Usability

Abstract

The results of usability verbalizations gathered using a talk aloud protocol during a heuristic evaluation with persons knowledgeable about usability are reported. An explicit problem in system design is the application and subsequent utilization of heuristic evaluations in conjunction with talk aloud protocols [1,4]. Though a common practice, the verbalizations themselves may not conform to Ericsson and Simon's [5] protocol, which is often cited as justification and is perhaps the most heavily cited process-tracing method. The difficulty is that Nielsen's heuristic evaluation [10,13], with which the protocol is often paired, specifically requires Type 3 verbalizations -data that is deemed unreliable by Ericsson and Simon. A different theory, which considers the attributes of the individual and is also from cognitive science and Simon [5], is suggested to reconcile the theory with the practice of verbal protocols.