I think if the design is built "obviously" the need for a HELP system is just overkill. However, there is that small group of people out there that actually like to read their manuals to solve problems and would find HELP systems very useful, but for the most part though I think people would rather be able to figure something out on their own than to ask for any help.
When I think about building a persona for project 5 I am going to look at the fans. I don't necessarily mean the fans that know every single detail and own every action figure. I want to have my persona to include all fans of my superhero.
I agree that it is extremely tedious to read through instruction manuals, and that most of the time people are more likely to try to figure something out on their own. Is there a more specific age range you have in mind for your persona? It would be wonderful to be able to create a persona that represented every fan for your superhero, but this may also make your job as a designer more difficult. Selecting an age range for your persona, or other more specific, defining characteristics may help make your job easier in the long run.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about the help systems. Even if there are a small amount of people who don't understand how the program works, it is almost a complete waste of time and money to implement some nearly unusable program that will just take up space in a design. Obvious design simply should not need a help system.
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