In ergonomic practices, user testing is a central method to get feed-back from users regarding usability. In the last decade, new design methods have emerged like agile method, design thinking, lean startup. Most of these methods are looking for direct user’s feedback. In this context, in 2013 we published a book “user-centered agile method” which goal was to propose a method which enables to have continuous user’s feedback during the entire life circle of a project integrating agile development. Our approach was to take advantage of agile method to apply user testing also during development that is, during each agile iteration. We call this kind of user testing, applying around five participants, “mini-user testing”. Four years later, we wanted to evaluate the usage of “mini user testing” during agile development, into our ergonomists community and what it could imply regarding the evolution of these community’s practices. To answer these questions, we built a questionnaire which was filled by two survey populations. This article reports the results of this study.

The current socio-economical context tends to isolate people and limit face to face contacts. Communication services are crucial to maintain social and affective links but present services don’t meet users’ expectations. In this perspective, we designed Shomi, a video communication application, providing an enriched experience of copresence based on coactivity. Shomi results from a user centric conception process. The main steps of this process are described in this paper.

Through videoconferencing, people search to interact and communicate with their remote friends or family as they were together in the same place. The influence of form variables such as screen size has been mainly investigated on the sense of physical presence (presence as transportation) in virtual environment and in television area, but less attention has been paid to how these factors can influence the sense of co-presence in videoconferencing. In addition, preferred viewing distance is well known to be a key parameter in order to convey a sense of presence and enjoyment when people watch television, but there is currently no data regarding preferred viewing distance in videoconferencing. This paper presents a user study which explores the influence of screen size on the participant's sense of co-presence and on their preferred viewing distance. The main results of this study revealed that users preferred to get closer to the screen when they communicated in videoconferencing than when they watched TV program. Our study suggests that screen size has an effect on the preferred viewing distance and on the participant's sense of co-presence, with higher scores of co-presence with larger screen.

The User-Centered Agile (UCA) method is intended to mutually integrate the agile method known as Scrum and the User-Centered Design (UCD) approach. It attempts to lay down a project management framework based on the Scrum method, integrating the advantages of UCD in order to better cater for the needs of the end users. Consequently, this chapter introduces these two approaches upon which the UCA method is founded, as well as the user testing technique, a technique used for evaluating a product, which occupies a very important place in the UCA method.

Among new services of telecommunication, many are based on more and more convergent interfaces (convergence of services through many devices) and, consequently, more and more complex to design. Also, offering easy to use and close to users' needs services, imply a user centered work which has to be done from the design of services and all through the project. The method we have set up is a mutual integration solution of the User Centered Design and the agile Scrum method. During the design phase, it is based on the overlapping of the two methods, and during the development phase, it is based on the application of short user tests in sprints which permit to imply users. This paper gathers elements at the source of this method and gives a broad outline of it.

Services on which we are working are more and more complex and require a high level of simplicity. In R&D projects, an ergonomist often acts at the beginning of the project, during the design phase. Or he acts after the development phase by applying a user test to validate the service. The method that we have set up is a solution to integrate user-centered design and the agile developments to one another. It is based on short user tests which enable users to intervene during the development phase. The ergonomist realises user tests in cycles that match agile development ones. Results gained at the end of a cycle suggest ergonomics adjustements for the same reasons that technical validations can induce fonctionnal adjustments. This method was applied and validated on a project. Following the description of the method, this paper introduces project members experience feedbacks.

Services on which we are working are more and more complex and require a high level of simplicity. In R&D projects, an ergonomist often acts at the beginning of the project, during the design phase. Or he acts after the development phase by applying a user test to validate the service. The method that we have set up is a solution to integrate user-centered design and the agile developments to one another. It is based on short user tests which enable users to intervene during the development phase. The ergonomist realises user tests in cycles that match agile development ones. Results gained at the end of a cycle suggest ergonomics adjustements for the same reasons that technical validations can induce fonctionnal adjustments.This method was applied and validated on a project. Following the description of the method, this paper introduces project members experience feedbacks.

In practicing ergonomics within design projects for new telecommunication tools and services at France Télécom's R&D division, the authors wanted to share their experience during which they felt it was essential to be able to take part both in design and assessment. Users' firm knowledge is beneficial for design, whereas a good knowledge of how a project evolves facilitates the integration of evaluation results within this process.