SlideShare's User Experience - Four Processes That Make It Work or Not

SlideShare’s User Experience
Four processes that make it work or not…
Usability & Design Final Project
1 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

What is SlideShare?
 SlideShare is a user generated document-sharing platform

catering the business and education spheres.
 It accepts uploads of various formats (Word, PDF, PPT etc.)
and as well adding audio files to the presentations (Slidecasts).
 A reputable information source on different opinions on topics
that enables research.

Evaluation Approach & Methodology
Heuristic evaluation of the website performing the following the tasks:
Using search to find topics of
Signing up process Uploading a document Creating a slide cast
interest
In conducting the evaluation the following topics discussed in class will be taken under
consideration:
Ease of Use and Conducting 1-3 One- Technology & Site & Information
Shared Reference
Elegance & Clarity on-one interviews Techniques Architecture
Making recommendations based on findings
Comment Coloring
Red – Definitely needs a fix Orange – An extra step is needed Blue – delivering good UX

Key Findings
 Navigation modules are all over the place.
 Categorization is limited.
 Language option are implemented in a very confusing way.
 Important instructions and notes are not easily noticeable.
 Options for uploading contact and audio formats are very limited.
 Search algorithm offer limited options and ways to narrow the results
based on entries.
 Copy and buttons are sometimes ambiguous and do not deliver the desired
understanding right away.
 Document conversion takes way too long.
 Accessibility seems not to be priority for Slideshare.
 Residual info and consistency in repeating actions is a problem.

Nine Steps You Need to Take…
1. Streamline the position of navigational modules and make them easily
noticeable!
2. Implement languages accross the website (navigation, copy, search etc.)!
3. Broaden format support for contacts and audio imports!
4. Don’t ask the user to think!
5. Keep thing simple!
6. Don’t restrict the user to what you think is right in terms of labels,
categories etc.!
7. Remember that Notes and Instructions are there to be seen!
8. Make the document converting process faster!
9. Change coding to make the site more accessible for the impaired!
10. Design a more user-friendly 404 error page and an upload process that
does not get stuck with residual info!

SlideShare Signup Process

SlideShare’s Home Page
Easy to spot and act upon sign in or sign up features

introduced in two spots at the homepage

Sign Up – Step 1
This is great summary that belongs to the

homepage rather than in Step 1 of the
Sign Up Process.
A moment of confusion for the user:

• What do you mean by Account type?
The user’s employee, organization?
• What does “default” mean?

Sign Up – Step 2
Pretty straightforward dropdowns.

However those might be a problem for
the people with shaking hands, especially
when choosing the country
Such verifications are decreasing the

accessibility of the website. Impaired
individuals struggle or find themselves
not able to move forward with the signup
process.
In Step 1 “Join Now” is used and in Step 2

it has been replaced with “Sign Up”. These
two need to be the same.
The State is unnecessary here. This for

can be optimized by introducing it if the
user selects USA as a country of origin.

Sign Up – Step 3
Already identifies the user that has just

signed up.
The Welcome message’s font is too small.

What if the user has problems with
eyesight?
What kind of IDs? – SlideShare’s, Emails’,

Skype’s…
What if the user does not want to

disclose login details to his/her email
addresses?

Signs Up issues?
 The user needs a hassle free sign up process
 SlideShare offers that with minor issues:
 She/he is confused when choosing the account type.
 Accessibility is an issue with the dropdowns and the text

verification applet.
 Proceeding buttons are not named coherently.
 Sing Up confirmation page offers limited choice of contact

uploading and presents an obstacle for usability.
 Welcome message is too small and the activation action required

can be overlooked.

Signup Process Recommendations
 Introduce short text explaining the meaning of the different
account types.
Please state your business orientation…
 Instead of dropdowns use text boxes with intuitive filling

that the user can chose from (based on 3-4 characters input)
 Make the proceeding buttons the same!
 Offer choice to upload contacts from file (vCards, CVS etc.)
 Make Welcome message bigger!

