Two Hours Before . . .

Monday morning, 7 a.m. The team members meet at the hotel breakfast bar. Everybody is on edge about the upcoming test. By 9 a.m. we will be sitting at the test site on the premises of a market research agency. They have a large room for focus group discussions and interviews, a smaller room with audiovisual equipment for observers, and a wide one-way mirror between the two.

The first test user will arrive in 2 hours, and we have a long list of items to check. We need to clarify responsibilities and timetable once more, solve an unexpected technical problem, and pilot a short version of the test in order to confirm the last-minute corrections and overall test setup. When the first test user enters at 11 a.m., everything will be ready-barely.

During several rounds of usability tests we have noticed very similar patterns in the way things happen. On one hand we know that the schedule, originally planned to be unpressured, ends up being tight. Unexpected (typically technical) problems appear from nowhere; subjects become ill and cannot come. On the other hand, we observe that because usability testing is essentially dealing with people, and because people are very flexible and intelligent, things usually work out somehow. This is one reason usability testing is so rewarding and enjoyable!