INITIAL
Interview
Myself
“In detail are you able to explain to me your average days routine?”
User X
“Well I usually start my mornings at around 6:30am. Most mornings I will skip breakfast simply due to not having enough time, I’ve either got work or University. From there I will get ready by putting on my makeup and getting dressed and heading to whatever activity lies ahead of me for the day wether that be work, Uni or one of my very rare days off. I will usually have work from 7:00am until 10:00am. When I finish work I will usually buy some ingredients to make some lunch for myself. I then drive home and have an early lunch at around 10:30am. From there I have to relentlessly produce artworks for my Bachelor of Fine Arts. My art usually takes me right through until dinner time at around 5:30pm. After that I’ll eat my dinner and depending on how much time sensitive work I have to do I’ll either keep working after dinner or I Will take the rest of the evening to wind down and watch some television up until I fall asleep.”
Myself
“Okay great! So would you say you’re overly passionate about the art you create?”
User X
“I love art. I really only found my love for it few years ago and I’ve progressively gotten to the point where I would like to become qualified in it but ever since I’ve begun doing art for University I have found myself less passionate about it. Having someone tell you what you need to create takes away some of my love for it.”
Myself
“So you feel as though University is putting a hindrance on your love of art?”
User X
“Well yeah, I love being able to create art on my own time with less parameters. The only time I like having less creative freedom is if I am creating the art as a commission for a client, friend or family member, because at least then I am able to see their face and how excited they are when I am able to provide them with something they love visually. I just really struggle with the time management of it all. being forced to make five artworks in the space of two days makes it more of a grueling task instead of something I am passionate about.“
Myself
“Do you think If you better managed your time and set more viable goals for each day you might find yourself worrying less about what needs to be done and when?”
User X
“That would probably help. I am a very visual person and quite often I find myself procrastinating from the tasks that I really need to complete. I have never made the effort to set a physical reminder that something needs to be done, I always just trust myself to convince me of the work that needs to get done. I may need to find a more visual way of presenting my tasks because if I can see them visually laid out in front of me it will feel more pressing if I fail to complete something that I have visually set out to achieve by a certain date.”
INITIAL
Interview
PERSONA
Development
For my persona development it was fairly easy for me since in the first few weeks of the course the week 4 workshop where we had to develop a persona, I had already based it off of my user that I wanted to use for my final project.
TOPIC
For my persona development it was fairly easy for me since in the first few weeks of the course the week 4 workshop where we had to develop a persona, I had already based it off of my user that I wanted to use for my final project.
INITIAL PROBLEMS
Solutions
- My first concept for a solution to User X’s time management issues looks at developing an app that gives industry experts a platform to discuss their work habits and successful strategies in a post like manner for those seeking advice to find. It could present up and coming professionals in all fields with a new perspective from someone who has already been in the position of finding work management strategies and more
- The second concept is using a calendar like system that allows individuals to set prompts for themselves so they can delegate a timeframe that their tasks need to be finished within. The timeline of tasks would also deliver notifications to the Users phone along with who or which institute the task is for along with any other parameters or prerequisites required for the specific tasks.
- My third and final concept was centred more around an app that allows you to channel any procrastinating habits towards something that might be found to be more useful later. The app would allow you to write down the current task at hand, a short statement about what it is you are aiming to achieve and an alarm setting that gives you countdown prompts throughout your study session so you feel like you are being monitored more closely about how much progress you have achieved in a study session.
REFLECTION
And Insights
The initial conversations and persona development I had surrounding User X’s issues and current studying methods at University uncovered a few underlying issues. They talked about how the university doesn’t support a plethora of creative freedom which is creating tension between our user and their passion for Art. Specifically the main issues causing the loss of interest revolve around the lack of constructive feedback from tutors and lecturers and our users ability to manage their time effectively with a plethora of tasks on the go at once. It is a lot harder to generate a solution for the way the education system is run than it is to generate a solution to better utilise our users study time. If I were to develop a rough problem statement that defined our findings and possible direction for this task so far I would say “User X needs a way to enhance their time management skills when it comes to creating artworks but they are more of visual learner and respond more to visual needs.” This leaves an open ended issue but some solid parameters for me to try and find a valid solution with a bit of feedback from User X throughout the development.
SOLUTION IDEAS
Feedback
Myself
“So these are the three main concepts I have developed to solve the problem statement we discussed.”
User X
“I personally like the second and third ideas. I feel like there is still another iteration of this outcome that could be a bit of a mixture between both?”
Myself
“Okay so maybe like a list like structure that operates as a tracking system for all of your tasks you aim to achieve for the week. It facilitates a users need to visualise their work load in front of them. It could have the name of each task along with its specified due date along with who or what it is for and an extra section that allows you to write down a more detailed description of what you would like to achieve for your session so you can keep referring back to it if you find your mind is struggling to navigate the task.”
User X
“Yeah that sounds great but maybe for each task you could add the timer or alarm feature that designates how far into your study or art session you are so you can have a sense of urgency as you work.”
Myself
“Yeah I really like that. I would probably have it built in as time intervals with a 5 minutes left reminder so that the user is able to assess if they will be able to achieve their goal in time.”
STORY VIDEO LINK:
(Brand Name Changed
Since Progress Update)
https://youtu.be/8Cyh8YycP-w
BRAND
Name
EXPLANATION
Originally in my progress update I named my project “the creative resolve”. This initial title of the brand felt too generic and not memorable enough. My new name is short and concise. “Turp n Time” is a name that makes reference to exactly what it is that my project does. The phrase turp n time is a little play on words derived from the word Turpentine which is a solvent used to clean paint brushes and more. The time part of the name is in reference to the time management aspects of the application.
BRAND IDENTITY
INITIAL PROCESS
Images and Details
The initial planning phases of my design were done through verbal communication with my client. After speaking with them about the types of colours and style they were interested in using I began creating all of the assets I would need for my app. I used a plugin called “Icons 4 Design” by a company called “Em Software” to introduce a lot of my small symbols and buttons for throughout the app and if I could’nt find the symbol I needed I would make it using the pen and shape tools. All of the other colours and shapes were crafted through Adobe Illustrator and imported into adobe XD. All of the images used throughout the app are actual artworks and commissions completed by my “User X” client.
CLIENT FEEDBACK
And Refining
Once I had completed my first prototype, I had it tested by my user. They liked the basic premise of the app and should it be fully developed and published the app would provide a great deal of use for my client. On the other hand, a few of the issues they had with my prototype were that some of the ways that the pages flowed didnt always feel accessible enough. To troubleshoot this I introduced a “Back Arrow” button onto each page to help navigate the pages more fluently without having to open the page tab in the top left everytime. Another issue that will not be able to be solved throughout the duration of this course is my timer feature on the task management page. Given that this is my first time using this application my knowledge of the tools neccessary to accomplish something of this magnintude is unfortunately limited. Provided more time perhaps I would be able to muster a solution for this feature and perhaps even add some more depth and working links in the settings menu of the application.
LINK TO
Prototype
https://xd.adobe.com/view/ea041ce2-57e5-4f32-8dfc-7362d7428225-bf57/?fullscreen&hints=off