Uploading a Document

Uploading – Multiple Files
This is the only reference to the option of

multiple file upload.
Explanation of how to select multiple files

becomes really handy here. Relying on
the user’s proficiency in computer usage
definitely not the way to go here.
Is this the total size of the documents to

be uploaded or the maximum allowed
size per document?
What if the user is on Mac? Ctrl is not

going to cut it here for them. They will
feel lost.
 The preset option for uploading is one with

multiple files. This raises the question related
first use. What if the user wants to first try. Or
wants to update his/her document
presentation? I would go for single upload,
rather than multiple one for a preset.

Uploading – Single File
An option to view best practice example
will definitely enhance the user
experience here.
There is no option to add categories. The

current ones are not extensive enough
and might raise a brow once in a while.
The option here is limited to 11 languages

with no way to insert a new one.
What about people that follow me being

able to see it? Or groups I belong to?
Is this the total size of the documents to

be uploaded or the maximum allowed
size per document?

Upload Successful - Confirmation
What does this mean? Is it the computer
it was uploaded from or the user?
Nonetheless what is the point of this
information there?
Useful feature. However the process

takes so long that people usually are
shifting attention off the website.
“Dynamic” and “Prioritization” is not

related to the presentation. These tags
are related to another document I
uploaded. Why are they here then?

Residual Issues
Uploading two single files in a row, turns
to be a problem. The second one always
gets corrupted, if a not waiting for quite
a while before performing the second
action.
 Consistency in repeating functions is very

important. Especially with users that are not
really patient. Why would they stay on the page
and try to figure out what the problem is?
There are too many considerations here and
what would stop the user to go for Scribd or
Docstoc?
Another thing is trying to refresh the

page while the file is converted. The 404
error page is very cute. However, it is a
bit confusing. Am I still on SlideShare or
not? And why do I need a search
function here, when I am trying to see if
my file is uploaded? The same goes for
the other links. More appropriate it will
be to go back to my profile and
presentation page

Uploading Document Issues
 SlideShare offers a good experience and easy to use file uploading feature.
 However, there are few fields that need improvement:
 Some of the the texts in the uploading page are ambiguous.
 No option to add categories to the already preset ones.
 There is no choice of adding languages to the ones already in preset.
 Privacy options or file display is set in a limited way.
 Converting files takes more than 20-30 minutes.
 Consistency in repeating functions is a problem. There is residual info still

present from the previous action/visit.
 404 error page is cute, but not really up helping the user.

Uploading Document Recommendations
 Reword the ambiguous text and turn it into a clear, simple and foolproof
message
 Introduce more privacy/display options
 Enlarge the category base in order to bring more choice for the user.
 Allow more languages to be selected for the documents to be uploaded.
 Streamline the converting process to deliver faster performance and

immediate availability.
 Work on eliminating the residual info stuck between repeating actions.
 Simplify the actions posted on the 404 error page and offer “back to
profile” and “back to my presentations” links.

Creating a Slidecast

Slidecast – Step 1 & 2
Pretty straightforward. However the
color and the font are the same as the
one in the name of the file. Creating a
button like feel here might help avoiding
the confusion.
The key message here should be “Please

wait…” . The note is only distracting the
user. In order not to have any conclusion,
the Note sentence shall be put below the
“Upload mp3 file” button.
This is a necessary and very helpful tool

that increases the usability. But a different
background distinguishing it and more
attracting attention will suit better.
Imagine the user does not have a mp3

recording program or does not know
where to get one for free. Do you want
your users to go and buy software so
they can use your platform?
Real-time upload progress enhances the

user satisfaction.

