Testing user interaction
As with displaying information, there is vast and growing literature on user interactions; I will only list a few particular examples here. As ever, trust yourself – if something annoys you, if you make mistakes, or if you have to carefully think through steps when using your product, then others will struggle even more. The fault is not necessarily yours, so first, check whether your application could be easier for users to use.
A good interface will guide users from the general to the specific: I want to change how I’m viewing this page (so I select View), I want to zoom in (so I select Zoom), I want to zoom to 200% (so select 200%). Are there clear routes through your application like that for all your user stories?
The other extreme is the Linux command prompt. While massively powerful and configurable, it provides almost no guidance. It’s simply a prompt; all the knowledge about how to use it comes from the user. In a way, it...
