Establishing a link between usability and utility: validation of task-based dialogue using a semantic prototype

Abstract

Usability is not sufficient condition to procure utility. The tasks performed by the system user, as a member of the organisation, must contribute to reach the business goals, establishing the basis for the system utility; and besides, the system usability depends, among other context variables, on the features of the user’s tasks supported by the system. The use of ‘semantic prototypes’ can enable the identification of the work domain to be supported by the system and can also aid the determination of opportunities for change in this work domain and, consequently, in the business process in which it is immersed. After their validation, this prototypes could also aid the definition of specific usability goals that can be attained through the subsequent correct designs of user interface syntax and articulation.As a result of our experience we claim that the use of ‘semantic prototypes’ for the design and evaluation of the user interface dialogue at the semantic level provides means to assess the utility of an interactive system in advance as well as to establish the starting point for usability.KeywordsBusiness ProcessTask ModelWork DomainBusiness GoalSemantic DomainThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.