Re: Too many clicks

[Steve Lonn]

Also CCing the UX list on this conversation...


We have received comments about too many clicks every year on our  
annual surveys at Michigan. While not a huge outcry, the few users who  
do mention "clicks" in their messages do have some good points.  
Here's a sampling of the kinds of responses we got last year when we  
asked "What is the most important improvement you want?":

INSTRUCTORS:

Increase the number of ways to do the same thing. ie. Grading papers:  
I don't like to grade papers online. I print them and comment on hard  
copies and then return to students in class. there is no easy way to  
get at papers posted on CTools without multiple clicks.

I have students post papers to the drop box.  I find it requires too  
many clicks to get to each paper.  Also, I would like to be able to  
mark student papers and email them to the students on ctools.  I don't  
know how to do this.  Instead, I have to open the papers up and then  
mark them and then email them -- several steps.

Everything takes a lot of clicks / steps. Can you come up with a  
'cliff notes' version of how to start/maintain a site, or a 'c-tools  
for dummies'? Our dept tries to develop a common look/feel is it  
possible to have a template and 'copy-paste' our old materials in it?  
It would be really helpful to have student feedback about what they  
like, love, loathe - what helps them manage their work?

Make it more user-friendly with easier to understand tabs, fewer  
clicks to get where I want to go.


STUDENTS:

Links in Resources are sometimes frustrating to access. The browser's  
back button does not work like it's supposed to, and sometimes just  
accessing and downloading the material requires too many additional  
clicks. Also, one of my instructors has this fanaticism with  
copyrights, which forces us to accept a dialog box EVERY time before  
we download a new resource. This amounts to nothing but a useless  
click (and the enter button does not work). At the very least,  
remember our answer once for the course or once per resource.  
Streamline that system, please.

Less clicks to get needed information.


--Steve
--------------------------------------------------------------
Steve Lonn - CTools / Sakai Staff
Usability, Support, and Evaluation (USE) Lab
Digital Media Commons, Duderstadt Center
University of Michigan

Email:  slonn@...
Phone:  [phone]
--------------------------------------------------------------



On Feb 7, 2008, at 8:25 AM, BENJAMIN J REYNOLDS wrote:

> We quit using the webCT assignment tool for that reason. In webCT  
> 3+, many students seemed not to realize there was a last click. In  
> WebCT 4.1 (CE), that last click was vastly improved, but the  
> confusing click had simply been moved to the middle of the process.
>
> Our solution was to use attachments in a private topic in WebCT's  
> discussion tool. The number of clicks is, I believe, the same, but  
> the process is much clearer.
>
> Ben.Reynolds@...
> Sr. Program Manager, Distance Education
> Johns Hopkins University - Center for Talented  Youth (CTY)
> McAuley Hall
> 5801 Smith Ave, Ste 400
> Baltimore, MD 21209
> 410 735 6149 My Direct Line
> 410 735 6147 Distance Education FAX
> AIM: CTYBenReynolds
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: harriet@...
> Date: Thursday, February 7, 2008 4:22 am
> Subject: Re: Too many clicks
> To: Jonny Brown <jonny.brown@...>
> Cc: sakai-user@...
>
>
>> We have seen some confusion about handing work in via the Assignments
>> tool which
>> could be expressed as 'why is there so much clicking to submit?'.  
>> Some
>> students
>> have been confused by the fact that they need to upload their work to
>> Assignments, see it displayed on the screen to show it has been
>> uploaded, and
>> then click a 'submit' button before it will actually be visible to  
>> the
>> instructor. Interestingly, I noticed exactly the same issue with  
>> WebCT.
>>
>> No work-around, I'm afraid!
>>
>> It's a opportunity for improvements to the tool, though...
>>
>> Harriet
>>
>>
>> Quoting Jonny Brown <jonny.brown@...>:
>>
>>>
>>> Hi, everybody. Some of our clients have reported that their users
>> often ask ,
>>> " Why is there so much clicking to submit material?" We haven't  
>>> determined
>>> whether this objection is to the amount of clicking in general
>> (which is
>>> something we've heard before) or if it's tied specifically to
>>> submitting/attaching materials in a particular tool such as
>> Assignments or
>>> Samigo.
>>>
>>> Assuming that it's the latter rather than the former, are your users
>> giving
>>> you similar feedback about a specific tool? If so, which one and
>> have you
>>> come up with any shortcuts?
>>>
>>> Thanks for sharing any relevant experience you or your users might  
>>> have.
>>> Best,
>>> Jonny
>>>
>>> Sr. Information Architect
>>> The rSmart Group
>>> 4343 East Camelback Road
>>> Suite 210
>>> Phoenix, AZ 85018
>>> 602-490-0469
>>> [see attachment: "message0.html", size: 2048 bytes]

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[dktr adam marshall]

| -----Original Message-----
| From: Steve Lonn [mailto:slonn@...]
| Sent: 07 February 2008 13:50
| To: Sakai
| Cc: Sakai UI UI; Jonny Brown
| Subject: Re: Too many clicks
|
| Also CCing the UX list on this conversation...
|
|
| We have received comments about too many clicks every year on our
| annual surveys at Michigan. While not a huge outcry, the few users who
| do mention "clicks" in their messages do have some good points.
| Here's a sampling of the kinds of responses we got last year when we
| asked "What is the most important improvement you want?":
| |
|
| STUDENTS:
|
| Links in Resources are sometimes frustrating to access. The browser's
| back button does not work like it's supposed to,

Here here! Most people we've got to trail Sakai have been utterly perplexed
by the back button conundrum - the 'tool reload' button is always
overlooked.

adam

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[Marx, Harry]

I'm sorry, this is a "me too" and a "soapbox"
Indeed, in an environment where "adherance to standards" are preached,
you have to first respect other existing standards/practises and
preferences...

