Stanford DLITE User Study

Abstract

User tests were conducted on the DLITE digital workspace. These consisted of observed use of the DLITE system, followed by an interview with the test administrator. The tests themselves were carried out both remotely over a network, and locally in the digital libraries lab on subjects with moderate computer knowledge. Initial tests resulted in system failures that caused DLITE to crash or become totally unusable. In subsequent tests, users noted a number of areas of DLITE that caused confusion. In particular, the instantiation of queries, the purpose and functioning of the graphics in the upper-left corner of objects, and the obscuring of objects in the workspace when dragging large components. Given the reactions of users in the post-test interview, these problems do not appear to be flaws in the design of DLITE, but implementation errors not intrinsic to the model upon which the functionality is based.