Berger / Arent / Arnowitz Effective Prototyping with Excel

A Practical Handbook for Developers and Designers
1. Auflage 2009
ISBN: 978-0-08-091671-2
Verlag: Elsevier Science & Techn.
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 240 Seiten

Reihe: Interactive Technologies

Although recognized as a key to the design process, prototyping often falls victim to budget cuts, deadlines, or lack of access to sophisticated tools. This can lead to sloppy and ineffective prototypes or the abandonment of them altogether. Rather than lose this important step, people are turning to Microsoft Excel® to create effective, simple, and inexpensive prototypes. Conveniently, the software is available to nearly everyone, and most are proficient in its basic functionality.
Effective Prototyping with Excel offers how-to guidance on how everyone can use basic Excel skills to create prototypes - ranging from narrative wire frames to hi-fidelity prototypes. A wide array of software design problems and business demands are solved via practical step-by-step examples and illustrations.
• Step-by-step guide to prototyping with a simple and affordable tool nearly everyone already has on their desktop.
• Quickly and easily allows web and software designers to explore usability, design alternatives, and test theories prior to starting production.
• Perfect companion to Effective Prototyping for Software Makers - with the same author team and full-color treatment, useful case studies, and hands-on exercises.

Nevin Berger is design director at Ziff Davis Media. Previously he was a senior interaction designer at Oracle Corporation and Peoplesoft, Inc., and has held creative director positions at World Savings and OFOTO, Inc.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Berger, Nevin

