uP2 Channel Manager Heuristic Analysis

Observation 1: In a typical "wizard driven" interface, the next button is placed to the right of all other buttons to re-enforce the notion of moving forward. The placement of this next button violates the consistency and standards heuristic.

Recommendation 1: Position the next and back buttons to be in a more conventional proximity to other buttons.

Observation 1: The status indicator, while well intentioned, seems to hinder more than it helps. The main problem is that it doubles as navigation that allows users to skip over steps – which begs the question: If steps can skipped, is this really a linear flow? In other words, is a wizard interface appropriate here? The confusion that results increases the probability of user error, rather than preventing it. But also, it fails as a system status tool since it sends mixed messages.

Recommendation 1: Will require further analysis.

Observation 2: This isn't so much a whole seperate observation, but just an elaboration of the first observation. Allowing the status titles to be hyperlinks creates modality issues. Most of these screens are forms that require a send to the DB. If a user is encouraged to navigate away from a form before completing it, the DB will not save the data, and the user will get lost/confused/frustrated because the UI allowed for the loss of his or her work.

Recommendation 2: Limit links (if any are warranted at all) to screens that have already been filled out. In other words, offer links as crumb trails that allow users to go back but not forward – thereby forcing the user to click the "next" button to progess through the UI.

Observation 1: There are three, count them, three, fields that each require the same information. It's just a huntch, but admins. probably don't need to enter one name for the title (the name that will appear in the channel header) and a different name for the channel name (the name that will be presented to users when they go to select a channel in preferences).

Recommendation 1: Examine which fields can be consolidated in the UI. Try to avoid exposing users to back-end complexity. Remember, less is more.