FratBeats.com Analysis

Visibility of system status

They have a simple, self-explanatory navigation system that makes it very easy to find what you're looking for. To keep users informed, it has a paragraph on the main page with information about the radio and how to do a few things. When you click on playlists but do not select one, it takes you to an informational page about how to select a playlist. However, most websites would have taken you to a list of those playlists instead of instructions.

Match between system and the real world

Parts of the website use simple language that most users would understand, such as "playlists" and "artists" to navigate. There are a few parts that were confusing to a first time user, however. One tab says FB radio. When you click on it, it has the same music feature that you find on the homepage. I didn't even know what to find under the FB tab and then I was confused as to how it was different. Another system-oriented feature was the requests tab. When I clicked on it, there was some unfamiliar language and it was overwhelming. It also took me to a completely different website, which confused me as to the relationship between the two sites. Lastly, there were two places to submit requests. It explained the difference, but I did not understand the terms they used. This part could have been more user-friendly.

User control and freedom

The simplicity of music players makes it easy to undo your actions. By clicking the tabs, you can escape where you are. If you are in a playlist, it is easy to pause the music, select new songs or pick another playlist. Users can navigate freely and without any major consequences of accidental clicks.

Consistency and standards

It was easy to follow platform conventions. There was a time where I couldn't tell if two different pages held the same content because one was no labeled. This confused the consistency. There were also two different places to request mixes with different formats. It used system-oriented terms that I was unfamiliar with, so I am not sure what the difference is between those.

Error prevention

I did not run into any problems on the website. Even better than good error messages is a careful design which prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. Either eliminate error-prone conditions or check for them and present users with a confirmation option before they commit to the action.

Recognition rather than recall

When trying to find playlists, if a specific one was not selected, it would take you to directions on how to select one. I did not feel like I needed to remember things as I went, because each page explained things as needed or it was self explanatory. All of my options were visible and instructions were easy to find if needed.

Flexibility and efficiency of use

I could not find any accelerators. There was nowhere for me to log in, make playlists or save preferences to tailor my experience. Each time I went back to the site, I would go through the same process for selection, so nothing was speeding up the interaction.

Aesthetic and minimalist design

All of the dialogues and information were important to what I was doing and there was not much excess that I felt overwhelmed or annoyed by. For playlists, there often wouldn't be any information, just the playlist. The relative visibility was perfect for me, a first time user, to understand everything as needed. The design is very simple and basic, so it has a minimalist design.

Help users recognize, diagnose, and recover from errors

I did not receive any error messages from the website. It all functioned properly. The system made it easy for me to recognize what would cause errors and my abilities on the site. I imagine, based off the dependability of the site, they would have an easily understood error message.

Help and documentation

I couldn't find many resources when looking for help to navigate the system. The only instruction was when I clicked on the playlist tab. When you search for help in the bar, an irrelevant blog post comes up. It does not have a Help page, but it does have a page where you can contact them with any questions.

Right from the start, I thought their format was easy to follow and understand. With no experience on the site, I was able to carry out all of the tasks I wanted to. There was some confusion with the different radios and getting to the same radio two different ways. I was able to understand most of the language they used, but there are a lot of things they should clarify for first time users (for example, the difference between the two different kinds of requests you can make). There were some features on this site that I think we will take into consideration when building out website shaped off my user experience. Some features I really liked and understood, but we will explain others more to make sure anyone can understand. FratBeats.com has put together a great website, but there is room for improvement that I hope we can use for our own site.