Apps and Mental Models

When devising an app we make oceans of decisions. Some are dictated by personal preferences, some by principles, some by elaborating feedback on beta versions and some by taking inspiration from other apps. A posteriori, depending on the "success" of the app we can say which decisions were right or wrong. An alternative approach is based on Mental Models, "minimal pictures" that can be used to describe how people learn and interact. Before buying an app your customer has already a mental model of how it should work. Knowing more about that model helps you a lot to devise an experience that matches customers' expectations.

In this presentation I will talk about beliefs, cars, processes, scripts, metaphors, roadblocks, cheating, woods, tasks, plans, novels, walkthroughs, inertia, simplicity, affordance and I will carefully avoid the skeuo vs flat debate. I will raise a fuss, and when the dust settles, the distance between your next app and the mental model of your customers will, hopefully, be shorter.

Transcript

1. Apps and Mental Models _funkyboy funkyboy Rocchi Cesare
2. Who am I?
3. UX desi ner and developer
4. Who are you?
5. Giveaway
6. Giveaway
7. Statements
8. nil > 0
9. nil > 0 NO
10. NSObject *obj = [[NSObject alloc] init]; nil > obj
11. NSObject *obj = [[NSObject alloc] init]; nil > obj NO
12. NSNumber *n = [NSNumber numberWithInt:0]; n > 0
13. NSNumber *n = [NSNumber numberWithInt:0]; n > 0 YES
14. Mental models can …
15. Save time
16. Save stress
17. Rank priorities
18. Find aps
19. The Nature of Explanation Kenneth Craik, 1943
28. NSArray *array = [NSArray array]; array > 0
29. NSArray *array = [NSArray array]; array > 0 YES
30. nil > nil
31. nil > nil NO
32. @"nil" == @"nil"
33. @"nil" == @"nil" YES
38. ?
42. A user interface is well-desi ned when the pro ram behaves exactly how the user thou ht it would. Joel Spolsky
43. UI Lo ic Data
44. UI Ma ic
46. UI Ma ic
47. UI Ma ic
48. UI Ma ic … as lon as the interaction model matches the car behavior
49. Desi nin is hidin implementation details
50. Desi nin is choosin which implementation details to hide
51. Desi nin is choosin which implementation details to show
53. Movie oers
54. - Social ( oes because someone else oes)
55. - Social ( oes because someone else oes) - Buff ( ets in line under the rain for a ticket)
56. - Social ( oes because someone else oes) - Buff ( ets in line under the rain for a ticket) - Bi fan ( ets the dvd after, buys action fi ures)
57. - Social ( oes because someone else oes) - Buff ( ets in line under the rain for a ticket) - Bi fan ( ets the dvd after, buys action fi ures) - Diver (lives as if he were in the story)
58. - Social ( oes because someone else oes) - Buff ( ets in line under the rain for a ticket) - Bi fan ( ets the dvd after, buys action fi ures) - Diver (lives as if he were in the story) - Facilitator ( oin to the movie to take someone else)
59. @"nil" == @"nil"
60. @"nil" == @"nil" YES
61. NSArray *a = [NSArray array]; NSArray *b = [NSArray array]; a == b
62. NSArray *a = [NSArray array]; NSArray *b = [NSArray array]; a == b YES
63. @[] == @[]
64. @[] == @[] YES
65. @[@1] == @[@1]
66. @[@1] == @[@1] NO
67. Does Apple doc mention “mental models”?
68. Does Apple doc mention “mental models”? http://developer.apple.com/library/mac/#documentation/UserExperience/ Conceptual/AppleHIGuidelines/HIPrinciples/HIPrinciples.html
69. One of the jobs of a desi ner is that you’re very sensitive to tryin to understand what oes on between seein somethin and fillin out your perception of it.
70. One of the jobs of a desi ner is that you’re very sensitive to tryin to understand what oes on between seein somethin and fillin out your perception of it. Joni Ive
71. Thank you!
72. twitter.com/_funkyboy app.net/funkyboy cesare@studioma nolia.com http://studioma nolia.com