11 designing form and reports

8/12/2019 11 Designing Form and Reports

1/35

Designing Forms and Reports


2/35

11-2

Learning Objectives

Explain the process of form and reportdesign.Apply general guidelines for formattingforms and reports.Use color and know when color improvesthe usability of information.

Format text, tables, and lists effectively.Explain how to assess usability and describefactors affecting usability.


3/35

11-3


4/35

11-4

Forms vs. Reports

FormA business document that contains some predefineddata and may include some areas where additionaldata are to be filled in.An instance of a form is typically based on onedatabase record.

ReportA business document that contains only predefineddata.A passive document for reading or viewing data.Typically contains data from many database records ortransactions.


5/35

11-5

Common Types of Reports

Scheduled: produced at predefined timeintervals for routine information needs Key-indicator: provide summary of critical

information on regular basis Exception: highlights data outside of normaloperating ranges Drill-down: provide details behind summary ofkey-indicator or exception reports Ad-hoc: respond to unplanned requests fornon-routine information needs


6/35

11-6

The Process of Designing Forms andReports

User-focused activityFollows a prototyping approachRequirements determination:

Who will use the form or report?What is the purpose of the form or report?When is the report needed or used?

Where does the form or report need to bedelivered and used?How many people need to use or view the form orreport?


7/35

11-7

The Process of Designing Formsand Reports (cont.)

PrototypingInitial prototype is designed fromrequirementsUsers review prototype design and eitheraccept the design or request changesIf changes are requested, the construction-

evaluation-refinement cycle is repeateduntil the design is accepted


8/35

11-8

A coding sheet is an old tool for designing forms and reports,usually associated with text-based forms and reports formainframe applications.


9/35

11-9

Visual Basic and other development tools providecomputer aided GUI form and report generation.


10/35

11-10

Form/Report Design Specification

The major deliverable of interface designInvolves three parts:

Narrative overview: characterizes users, tasks,system, and environmental factorsSample design: image of the form (from codingsheet or form building development tool)Assessment: measuring test/usability results(consistency, sufficiency, accuracy, etc.)


11/35

11-11

Guidelines for Form and ReportDesign

Meaningful titles: clear, specific, versioninformation, current dateMeaningful information include only

necessary information, with no need tomodifyBalanced layout: adequate spacing, margins,and clear labelsEasy navigation system: show how to moveforward and backward, and where you arecurrently


12/35

11-12 A poor form design


13/35

11-13 A better form design


14/35

11-14

Uses of Highlighting in Formsand Reports

Notify users of errors in data entry orprocessing.

Provide warnings regarding possibleproblems.Draw attention to keywords,

commands, high-priority messages,unusual data values.


15/35

11-15

Methods for Highlighting

BlinkingAudible tonesIntensitydifferencesSize differencesFont differences

Reverse videoBoxingUnderliningAll capital lettersOffset positionsof nonstandardinformation


16/35

11-16

Highlighting can include use of upper case, font size differences, bold,italics, underline, boxing, and other approaches.


17/35


18/35

11-18

Guidelines for Displaying TextCase: mixed upper and lower case, useconventional punctuationSpacing: double spacing if possible, otherwise

blank lines between paragraphs Justification: left justify text, ragged rightmarginsHyphenation: no hyphenated words betweenlinesAbbreviations: only when widely understoodand significantly shorter than full text


19/35

11-19 A poor help screen design


20/35

11-20 A better help screen design


21/35

11-21

Guidelines for Tables and Lists

LabelsAll columns and rows should have

meaningful labels.Labels should be separated from otherinformation by using highlighting.Redisplay labels when the data extendbeyond a single screen or page.


22/35

11-22

Guidelines for Tables and Lists (cont.)

Formatting columns, rows and text:Sort in a meaningful order.Place a blank line between every five rows in longcolumns.Similar information displayed in multiple columns shouldbe sorted vertically.Columns should have at least two spaces between them.Allow white space on printed reports for user to write

notes.Use a single typeface, except for emphasis.Use same family of typefaces within and across displaysand reports.

Avoid overly fancy fonts.


23/35

11-23

Guidelines for Tables and Lists (cont.)

Formatting numeric, textual andalphanumeric data:

Right justify numeric data and align

columns by decimal points or otherdelimiter.Left justify textual data. Use short linelength, usually 30 to 40 characters per line.Break long sequences of alphanumeric datainto small groups of three to fourcharacters each.


24/35

11-24 A poor table design


25/35

11-25 A better table design


26/35

11-26

Tables vs. Graphs

Use tables for reading individual data valuesUse graphs for:

Providing quick summary

Displaying trends over timeComparing points and patterns of variablesForecasting activitySimple reporting of vast quantities of information


27/35

11-27


28/35

11-28

Bar and linegraphs give

pictorial summaryinformation thatcan enhancereports and forms.


29/35

11-29

Assessing Usability

Overall evaluation of how a systemperforms in supporting a particular

user for a particular taskThere are three characteristics

1. Speed

2. Accuracy3. Satisfaction


30/35

11-30

Guidelines for Maximizing Usability

Consistency: of terminology, formatting,titles, navigation, response time

Efficiency: minimize required user actionsEase: self-explanatory outputs and labelsFormat: appropriate display of data andsymbolsFlexibility: maximize user options for datainput according to preference


31/35

11-31

Characteristics for Consideration

User: experience, skills, motivation,education, personality

Task: time pressure, cost of errors, workdurationsSystem: platform

Environment: social and physical issues


32/35


33/35


34/35

11-34

Good Web Design Practices

Lightweight Graphics: small images toquick image downloadForms and Data IntegrityTemplate-based HTML

Templates to display and process commonattributes of higher-level, more abstract

itemsCreates an interface that is very easy tomaintain


35/35

11-35

Summary

In this chapter you learned how to:Explain the process of form and report design.Apply general guidelines for formatting forms

and reports.Use color and know when color improves theusability of information.Format text, tables, and lists effectively.Explain how to assess usability and describefactors affecting usability.

11 designing form and reports

Documents