user interface design is the reason why so many software systems are never used

Graphical User interface (GUI)

Characteristics Description Multiple windows allow different information to be displayed simultaneously on the users screen Icons represent different types of information. On some systems icons represent files (word, excel, PowerPoint) in some they represent Process (e.g. copy, paste, delete) Commands are selected from a menu A pointing device such as mouse is used for selecting choices from a menu or indicating items of interest in a Window (which others are available) Graphical elements can be mixed with text on the same display
security

Windows

Icons
Menu

history

Pointing

Graphics

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Usability
Usability refers to how well users can learn and use a product to achieve

Why is it so hard?
Its common practice between developers to postpone non-technical

their goals and how satisfied they are with that process
Usability is closely related to ease of use Usability is a combination of factors including:

problems to the end. But then its too late to make changes

Many usability problems are considered peripheral

Ease of learning Efficiency of use (e.g. how fast can a travel agent book tickets)

Usability problems are difficult to quantify

Memorability
Error frequency and severity Subjective satisfaction

Human factors in interface design

Limited short-term memory
People can instantaneously remember about 7 items of information. If

you present more than this, they are more liable to make mistakes

People make mistakes

When people make mistakes and systems go wrong, inappropriate alarms and messages can increase stress and hence the likelihood of more mistakes (e.g. Error message are you sure you want to delete)

Websites work anyway, dont they? Yes, but

People are different

People have a wide range of physical capabilities. Designers should not just design for their own capabilities. (e.g. Blind, deaf)

People have different interaction preferences

Some like pictures, some like text

Real life usability

People are trying to make things easier to use for a long time now.

In this presentation well bring some examples of good and bad design (and some smart solutions to the bad ones)

The question is not whether they do. It is how GOOD they are!

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Which design makes it easier to match the knob to the plate?

People generally dont comply to pre defined paths

Either drink or hear music

The emit

street of

lights the

yellow light

instead white

more typical bluish

The problem is that sometimes it is difficult to tell whether a light is a yellow street light or a yellow traffic light.

Is this usable?

When

trying

to

open

this

file

cabinet users found themselves pulling the handle on the top (See arrow). Guess what happened?

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WHY?

Is that clear that you can turn right when the red lights are on?

UI design principles
UI design must take account of the needs, experience and capabilities of the system users

Designers should be aware of peoples physical and mental limitations and should recognise that people make mistakes

UI design principles underlie interface designs although not all principles are applicable to all designs

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UI design principles
Principle Description The interface should use terms and concepts which are drawn from the experience of the people who will make most use of the System (e.g. Shopping Cart, MS have files, folders, documents as words, TurboTax changed words from Accounts receivables and Accounts Payable to cash in and cash out) The interface should be consistent in that, wherever possible, comparable operations should be activated in the same way Users should never be surprised by the behaviour of system The interface should include mechanisms to allow users to recover from errors (UNDO, soft deletes) The interface should provide meaningful feedback when errors occur and provide context-sensitive user help facilities (user manuals, online help) The interface should provide appropriate interaction facilities for different types of system user

Design issues in UIs

Two problems must be addressed in interactive systems design How should information from the user be provided to the computer system? How should information from the computer system be presented to the user?

User familiarity

Consistency Minimal surprise Recoverability

User interaction and information presentation should be integrated

User guidance User diversity

How do you get good usability

Ask the users! (e.g. banking users do not want mouse functionality, call centers need head phones, washable keyboard)

Usability Mistakes - Examples

Passport Office Guess a Number

The 50-cent usability test Usually 5-6 people is enough, will start to see consensus Dont need formal usability lab, or people off the street Just sketch or prototype and ask your neighbor

When trying to report users passport lost to the relevant UK Government agency, user wrote his explanation in a box, only to be told that it could only be max 90 characters

Passport Office example contd..

Copied & pasted his text into his trusty text editor, where he found out he had written 170 characters

Passport Office example contd..

What principle has been broken?

If youre going to tell someone theyve done something wrong you have the responsibility to tell them exactly what it is theyve done wrong, and how they can remedy it most easily

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Passport Office example contd..