Harry Marx   (MSc Biochemistry, BSc - IT)
System Analyst and Developer
CVV - 5th floor room 119
UNISA - ICT
Tel: [phone]
Cell: 073 623 1939
"In the beginning there was nothing, which exploded." - Terry Pratchet,
on the creation of the universe.


-----Original Message-----
From: Adam Marshall [mailto:adam.marshall@...]
Sent: 07 February 2008 16:04
To: 'Sakai'
Cc: 'Sakai UI UI'
Subject: RE: Too many clicks


| -----Original Message-----
| From: Steve Lonn [mailto:slonn@...]
| Sent: 07 February 2008 13:50
| To: Sakai
| Cc: Sakai UI UI; Jonny Brown
| Subject: Re: Too many clicks
|
| Also CCing the UX list on this conversation...
|
|
| We have received comments about too many clicks every year on our
| annual surveys at Michigan. While not a huge outcry, the few users who
| do mention "clicks" in their messages do have some good points.
| Here's a sampling of the kinds of responses we got last year when we
| asked "What is the most important improvement you want?":
| |
|
| STUDENTS:
|
| Links in Resources are sometimes frustrating to access. The browser's
| back button does not work like it's supposed to,

Here here! Most people we've got to trail Sakai have been utterly
perplexed
by the back button conundrum - the 'tool reload' button is always
overlooked.

adam

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This message (and attachments) is subject to restrictions and a disclaimer. Please refer to http://www.unisa.ac.za/disclaimer for full details.

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[abloodworth]

Oftentimes hearing that 'there are too many clicks' is a symptom of  
other problems, such as the fact that it's too hard to figure out  
which clicks are necessary to achieve the desired goal, that after a  
click things take too long to load, or (as in the example below) that  
the system requires repeated confirmation of things users expect it  
to remember.

The Sakai UX DG & some UX folks on the Fluid project were recently  
discussing the issues which could arise if users are confused because  
the system saves state--the non-working back button is certainly one  
of those (http://bugs.sakaiproject.org/confluence/display/UI/Sakai+UX 
+Issues+and+Discussions). Daphne Ogle and I are currently conducting  
'contextual inquiries' (which involves watching users work and asking  
them questions as necessary) with Sakai users, and this was  
definitely a source of confusion for the users we have talked to. We  
were thinking that it would be good for someone to take on the  
project of figuring out where in Sakai saving state causes problems  
and documenting it (perhaps we could start on the above referenced  
web page, and if there is enough interest, create a new web page just  
for this issue).

I am aware that Sakai's ability to save state when working in  
multiple tools is helpful to some users (usually instructors), and  
really do understand why those folks would like to see the system  
remain as is. However, I believe that the problems it causes for  
numerous other users (e.g. non-power users like students) does not  
outweigh this benefit. At the Fluid Summit we started thinking about  
ways to give those instructors the functionality they were looking  
for without saving state (such as the "Suspend - Inject - Resume"  
component near the bottom of this page: http://wiki.fluidproject.org/ 
x/8QEa), but have not fully fleshed out any solutions. I'm hopeful  
that a solution can be found to give instructors similar  
functionality without actually saving state.

Cheers,
Allison

On Feb 7, 2008, at 8:54 PM, Marx, Harry wrote:

> I'm sorry, this is a "me too" and a "soapbox"
> Indeed, in an environment where "adherance to standards" are preached,
> you have to first respect other existing standards/practises and
> preferences...
>
> Harry Marx   (MSc Biochemistry, BSc - IT)
> System Analyst and Developer
> CVV - 5th floor room 119
> UNISA - ICT
> Tel: [phone]
> Cell: 073 623 1939
> "In the beginning there was nothing, which exploded." - Terry  
> Pratchet,
> on the creation of the universe.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Adam Marshall [mailto:adam.marshall@...]
> Sent: 07 February 2008 16:04
> To: 'Sakai'
> Cc: 'Sakai UI UI'
> Subject: RE: Too many clicks
>
>
> | -----Original Message-----
> | From: Steve Lonn [mailto:slonn@...]
> | Sent: 07 February 2008 13:50
> | To: Sakai
> | Cc: Sakai UI UI; Jonny Brown
> | Subject: Re: Too many clicks
> |
> | Also CCing the UX list on this conversation...
> |
> |
> | We have received comments about too many clicks every year on our
> | annual surveys at Michigan. While not a huge outcry, the few  
> users who
> | do mention "clicks" in their messages do have some good points.
> | Here's a sampling of the kinds of responses we got last year when we
> | asked "What is the most important improvement you want?":
> | |
> |
> | STUDENTS:
> |
> | Links in Resources are sometimes frustrating to access. The  
> browser's
> | back button does not work like it's supposed to,
>
> Here here! Most people we've got to trail Sakai have been utterly
> perplexed
> by the back button conundrum - the 'tool reload' button is always
> overlooked.
>
> adam
>
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>
>
> This message (and attachments) is subject to restrictions and a  
> disclaimer. Please refer to http://www.unisa.ac.za/disclaimer for  
> full details.
>
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>

Allison Bloodworth
Senior User Interaction Designer
Educational Technology Services
University of California, Berkeley
[phone]
abloodworth@...




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