Online Form Design 101 for Business Analysts

In the process of eliciting, communicating and validating requirements, business analysts often get involved in mocking up and designing forms for software applications. Generally they do this intuitively with little education or experience in what makes good form design.


This ½ day course is targeted at business analysts who are newly involved in form design or who already do form design but need guidance on good practices. The course will provide the core approaches and principles for preparing well designed forms for web-based and rich client software applications. A hands-on form design exercise is used to reinforce the concepts learned.


The course is delivered by Equinox Senior Consultant Bob Mortimer, who is a specialist in software interaction design and user interface design. Bob undertakes form design activities on a daily basis on Equinox software development projects.

Duration

1/2 Day


Course Objectives

Following the completion of this course, students will be able to:

  • Understand the graphic design principles behind good form layout
  • Understand how to use layout grids and spacing rules to best effect
  • Be able to rationalize design choices using research based best practice
  • Have a clear understanding of why online typography is different from print.

Audience

  • Business Analysts
  • System Analysts
  • Business-facing Developers

Course Syllabus

Introduction


Why Good Design Matters

  • How Web2 has lifted the bar for online screen design
  • The improvement in our development tools
  • Positive Affect and how it influences successful form design

What’s Involved in Good Online Form Design

  • Interaction models
          • Organizer/Workspace
          • Hub and Spoke
          • Parallel Workspaces and Modes
          • Wizards and Tunnels
          • Multiple Document Interfaces
  • Controls and widgets
  • Online type
          • Screen resolutions compared to print
          • Fonts optimised for online use
  • Layout grids
          • Control spacing and grouping
          • How grids standardize the user interface
  • Interaction behavior
          • Error handling
  • Prototyping
          • Paper prototypes
          • White boards
          • Hi fidelity electronic prototypes
          • Low fidelity electronic prototypes

How to Design an Online Form – Step by Step

  • Defining the Interaction Framework
  • Decide on screen real-estate
  • Identify controls needed from a data model
  • Roughly sketch, grouping controls appropriately
  • Refine using an A3 grid
Course NameDurationPriceDatesCourse Status
Online Form Design for Business Analysts1/2 Day$400Wellington 30/07/2012Scheduled

All course prices listed by Equinox are in New Zealand dollars and exclude GST.