What could have been done better?
There are several things the designers could have done to make this situation more manageable

Example 2
Customer Support

Ideally, dont limit the maximum length for an important free-text input
like this to something so little as 90 characters. If you do have technical or design limitations for space, dont give them a text area to do it. When I see a <textarea>, I think I have plenty of scope to write.

Show a Javascript-powered counter, saying "43 characters left". Dont let the user make a mistake in the first place, by limiting the max length parameter of a field If you cant manage any of these, and Ive made a quantifiable error, at least give me specific feedback so that I can quantify by how far out I am, i.e. Tell me Ive written 170 characters, so I know I need to cut it down by 50%.

What theyve done wrong

What should they have done?

Theyve used a web convention (asterisk to denote required field), but in the opposite way to its conventional use. (e.g. traffic signals) If youre going to use a convention, use it conventionally.

In general print, you can use an asterisk to refer to a footnote or similar additional minor comment, so in theory it can mean anything. You just have to look at the comment.

If they want to distinguish for their users which fields are required, show
the ones that are required, not the ones that arent

But there are 2 problems here: One is that the web convention is to use asterisks to denote required fields. To make matters worse, the asterisk is also rendered in red, which is the universal color for alert/ danger / important. Whenever user sees a red asterisk on a form, he/she assumes 100% that it means required. Had it been black it would make users read again.

Placing the buttons on the tabs themselves, confuses the users as to the consequence of selecting the buttons.

If the buttons are placed outside of the set of tabs, the user can correctly consider those buttons as controlling the entire set of tabs.

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Too much freedom is dangerous

Make explanations brief

Users dont read the manual Spolsky May not have the manual (on airplane, demo version) Too busy / distracted / impatient Users dont read anything Spolsky advanced / too busy novice hope defaults are ok in-between try to read but get confused

floating menu bar

huge system tray

vs .

How many users want these?

Many users are intimidated by computers

Users cant control the mouse well

Whats the problem? sub-optimal pointing devices bad conditions (dirty, old, or cheap mouse; crowded desk) medical disabilities (young, old, arthritis, ...)

vs .

in a hurry

vs

(no dialog) Which is better for an intimidated user?

Dont tax the users memory

Make objects, actions, and options visible User should not have to remember (too much) information

Some bad designs

adaptive menu

office assistant

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Terrible Designs.

Too many tabs

A smart solution!

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The bell curve

Users lie on a bell curve
98% can use a TV 70% can use Windows 15% can use Linux 1% can program

After accepting Words suggestion see what you get! Users are not dolts But, the easier you make the program, the more people can use it 10% more usable 50% more users

Activity-based UI
Two ways of designing UI: 1. What features should be there? Greeting card example: send by email, print add text, add picture, get predesigned card,

Visual perception

color constancy

2. What activities will users do? Greeting card example: birthday greeting, party invitation, anniversary greeting (leads to unexpected features: remind to send next year)

Example:
Excel was designed for financial number-crunching, but many use it for lists

font spacing:

color-blind: 8% of men, 0.5% of women

Conclusion
Usability testing should be an ongoing concern of every designer. Making things easier to use cant be prejudicial

Thank you!

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Usability Guidelines
Form Labels Work Best Above The Field

The F-Shape Pattern

Nielsens eye tracking research has demonstrated that users read web

content in an F-shaped pattern.

The F-shape reading pattern refers to the viewing order: users start by reading across the top line and then look down the page a little and read across again and then continue down the left side.

