Day 30 - Mobile Basics: Voice Recognition

Speech recognition uses your voice commands to interact with applications. It converts spoken words to text, allows you to perform searches, send messages, set reminders, interact with maps, dictate orders, etc.

Although voice recognition technologies have been around for many years the technologies have a long way to go before they truly recognize natural conversation.

Things to consider when designing for speech interactions and touchless operations:

1. The voice persona.
2. Provide immediate feedback for every speech input.
3. Is active voice vs. passive voice preferable.
4. Is voice support absolutely necessary.
5. Will voice be used for both input and output.
6. Environmental barriers e.g. people around you listening in to your voice commands, privacy concerns.
7. Error rates in speech recognition can lead to abandonment of the product.
8. Avoid modes, but allow users to quickly turn speech recognition on/off or easily switch to other ways of interaction.
9. Use speech when the user's eyes and hands are busy.
10. Developing the right voice interactions can make the user experience more human.

Technologies such as Apple's Siri, "Ok Google", and Microsoft Cortana open up a world of interaction possibilities.  What are some ways you use voice interactions?

Day 28 - Mobile Basics: Gyroscope

The gyroscope is a hardware sensor in your phone and tablet that gives you the changes in any rotation orientation of the device.  It rotates around gravity.

Used with other hardware features like the accelerometer, magnetometers, and compass, the gyroscope can be used for augmented reality apps, gaming, and navigation systems to name a few examples.

An example of an app that uses a gyroscope is a constellation app whereby the user simply points their device to any part of the sky to identify constellations, stars, and planets.

When designing for mobile, don't just think in terms of a flat space on a 2d screen. Think about 3d space, the environment a user is in, the context of the problem you're solving, and how the mobile device hardware can be used in your designs.

What sort of applications would you design that take advantage of a phone's gyroscope?

Day 21 - Mobile Device Fragmentation

There's dozens and dozens of smartphone and tablet manufacturers which means device diversity with large numbers of different screen sizes, densities, and resolutions.  We need to develop a basic understanding and be aware of this when designing for mobile.  Designing for the wide variety of sizes and densities can be challenging.

When designing for mobile:

1. UI needs to be able to adapt to those different devices.
2. Know the difference between responsive design, mobile web, native apps, hybrid apps.
3. Don't think that a smartphone screen is a small desktop screen. They are different experiences.
4. Understand the basic leading target platforms Apple's iOS, Android, and Windows Phone.
5. Understand why you are choosing one platform over another.
6. Understand the context of how your mobile app will be used by your target user.
7. Plan early so as to minimize the amount of time and effort required for your platform/s.
8. Have a basic understanding of the phone's built-in hardware capabilities that can enhance the experience.
9. Pay attention to device density and documentation.

Take a look at ScreenSiz.es
It's a screen size chart of common mobile devices sortable by device name, operating system, screen size, resolution, pixels per inch, density, and popularity.

Day 2 - Interaction Design iOS Principles - Clarity, Deference, and Depth

When designing an app for Apple's iOS keep their 3 core principles in mind and ask these questions.

1)  Clarity - Ensure that content is easy to read and interact with.  Ask yourself,
 * Am I using words and content that are easy for people to understand?
 * Will users immediately know what the app does when they look at it?
 * Is the app intuitive and can it be used with minimal hand holding?

2)  Deference - The application's interface should not compete with nor overshadow the content.
 * Is the user interface competing with the content?
 * Is the UI overwhelmingly noisy and distracting from the content or functionality?

3)  Depth - Subtle motion and multiple layers create a holistic, compelling experience.
 * Do people get confused or lost in the app?
 * How are things arranged and do screens relate to each other?
 * Is usability diminished?