Slidecast – Step 3
 SlideShare offers an easy to use slide and
audio synchronizer.
 Hints are offered where needed in order

for the user to understand the
functionality.
 The tool is fast and no glitches are

observed while using it.
 Section labels are intuitive and foolproof,

with very little exceptions
 On the downside, this tool is placed in a

frame and for that reason can present a
problem for accessibility:
 Placingmarkers requires precision

and people with limited mobility
or shaky hand might have a
problem using it.
 The frame is not scaling properly

when zooming in/out the page

Slidecast – Step 3
Good ,but “Use play button to play
audio” sounds not complete as
explanation. – “Use play button to see
where exactly you want to place the
marker”.
Although a great feature, this presents a

major problem for accessibility. It can
not be read by the audio reader.
The example might confuse some users.
It can be better explained by not putting
real numbers and just saying that the
audio is divided equally according to the
number of slides.

major problem for accessibility. It can not
be read by the audio reader.
Wouldn’t the word “marker” better

explain the function of this button?

Slidecast - Step 3
To be able to preview saved work, one

shall first save. This function is working
even prior to clicking on “Save” before.
This is misleading and renders the
“Save” button obsolete in the mind of
the user. But what happens if a change is
introduced and the user clicks on
“Preview saved work” without saving it
first and this happens before the next
cycled automatic saving?

major problem for accessibility. It can not
be read by the audio reader.
The second paragraph maybe
overlooked. Putting the text in bold will
render it more visible.

Ready to be Used Slidecast
“Full“ what? A pictogram and half a

phrase does not cutting for everyone.
There is place to add “screen” here. So
why don’t we do it?
Sit back, relax and enjoy the ride… or people watching your slidecast!

Creating a Slidecast Issues
 It is difficult at some places to distinguish view buttons from editing
options.
 Important copy is put in a place that might be overlooked by the

user or missed.
 Some labels are ambiguous and not descriptive enough to deliver

shared reference.
 Audio uploading works only with mp3 files. No WAV, ACC etc.
 My hands are shaky… What is the point of this great looking tool, if
I can not place the markers easily?
 Scaling up/down the site renders the tool frame difficult to use.

Creating a Slidecast Recommendations
 Position important notes or instruction in a different font and positioning,
so they can be noticed and paid attention to.
 Change the action links to buttons, so there will be better distinguished.
 Work on the sites accessibility, so the impaired individuals can also enjoy
this platform and contribute.
 Introduce a broader audio format acceptance.
 Work on the zoom in/out capabilities of the tool frame. It shall stay the
same but in a smaller or bigger size. Not completely changing as it is now.

Browsing & Searching for Documents

Speaking Tongues … or Not, Actually.
The user has opportunity the chance to
choose from 11 languages …
But SlideShare’s Chinese looks exactly like

English….
Hold on! SlideShare’s French also looks

exactly like English….

Actually it is Search in Tongues …
So one chooses French on the homepage
and his/her search preset is put in the
language of Voltaire… Kind of difficult to
figure out, right?
The funny thing is that one gets Results

with an English word in French search
Sponsored Search results are in English,

though! So am I searching in French or in
English?

Searching for a Presentation – single word
The result status is difficult to notice due
to its grey font on a grey background and
nonetheless the position on the far right
of the field.
Level 2 Sorting:
1. By Presentation – Relevance, Latest
and Views
2. By Users – Relevance, Date Joined,
Uploads
3. By Groups/Events – Relevance,
Uploads, Members
The sorting function should be the
same across Level 1 and a probably a
new sorting feature as “Downloads”
can be introduced. To make it even
more user friendly.
Level 1 Sorting:
There are three different sorting tabs
for results – by Presentations, Users and
Groups/Events. Which works both for
search and discovery.

Advanced Search
SlideShare seems to work properly only
with single word searches.
Presetting extensive search results

narrowing options, suiting different tastes.
It is not clear if this is a clickable link. It

will be much clearer, it introduced as a
button.

Navigation
Simple and clear top navigational bar.
Very useful feature for discovery,

however, some of the labeling is
ambiguous and not immediately
understandable.
Since the categories are set number that

can not be changed currently, it will
probably make sense to list them all here.
Very well structured navigation field.

