The real world experiences of children using the iPad has not stopped the Nielsen Norman Group from releasing a preliminary 93-page report detailing the usability problems of the iPad. (Thanks to Mark Pilgrim for the Link). Citing problems in learning gestures, hidden controls, small buttons, and many other usability errors in 34 popular apps and sites. The researchers admit that the report is not up to their usual standards, since the iPad has not been available long enough to know how people are going to use it.

This report is less thorough than our normal research reports and does not contain as many detailed and actionable design guidelines as we usually provide. We decided to publish the report anyway (as a donation to the community), because all experience from the last 30 years of usability shows that early usability findings have disproportionately large impact on design projects.

Also interesting to note is that the research was carried out using seven people, one-on-one, for 90 minutes each.

One of the most interesting aspects of the report is the inclusion of websites into the study. Nielsen Norman Group summarizes its findings:

For a truly optimal experience that takes into account both the constraints and strengths of the device, an iPad-specific website may be the solution.

After reading through the report, I find it “must read” material for anyone developing iPad applications or marketing their website to iPad users. The usability testing is not a study of the usability of the iPad itself, but the usability of the apps that were tested, which can vary from one app to the next, and change as each app is updated. Very little attention was paid to system wide software like the keyboard, or how the device is handled physically other than saying that it was “heavy.”

Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines define certain aspects of how an app should look and feel on the iPad, but given the disparity of user interfaces between apps, it’s obvious that developers need studies like the Nielsen Norman Group’s. Time will tell what the best interfaces are for the platform, and what UI mistakes developers are making now. What we should not do is hold this report as a study of the usability of the iPad itself, which my young son will happily tell you is just fine.

The reason? Usability testing requires you setup a lab of computers (or at least one) with specialized software that records the users actions and clicks on the computer, and potentially their expressions and eye movement through the use of a camera. Usability software can be very expensive and complex.

Until now.

Clearleft just released Silverback, a simple usability testing software that’s only $49.95. And it comes with a full-featured 30-day trial.

Silverback sits in the background, capturing the user’s screen activity in the form of a Quicktime video, and also records audio and video from your Mac’s iSight camera (or any webcam). The finished test can be customized and output as full-resolution Quicktime movie or saved down to a smaller file size suitable for email or web use.

How it works

So how does Silverback work? The software is so simple, you don’t even need instructions. Just open the program and you’ll be prompted to create a project (such as “The Apple Blog Usability Test”).

Then add users to the project. You have the option to add notes, or you can wait until after the session. You can maneuver them to the perfect position with a video preview and then click “Start Session.” Everything in the window (except the Silverback app windows) will be recorded. Users can resize windows, change applications, and interact with the operating system. Everything is captured.

Users clicks are recorded and accentuated in the final video with little “dots” that show you visually where they clicked (even if it wasn’t on an actual link), which is very useful information. When recording the test, there are no visual queues. Silverback sits in the background completely silent.

You can pause the session or add chapter markers using your Apple Remote. To add a chapter marker, press the “+” on the remote. To pause/un-pause, press the “Play/Pause” button.

When finished you can stop by clicking the menubar icon, or by selecting the application and clicking “stop.” You can add notes, start another session or export your data to Quicktime. To export, you’re given just a few options and can save your video out at 100%, 75%, 50% or 25% of it’s original size, and at Best, High, Medium and Low quality settings.

Silverback is a really elegant application and was very easy to use. It really reminds me what great Mac software should be like. If you’re a web designer or develop desktop software for Macs, check out Silverback and start usability testing!

Screenshot Gallery

Here’s a short video from the Silverback website:

Silverback screencast from Jeremy Keith on Vimeo.

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