Keeping in mind the constraints about the group of users you plan to study and the kind of data you need to collect, the next challenge is selecting the right methodology.
The desire for large, unbiased, representative samples suggests using automated methods such as log file analysis. However, the need for rich, contextually sensitive session data suggests usability lab testing. Thus, there is a dilemma of quantity versus quality: log files generate a larger quantity of data, whereas usability labs generate much richer data. Furthermore, each of these methods can produce serious flaws in its area of strength when used inappropriately or inconsistently by different researchers. The solution is in the middle where the two ends of the spectrum meet.
New data collection methods can help usability researchers capture large amounts of user experience data while monitoring website. These solutions combine the best of both approaches with marginal sacrifices. The result is a more robust and standardized process to conduct consistent, reliable, actionable usability research.
Keynote WebEffective™ was developed to automate usability data collection and to strike the right balance between quantity of data collected and the quality of that data. As with other Keynote performance management solutions, WebEffective is deployed as a service using a network of servers positioned
between actual site visitors and Web site servers. for analysis. By redirecting visitors to your Web site through Keynote servers, WebEffective can maintain its position unobtrusively monitoring
and recording user interaction. WebEffective is able to see and capture all HTML content downloaded to the users’ computer as well as all the upstream data requests sent to the Web server. WebEffective then reconstructs the data streams into actual visitor sessions
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1. Monitoring User Experience of the Cloud
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