University of Twente Student Theses
How to explain Modsy: Development of an engaging and easy to understand introductory tutorial
Berkenbos, R.J. (2021) How to explain Modsy: Development of an engaging and easy to understand introductory tutorial.
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| Abstract: | Understanding how to use a product is important, not only for a user but also for a company. Research shows that 40 to 90 per cent of new products fail because a consumer does not understand the product features of benefits [1]. So to increase the chances of succeeding for Weirdly Wired, an engaging introductory tutorial had to be created for Modsy. Modsy is a music controller that consists of a hardware controller and a software plugin. This product, in development by Weirdly Wired, is made for digital producers and performers. It makes their process of music-making more fun, creative and expressive. It focuses on making software instruments feel like using physical, analogue instruments. Weirdly Wired calls this feeling of having physical knobs and everything that it triggers, the “analogue feel”. Background research uncovered concepts for making an easy to understand and engaging tutorial. These concepts were found through literature and a closer look at the state of the art. With this knowledge in place, an ideation process was started. With brainstorming and other relevant techniques, the possibilities for this introductory tutorial were explored. This led to the idea of an experience that starts when unpacking the controller. The user is guided through setting up Modsy and installing the software with paper overlays that are on the controller when unpacking. These overlays have cut-outs so the knobs can stick through the paper. The overlays can be taken off after setting up, after which the Modsy software will be introduced through an interactive digital tutorial. The tutorial explains the functionalities of the controller while trying to make it feel like making music. This concept was specified and realised in a prototype. The prototype is then evaluated on usability and engagement. Although self-report scales showed a high score for usability and engagement, the interviews with test participants showed that the concept has too many flaws. The main argument is that it is an overly guided approach, while users want to be able to instantly play with Modsy, as they experienced it to be relatively intuitive by itself. Therefore an improved concept is proposed, which gives users the freedom to explore by themselves. The paper overlays are replaced by a manual for getting started with the hardware and for installing the software. The long digital tutorial is cut up into sections and via a menu, users can choose which functionalities they want to know more about. With tooltips, a user gets an explanation when hovering over a button. It also shows a relevant tutorial that the user could start. A long-term test is recommended to find out whether this improved concept will produce the desired results. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Bachelor) |
| Faculty: | EEMCS: Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science |
| Programme: | Creative Technology BSc (50447) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/88441 |
| Export this item as: | BibTeX EndNote HTML Citation Reference Manager |
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