UX Terms

Question 1

Affinity Diagramming

Answer 1

A business tool used to organize a large number of ideas, sorting them into groups based on their natural relationships, for review and analysis.

Question 2

Agile Software Development Methodology

Answer 2

A methodology fundamentally incorporating iteration and continuous feedback to refine and deliver a software system. It involves continuous planning, testing, integration, and other forms of continuous evolution of both the project and the software.

Question 3

Analysis Stage

Answer 3

The stage of the UX process where insights are drawn from data collecting during the earlier Research stage. Capturing, organising and making inferences from the “what” can help UX designers begin to understand the “why”.

Question 4

Analytics

Answer 4

A broad term that encompasses a variety of tools,

Question 5

Axure

Answer 5

A wireframing and interactive prototyping tool, available for both Windows and Mac.

Question 6

Balsamiq Mockups

Answer 6

A wireframing and interactive prototyping tool, available for both Windows and Mac.

Question 6

Beta Launch

Answer 6

The limited launch of a software product with the goal of finding bugs before final launch.

Question 6

Branding

Answer 6

The process of creating and marketing a consistent idea or image of a product, so that it is recognisable by the public.

Question 7

Card Sorting

Answer 7

A technique using either actual cards or software, whereby users generate an information hierarchy that can then form the basis of an information architecture or navigation menu.

Question 8

CMS

Answer 8

Content Management System: Software that allows publishing, editing and maintaining content from a central interface.

Question 9

Collaborative Design

Answer 9

Inviting input from users, stakeholders and other project members.

Question 10

Competitor Analysis

Answer 10

Performing an audit or conducting user testing of competing websites and apps; writing a report that summarises the competitive landscape.

Question 11

Comparative Analysis

Answer 11

Performing an item by item comparison of two or more websites or apps to determine trends or patterns.

Question 12

Content Management

Answer 12

The suite of processes and technologies that support the collection, management, and publication of information in any medium.

Question 13

Contextual Enquiry

Answer 13

Interviewing users in the location that they use the website or app, in order to understand their tasks and challenges.

Question 14

Content Audit

Answer 14

Reviewing and cataloguing a client’s existing repository of content.

Question 15

Design Stage

Answer 15

The stage in a user-centred design process where ideas for potential solutions are captured and refined visually, based on the analysis and research performed in earlier stages.

Question 16

Diary Study

Answer 16

Asking users to record their experiences and thoughts about a product or task in a journal over a set period of time.

Question 17

Ergonomics

Answer 17

Also called human factor. The scientific discipline of studying interactions between humans and external systems, including human-computer interaction. When applied to design, the study of human factors seeks to optimise both human well-being and system performance

Question 19

Experience Map

Answer 19

An experience map is an holistic, visual representation of your users’ interactions with your organisation when zoomed right out (usually captured on a large canvas).

Question 20

Heuristic Review

Answer 20

Evaluating a website or app and documenting usability flaws and other areas for improvement.

Question 21

HCI

Answer 21

Human Computer Interaction involves the study, planning, and design of the interaction between people (users) and computers.

Question 22

High-Fidelity Prototype

Answer 22

A prototype which is quite close to the final product, with lots of detail and a good indication of the final proposed aesthetics and functionality.

Question 23

Industrial Design

Answer 23

The application art and science to a product, in order to improve its aesthetics, ergonomics, functionality, and usability.

Question 24

Information Architecture (IA)

Answer 24

The art and science of organising and labeling websites, intranets, online communities and software to support usability.

Question 25

Interaction Design (IxD)

Answer 25

Sometimes referred to as IxD, interaction design strives to create meaningful relationships between people and the products and services that they use.

Question 26

Interaction Model

Answer 26

A design model that binds an application together in a way that supports the conceptual models of its target users. It defines how all of the objects and actions that are part of an application interrelate, in ways that mirror and support real-life user interactions.

Question 27

Iterate

Answer 27

The act of repeating a process with the aim of approaching a desired goal, target or result. Each repetition of the process is also called an iteration.

Question 28

Iterative Design

Answer 28

A methodology based on a cyclic process of prototyping, testing, analysing, and refining a product or process. Based on the results of testing the most recent iteration of a design, changes are made. This process is intended to ultimately improve the quality and functionality of a design.

Question 29

Lean UX

Answer 29

Inspired by Lean and Agile development theories, Lean UX speeds up the UX process by putting less emphasis on deliverables and greater focus on the actual experience being designed.

Question 30

Low-Fidelity Prototype

Answer 30

A quick and easy translation of high-level design concepts into tangible and testable artefacts, giving an indication of the direction that the product is heading.

Question 31

Mood Board

Answer 31

A collage, either physical or digital, which is intended to communicate the visual style a direction is heading.

Question 32

Needfinding

Answer 32

Needfinding is the art of talking to people and discovering their needs—both those they might explicitly state, and those hidden beneath the surface. It is only in truly understanding people that we can gain meaningful insights to inspire and inform a final, impactful design.

Question 33

Paper Prototype

Answer 33

A rough, often hand-sketched, drawing of a user interface, used in a usability test to gather feedback. Participants point to locations on the page that they would click, and screens are manually presented to the user based on the interactions they indicate.

Question 34

Human Factor

Answer 34

Also called ergonomics. The scientific discipline of studying interactions between humans and external systems, including human-computer interaction. When applied to design, the study of human factors seeks to optimise both human well-being and system performance.

Question 35

Persona

Answer 35

A fictitious identity that reflects one of the user groups for who you are designing.

Question 37

Prototype

Answer 37

A rough guide for the layout of a website or app, giving an indication of the direction that the product is heading.

Question 38

Production stage

Answer 38

The stage at which the high-fidelity design is fleshed out, content and digital assets are created, and a high-fidelity version of the product is validated with stakeholders and end-users through user testing sessions. The role of the UX Designer shifts from creating and validating ideas to collaborating with developers to guide and champion the vision.

Question 39

Project Kick-Off

Answer 39

The formally recognised start of a project.

Question 40

Progressive Disclosure

Answer 40

An interactive design technique that helps maintain the focus of a user’s attention by reducing clutter, confusion, and cognitive workload. It improves usability by presenting only the minimum data required for the task at hand. The principle is also used in journalism’s ‘inverted pyramid’ style, learning’s ‘spiral approach’, and the game ‘twenty questions’.