Arent, Michael

Arnowitz, Jonathan

Sampson, Fred

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Front Cover;1
2;Effective Prototypingwith Excel;4
3;Copyright Page;5
4;Contents;6
5;Dedications Page;14
6;Acknowledgments;16
7;About the Authors;18
8;Part 1: Turning Excel into a Prototyping Tool;21
8.1;Chapter 1: A Developer's Dilemma;23
8.1.1;A Case Study;24
8.1.2;Introduction;25
8.1.2.1;Excel Prototyping;26
8.1.2.2;Prototyping Flexibility;26
8.1.2.3;Efficient and Easy;32
8.1.2.4;Professional Results;32
8.1.2.5;No Special Skills Required;33
8.1.2.6;Readily Available;33
8.1.2.7;Still Not Convinced?;34
8.1.2.8;Who Should Consider Using Excel?;34
8.1.3;Prototyping Productivity;34
8.1.4;Our Goal;35
8.2;Chapter 2: Getting Started: Your First Excel Prototype;37
8.2.1;Examples of Excel Prototypes;38
8.2.2;How to Create Your First Excel Prototype;38
8.2.2.1;To Adapt the Template:;41
8.2.2.2;To Add a Header:;42
8.2.2.3;To Add a Search Text Entry Box and Accompanying Search Button:;44
8.2.2.4;To Add Page Navigation:;45
8.2.2.5;To Build the Hotel Finder Area:;46
8.2.2.6;To Create a Grouping Box Around the Hotel Finder Area:;48
8.2.2.7;To Create the Placeholder, the Images, and Descriptive Text for the Featured Hotels Area:;49
8.2.2.8;To Create the Placeholder Descriptive Text:;50
8.2.2.9;To Create the Placeholder Promotional Information Area:;50
8.2.3;Summary;53
8.2.4;About This Book;54
8.2.5;How to Use This Book;54
8.2.6;How to Use the Associated Files;55
8.3;Chapter 3: Basics: The Excel Prototyping Canvas;57
8.3.1;Creating a Prototyping Canvas;58
8.3.1.1;To Prepare a Canvas:;58
8.3.1.2;To Hide the Grid:;59
8.3.1.3;To Change the Row and Column Dimensions:;61
8.3.2;Conclusion;68
8.4;Chapter 4: Creating an Excel Prototyping Template;69
8.4.1;Templates;70
8.4.2;The Image Library;70
8.4.2.1;What Graphics Should be Included in Your Image Library Worksheet?;71
8.4.2.2;Finding the Images You Need;72
8.4.2.3;When to Use Graphics Instead of Widgets Built in Excel;72
8.4.2.4;To Add Graphics to the Template:;73
8.4.3;The Boxes epsivet Buttons Worksheet;75
8.4.3.1;Creating the Boxes epsivet Buttons Worksheet;76
8.4.4;The Tabs Worksheet;82
8.4.4.1;Color Management;89
8.4.5;The Color Key and Palette;96
8.4.6;The Tips and Tricks Worksheet;96
8.4.7;The Table Template Worksheet;98
8.4.7.1;Creating the Table Template;99
8.4.7.2;Modifying the Table;103
8.4.8;The Starter Worksheet;105
8.4.9;Conclusion;106
9;Part 2: Prototyping with Excel;107
9.1;Chapter 5: Excel Prototyping: Storyboards;109
9.1.1;About Storyboards;110
9.1.2;How to Create an Excel Storyboard Prototype;114
9.1.3;Creating the Berger Books Storyboard in Excel;116
9.1.3.1;To Build a Storyboard:;116
9.1.3.2;To Create the Header:;117
9.1.3.3;To Place a Wireframe Image on the Worksheet:;119
9.1.3.4;To Create a Text Box:;121
9.1.4;Options for Presenting Your Storyboard;123
9.1.4.1;To Add Navigation Links to a Storyboard:;124
9.1.5;Conclusion;126
9.1.6;References;126
9.2;Chapter 6: Wireframes;127
9.2.1;Introduction to Wireframes;128
9.2.2;Task Flow or Site Map Diagram;129
9.2.2.1;To Create Site Map Wireframe Boxes:;130
9.2.2.2;To Add Connectors Between Boxes:;131
9.2.3;The Hyperlinked Site Map;133
9.2.3.1;To Create an Interactive Site Map:;133
9.2.4;From Skeletal to Detailed Wireframes;134
9.2.5;The Excel Methodology;136
9.2.6;Conclusion;138
9.2.7;References;138
9.3;Chapter 7: Digital Interactive Prototypes;139
9.3.1;About Digital Interactive Prototypes;140
9.3.2;How Does an Interactive Prototype Work?;141
9.3.3;Creating Interactive Prototypes with Excel;141
9.3.4;Gathering and Verifying Requirements for the Prototype;142
9.3.5;Creating a Screen Flow Diagram;143
9.3.5.1;To Import Scanned Drawings or Graphics Created in Another Application:;144
9.3.5.2;To Create the Thumbnails in Excel:;144
9.3.5.3;To Group Shapes:;152
9.3.6;Creating an Interactive Prototype;154
9.3.6.1;To Create the Interactive Digital Prototype:;156
9.3.7;Creating a Drop-Down Menu in Excel;158
9.3.7.1;To Create a Drop-Down Menu:;158
9.3.8;Conclusion;166
9.3.9;References;166
10;Part 3: Putting Your Excel Prototype to Work;167
10.1;Chapter 8: Iterating Prototypes With Excel;169
10.1.1;Preparing for a Design Iteration;170
10.1.2;Creating Iterations of Your Excel Prototype;171
10.1.3;Iteration 1: Simple Wireframe;172
10.1.4;Iteration 2: Wireframe with Some Details;173
10.1.5;Iteration 3: Wireframe Updated with Design Team Feedback;176
10.1.6;Iteration 4: Final Wireframe;183
10.1.7;Conclusion;184
10.1.8;References;184
10.2;Chapter 9: Communicating Your Design in Excel;185
10.2.1;Introduction;186
10.2.2;Adding a Tooltip to Excel Hyperlinks;188
10.2.2.1;To Create a ScreenTip Annotation:;188
10.2.3;Inserting Comments;191
10.2.3.1;To Insert a Comment:;193
10.2.4;Creating Annotation Areas;196
10.2.4.1;To Create Annotation Areas:;197
10.2.5;Conclusion;204
10.2.6;References;204
10.3;Chapter 10: Sharing Your Excel Prototype;205
10.3.1;Introduction;206
10.3.2;Using Your Prototype for Collaboration;206
10.3.3;Mitigating the Risks of Implementing a Finished Prototype;208
10.3.4;Engineering Can't (or Doesn't Want to) Implement Your Design;209
10.3.5;Competing Prototypes;209
10.3.6;Outdated Prototypes;209
10.3.7;Misunderstanding and Misinterpretation;210
10.3.8;Tips for Avoiding the Risks in Sharing Your Prototypes;211
10.3.9;Using a Summary Worksheet;211
10.3.10;Setting the Appropriate Fidelity Level;211
10.3.11;Setting the Appropriate Visual Emphasis;212
10.3.11.1;To Create a Translucent Overlay:;212
10.3.12;Denoting Your Prototype's Interaction Methods;215
10.3.12.1;Creating a Simple Click-Through Interaction:;215
10.3.12.2;To Name a Tab:;215
10.3.12.3;To Color a Tab:;216
10.3.13;Identifying Which Links Work and Which Are Just Mocked Up;217
10.3.14;Improving the Appearance and Presentation of Your Excel Prototypes;218
10.3.15;Conclusion;222
10.3.16;References;222
11;Appendix A: Useful Techniques with Excel;223
11.1;Introduction;224
11.2;Creating the Canvas;224
11.2.1;To Turn Off the Display of Gridlines to Create a Blank Canvas:;224
11.3;Setting Page Attributes for Prototyping;225
11.3.1;To Select the Entire Worksheet:;225
11.3.2;To Ensure That Cell Contents Will Be Read as Text Only and to Prevent Accidental Reformatting:;225
11.3.3;To Select a Default Color as a Background Color:;225
11.3.4;To Select a Default Font Style:;225
11.3.5;To Specify a Background Texture:;225
11.3.6;To Apply a Special Background:;226
11.3.7;Another Way to Use a Background:;226
11.3.8;To Change the Table Cell Orientation for Prototyping Rather than Making Spreadsheets:;228
11.4;Formatting Table Cells;228
11.4.1;To Specify How a Cell or Group of Cells Appears:;228
11.5;Using the Drawing Menu;229
11.5.1;To Insert Shapes:;229
11.5.2;To Fill Shapes with Text:;230
11.5.3;To Fill a Shape with a Pattern:;230
11.5.4;To Group Shapes:;230
11.5.5;To Order Shapes:;230
11.6;Managing Worksheet Tabs;231
11.7;Hyperlinking;231
11.8;Saving a Workbook as HTML;231
11.9;Insert and Delete Cells Shortcuts;232
11.10;Drag-and-Drop Shortcuts;235
11.10.1;To Align Elements on a Page:;236
11.11;Drag-Fill Shortcuts;238
11.11.1;To Apply Drag-Fill:;238
11.11.2;Drag-Fill Patterns:;240
11.12;Copy and Paste: Building Prototype Screens Quickly;241
11.13;Working with Graphics in Excel;242
11.13.1;Selecting Object Mode:;242
11.13.2;Draw Menu;243
11.13.3;Formatting Toolbar;243
12;Appendix B: Nevin Discovers Excel as a Rapid Prototyping Tool;245
12.1;First Exposure;246
12.2;My First Attempts with Excel;247
12.3;A Test Case;247
13;Appendix C: Glossary;249
13.1;References;252
14;Index;254