Geoscience Reference
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1.2 Background of the Study
In this research we evaluated the map-based multi-publishing service
prototype that was the outcome of the 'Multi-Publishing in Supporting
Leisure Outdoor Activities' (MenoMaps)-project carried out at the Finnish
Geodetic Institute, Department of Geoinformatics and Cartography from
2008 to 2010. The aim of the project was to carry out research on the
utilisation of web-based multi-publishing for the purpose of outdoor
activities. The follow-up project 'Map Services for Outdoor Leisure
Activities Supported by Social Networks' (MenoMaps II) is carried out
from 2010 to 2013 (Sarjakoski et al 2010). The MenoMaps II-project aims
to explore new possibilities for map-based leisure services for outdoor
activities within the context of hiking in nature. The map-based multi-
publishing service prototype will be further developed during the
MenoMaps II project and it will be exhibited in the Nuuksio Nature Centre
in Finland at the end of 2012.
2- Methods
Usability evaluation of a multi-publishing service may be conducted one
channel at a time. For our research, we completed usability tests for a web
map application, which we here call simply a Web Map (Kettunen et al.
2011), a mobile map application on an iPhone (Kovanen et al. 2009) as
well as for printed maps (Oksanen et al. 2011). Potential end users
participated the tests. A combination of methods - thinking aloud and
questionnaires - were used.
Thinking aloud (Boren and Ramey 2000) is a method often used in
usability research. In thinking aloud the users perform designated tasks
with the tested system, while all the time verbalising their thoughts out
loud. The test situation is usually recorded to support the data analysis.
Observing the users doing tasks is more useful in finding usability issues
than relying on subjective opinions of the service (Nielsen 1993). With
thinking aloud, we are able to get an understanding of how users see the
service as well as an understanding of their major conceptions of the
service (Nielsen 1993).
A questionnaire given prior to the evaluation is to obtain background
information on the participant, such as age, gender and previous
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