Remote Observation for Usability Testing
In a recent usability testing project, we conducted the tests off site where a formal lab was not available. In order to simulate a formal environment we used common software to setup the observation.
The testing room did not have a one-way mirror, so all observers had
to be in a separate room in the building. The main goals were to allow
observers to
- Capture the screen movement
- Listen to audio
- Watch video of the participants face
We used a combination of RealVNC, Yahoo! Instant Messenger (beta), standard microphone and webcam over a network. RealVNC
(on view mode only) allowed us to view the screen movement of the test
machine. With Yahoo’s new call feature we could call into the test
machine to view the webcam and listen to the audio. The setup was
simple to configure and extremely affordable. The quality was
excellent. By using Yahoo’s conference feature you could essentially
have many people observe anywhere, as long as a network or Internet
connection is available.
We used Techsmith’s Camtasia to record the tests, but in most circumstances we use Morae to record and observe within one software package. The setup above is simple and affordable means that anyone can use.
This entry was posted on Friday, July 15th, 2005 at 3:52 pm and is filed under Usability & Design. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
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