Letter B

Testing In the LITE Lab

I first became familiar with the Missouri Science and Technology LITE Lab while I was in the process of getting my Masters in Human Computer Interaction at the Missouri University of Science and Technology. I learned that the mission of the Laboratory for Information Technology Evaluation (LITE) is to evaluate and explore the impact of information technologies on people, society, organizations, and culture through the utilization of diverse research tools and methodologies.

It gives me great pleasure that Letter B LLC is currently working with Missouri Science & Technology to research usability of distance learning courseware. The objective of this project is to perform usability testing on the interfaces of Army DL. Each training program we are using is currently being used by the US military to teach soldiers interactively how to perform certain tasks, such as fixing an engine, operating heavy machinery, identification of chemical agents, security training, etc.

We will perform usability testing using various tools available in the LITE Lab such as eye tracking and physiological measuring instruments to identify user areas of interest as well as to areas of distraction. We are also looking to compare the training results of interactive vs. non-interactive media and to provide suggestions for improvement. Each training program consists of a number of sessions, hence a subset of the material will be used for evaluation purposes.

We look forward to working with Dr. Richard Hall and an excellent group of MS&T students on this very interesting and important project.

The training programs are a combination of text, video, and audio designed to fulfill training needs along with tests and quizzes that will measure the effectiveness of the programs. Specifically, we want to measure the effectiveness of the way in which the training information is presented to the users. For example, the use of too much multimedia or too many graphics incorporated in the design of the training program may tend to distract the users attention, thereby making it less effective than it can be.  

Letter B founder Trevor Bollers was featured in this weeks Corridor Business Journal.  The article by Gigi Wood of the Corridor Business Journal goes into Mr. Bollers’ background as a Hawkeye football player and onto a career in the IT field.  The article also talks about the philosophies behind what Letter B does. It can be found at http://www.corridorbiznews.com/aspx/newsdetail.aspx?ItemId=1824&flag=W99.

There are times when you know something big is in the middle of happening and that is how we feel at Letter B.  This is the beginning, and we believe that we can make a difference and touch the lives of many, by providing usable technology solutions to common and uncommon problems. 

Our team is made up of expert level people that excell at what they do.  We don’t worry about if a usable feature should be held for later charges.  Letter B is about you and your users and that means our first priority is putting out a very usable product. 

Letter B was established 11/2008 with 2 guys a girl and a dinner table.

Ronald McDonald House Iowa City

Ronald McDonald house of Eastern Iowa had a problem that was holding them back.  The MS Access based system that they used to track guests was in need of an upgrade.  Enter the experts at Letter B, who were well equiped to tackle the problem.  Letter B partnered with RMH to produce the AccommoDate software package.  Accommodate is uniquely developed to handle the type of registration and guest management processes that a non profit entity like RMH would need for their day to day workflow.

The AccommoDate software package is designed around the needs of users and how they work.  A detailed requirements capture process was followed, producing the use cases and detailed design that would become a top of the line solution for a unique business.  The AccommoDate software removed multiple work duplication areas, streamlined reporting, and allows multiple users to access the system concurrently.  The goal for the system is to provide a solution that would help the other Ronald McDonald houses around the world become more efficient as well.

Usable Application Design

• Frustration Removal
• Decrease the amount of thinking users need to do
• Pleasing Styling
• Icons and menu names that make sense

Usability Consulting

• User centered interface design
• Rapid Prototyping
• Graphic/icon design
• Style Guide Development

Usability Evaluation

• Usability Testing
• Expert Evaluation
• Focus Groups
• Requirements Analysis
• Remote Usability Testing

Accessibility Compliance

• Web Accessibility
• Compliance Testing
• Guidelines/Best Practices
• Accessibility Training