The final reading by Frick and Boling is divided into three sections: building a Web prototype, assessing and maintaining the site, and conducting the analysis. The first section provides an overview of hosting servers and the programming languages you might use for your site. It offers different approaches for building the site as well as precautions.
The second section explains in detail how to test your site for quality assurance. It provides a sample QA matrix, explains how to use this matrix, and discusses the QA process.
The final section explains how to conduct a thorough needs assessment and analyze the results. It presents advantages and disadvantages of one-on-one interviews and focus groups. It also offers many tips for reviewing the data collected and eventually drawing conclusions.
Critique:
This last reading started off slow but really provided some good information in the final two sections. I didn’t find the first section extremely useful because it either covered basic information such as its overview of the Web or information that I wasn’t interested in, such as the descriptions of different programming languages. However, sections 2 and 3 were well worth reading. I liked the QA matrix that was presented in section 2 as well as the systematic approach the authors take to QA. I also liked how they explained prioritizing bugs and their distinctions between priorities one through four. My favorite part of section 3 explained how analyze and synthesize data. I find this to be the hardest part of conducting interviews and focus groups. Collecting data can be fun and interesting but analyzing the data is often challenging and overwhelming. The authors describe an approach that I believe is very effective. I appreciated the practical tips that were provided throughout this section. For example, to identify trends in data, the authors recommend:
- Really look at what’s there
- Look for items that are similar
- Look for items that may be linked
- Look for items that are missing
- Pay attention to the questions that come to your mind
- Don’t be too quick to summarize the data
- Be sure to summarize the data eventually (p. 131-134)
For those of us less familiar with the workings of the web, the basic information was actually useful. I aspire to be in the place where you are, with a much more sophisticated understanding of the what the heck all these acronyms are and how they work together.
ReplyDeleteI like how you've re-created the bulleted list; this is something I need to go back and review and your post is reminding me of what I've glossed over a bit. They're all important, but what stands out to me is: Pay attention to the questions that come to your mind. This really is a key to discovery, in my view. In fact, one of the primary reasons for revision is to CREATE questions because questions can lead to new knowledge or new ways of seeing and doing things; in other words, they help us learn. As a writer/editor, I've learned to embrace the testing/revision part of the process because this is where rough, early iterations have the potential to morph into something special. A mentor of mine once described it as mining for veins of gold that you can polish into a finished product that shines with brilliance. You just have to be willing to hold the flaws up to the light so you can see them.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this post, Nicole!
Kevin
They explanation of analyze and synthesize data is great. if we are collecting any qualitative data, we can use the methodoly of categorizing, quantifying statements, seeing what themes emerge and comparing any quantitative data to the qualitative - do they support each other? If one cluster of data tell one story and the other cluster tells another, then we have to figure out why? Usually the data sets support each other.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kevin that the bulleted list you have created is very nice! Also, the reading definitely provided useful information. However, I cannot say that the classification of bugs was overall helpful for me. Most of the information presented in these last two chapters were issues we have covered in prior readings, or I have already been made aware of.
ReplyDeleteIn spite of this, I did enjoy reading Frick & Boling and their take on all of the information. They provide a unique perspective and approach to ID.