Usability Guidelines

Usability Guidelines
Effect of Domain Name Extensions (i.e. .com,.org, .edu,), no numbers, no hyphens, short domain names e.g. Section508.gov is still ok since its meaningful Usability studies have shown that 8.6 seconds is the maximum time web users will wait for a page to download We read web pages in a different manner to the way we read printed matter. We generally don't read pages word-for-word - instead we scan web pages. When we scan web pages certain items stand out: Headings, Link text, Bold text, Bulleted lists Did you notice that images were left out of that list? Contrary to the way in which we read printed matter, we see text before we see images on the

Most Users Do Not Scroll

Blue Is The Best Color For Links The Ideal Search Box Is 27-Characters Wide White Space Improves Comprehension Effective User Testing Doesnt Have To Be Extensive Banner blindness Quality Of Design Is An Indicator Of Credibility Warn people when a task will take longer than a few seconds. E.g. IRCTC Provide thank you when forms are submitted

Error prevention: Even better than good error messages is a careful design
which prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. The need for instructions generally indicates bad design Color Blindness Photographs of people can induce trustworthiness by adding a human touch Effect of Font Size

Internet. For optimal website usability don't place important information in

images as it might go unnoticed. Navigation-only pages (such as the home page) can be viewed without scrolling Avoid Plug-ins

Usability Guidelines
Restrictions must not be placed on users Impossible to e-mail the link to someone else Problems with printing (pages should be in printable format) Users feel trapped if external links open in the same window The site automatically enters field formatting data (e.g. currency symbols, commas for 1000s, trailing or leading spaces). Users do not need to enter characters like or % Field labels on forms clearly explain what entries are desired Text boxes on forms are the right length for the expected answer There is a clear distinction between "required" and "optional" fields on forms Forms pre-warn the user if external information is needed for completion (e.g. a passport number, PAN no, SSN no) Pull-down menus, radio buttons and check boxes are used in preference to text entry fields on forms (i.e. text entry fields are not overused). With data entry screens, the cursor is placed where the input is needed.

Usability Guidelines
Data formats are clearly indicated for input (e.g. dates) and output (e.g. units of values). Forms allow users to stay with a single interaction method for as long as possible

The site makes it easy to correct errors (e.g. when a form is incomplete,
positioning the cursor at the location where correction is required). There is a visible change when the mouse points at something clickable The site makes it easy to correct errors (e.g. when a form is incomplete, positioning the cursor at the location where correction is required) Delivery costs are highlighted at the very beginning of checkout. The site is free of typographic errors and spelling mistakes. The content is up-to-date, authoritative and trustworthy. The site contains third-party support (e.g. citations, testimonials) to verify

the accuracy of information.

The site avoids extensive use of upper case text No horizontal scrolling should ever be given URL > 75 Characters

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Usability Guidelines
Error Messages
All error messages should contain 2 parts: a description of the problem what the user needs to do to fix it Error messages should be written in the users language and should be easy to understand. Error messages should be concise. They do not need to include full sentences or the word please. Error messages should be consistent in look and behavior. They should have a specified style to enhance predictability and professionalism of the site or application. Error messages in a form can be red, but they also should have a secondary visual cue for color-blind users. One example is to use red, bold text. In long forms, field-level error messages should appear both at the top of the page in a summary and within the page, next to the fields with errors. This helps users find errors quickly. Error messages should validate all errors on a screen at once. To the extent possible, users should not have to fix a problem, re-select Save or Submit, then receive more error messages. Error messages should be displayed in context, not shown as pop-ups. Especially in the case of missing or incorrect data in forms, keeping the errors within the page provides the users with context for the errors where and when they need it. Error messages should not make the user feel stupid. Ensure that language is not accusatory or blaming.

Small Thumbnail Images of Big, Detailed Photos

Photo details
The left photo is from the whitehouse.gov site. It shows the U.S.
President, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Director of the National Park Service walking in the Santa Monica mountains.

No Prices
No B2C ecommerce site should make this mistake

If I hadn't told you that, you wouldn't have known by looking at the thumbnail: It's just a photo of three people. You can't even really tell that they're in a park, let alone which one.

The right photo is from cnn.com, which usually does a great job with small

images on the homepage.

This photo illustrated a story about flooding; in this case, you can clearly see what's going on, even though the image is only 65 x 49 pixels.

Inflexible Search Engines

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Exercise

The Basecamp sign-up page has a smart trick. It has no website navigation aside from a home-page link. This keeps the user focused on the sign-up process, without any distractions or means of leaving the page.

Exercise

Exercise

Exercise

Exercise

left-aligned labels

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Exercise

Exercise

Exercise

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