However, its position at the bottom of
every page might render it difficult to
find. Especially when the page is too long

Browsing & Searching Issues
 The user’s better be able to read English, otherwise SlideShare is a
no go.
 If the user sees that there is language choice, they have to be able to
use it and see immediate change.
 Advanced search option is very good and extensive.
 Multiple words search is not working, especially when there is an

exact phrase one performed.
 Slideshare’s navigation is clean and simple, but all over the place.

Browsing & Searching Recommendations
 I you can speak languages than you’d better deliver
 Either remove the language choice form the top left corner and
name it appropriately in the search function.
 Or do offer information structure in all these 11 languages.
 Change the search algorithm backend to the Google API one. This
will give more options and enhance the user search experience with
narrowed search.
 Take the bottom navigational bar and position it at a more

immediately visible place. This will increase the first time visit user
experience.

SlideShare users one-on-one
 Methodology Signing
up
Upload a
doc
Creating
Slidecast
Browse/
Search
User 1 3 4 3 2
 3 individuals (2 Speaking good
English and 1 with basic User 2 4 4 4 3
knowledge) User 3 3 3 2 2
 Asked to sign up, upload a  Issues

document, create a slidecast  All three users had a problem identifying the
right type of account the need to choose for
and browse/search on the themselves and ended with “default”
website  Two users decided not to wonder which
category their document belongs to and
picked the one randomly.
 Rating the ease of use with
 One user had problems using the markers due
points from 1 to 5, where 1 is to his shaky hands
extremely difficult and 5 is very  All three users found category browsing
easy. confusing and decided to focus on search to
find the documents on the topic they are
interested in.

Contact me @
Borislav Kiprin
m: +359 879993700
e: bk@borislavkiprin.com
w: borislavkiprin.com
Thank you! b: borislavkiprin.wordpress.com

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SlideShare’s User Experience

Four processes that make it work or not…

Usability & Design Final Project

1 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

 SlideShare is a user generated document-sharing platform

2 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

Making recommendations based on findings

3 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

4 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

5 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

6 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

Easy to spot and act upon sign in or sign up features

7 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

This is great summary that belongs to the

A moment of confusion for the user:

8 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

Pretty straightforward dropdowns.

Such verifications are decreasing the

In Step 1 “Join Now” is used and in Step 2

The State is unnecessary here. This for

9 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

Already identifies the user that has just

The Welcome message’s font is too small.

What kind of IDs? – SlideShare’s, Emails’,

What if the user does not want to

10 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

 Accessibility is an issue with the dropdowns and the text

 Proceeding buttons are not named coherently.

 Sing Up confirmation page offers limited choice of contact

 Welcome message is too small and the activation action required

11 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

 Instead of dropdowns use text boxes with intuitive filling

 Make the proceeding buttons the same!

 Offer choice to upload contacts from file (vCards, CVS etc.)

 Make Welcome message bigger!

12 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

13 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

This is the only reference to the option of

Explanation of how to select multiple files

Is this the total size of the documents to

What if the user is on Mac? Ctrl is not

 The preset option for uploading is one with

14 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

There is no option to add categories. The

The option here is limited to 11 languages

What about people that follow me being

Is this the total size of the documents to

15 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

Useful feature. However the process

“Dynamic” and “Prioritization” is not

16 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

 Consistency in repeating functions is very

Another thing is trying to refresh the

17 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

 However, there are few fields that need improvement:

 Some of the the texts in the uploading page are ambiguous.

 No option to add categories to the already preset ones.

 There is no choice of adding languages to the ones already in preset.

 Privacy options or file display is set in a limited way.

 Converting files takes more than 20-30 minutes.

 Consistency in repeating functions is a problem. There is residual info still

18 Usability & Design - IE MDMK10 - Borislav Kiprin March 11, 2010

 Introduce more privacy/display options