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How to assure usability of your Rich Internet Applications.
Rich Internet Applications (RIAs) are web applications that have most of the characteristics of desktop applications, typically delivered through a web browser. Examples of RIA frameworks include Curl, GWT, Adobe Flash/Adobe Flex/AIR, Java/JavaFX, Mozilla's XUL and Microsoft Silverlight. More and more company's are investing in these applications to reduce the costs associated with developing and supporting traditional software solutions.
While RIAs let company's save money, they also introduce new issues as the consumer expectation has been set by traditional software. Monitoring and diagnosing RIA performance and consumer perceptions takes on new importance with the decision to move to RIAs.
According to W3C, Rich Internet Applications require accessible interactive controls (such as tree menus, drag and drop, sliders, sort controls, etc.), content roles for identifying page structure (navigation, search, main content, etc.), areas that can be dynamically updated (called "live regions" in ARIA), better support for keyboard accessibility and interactivity, and much more.
According to Forrester Research, 70 to 80 percent of all IT projects fail not because of technical issues, but due to a lack of user acceptance. The top reasons for failures include:
- Not understanding the end-user of the application
- Allowing developers to design user interfaces
- Not integrating users feedback into design
- Failing to define success (in user terms)
- Launch and forget
The BSM-NOW Platform™ addresses these issues by monitoring and diagnosing the perceptions of customer and user communities and using this knowledge to guide the capabilities of providers.
BSM-NOW supports your Rich Internet Applications initiatives with scientific measurement, analysis and diagnosis of five dimensions of experience quality, three components of value, and the five critical delivery gaps responsible for poor Customer Quality of Experience (CQoE) and low value perception. BSM-NOW gives you what need to resolve and prevent quality and value issues. Click here to learn more about why you need BSM-NOW.
Understanding true quality from the "outside-in" as reported by your real customers and users provides an early warning system so you can respond proactively:
- Reliability -- is the RIA performing dependably and accurately?
- Responsiveness -- is the RIA reacting quickly and positively?
- Assurance -- is the level of comfort (safety and confidence) felt when working with the RIA what it needs to be?
- Empathy -- does the RIA development team understand or know the consumer and make consumer needs top priority?
- Tangibles -- are the physical materials (documents, portals, interfaces, etc.) associated with the RIA helping or hindering?
Understanding what consumer consider valuable allows consumer and producer to focus on those infrastructure aspects that directly impact value, the impact and costs of:
- Confidentiality -- unauthorized disclosure of RIA data and artifacts to unintended or unauthorized parties
- Integrity -- unauthorized or unexpected modification of RIA data and artifacts
- Availability -- the RIA not being able to perform its agreed function when required
BSM-NOW Rich Internet Applications Solution: