Evaluating Groupware Prototypes with Discount Methods.

Evaluating a prototype is necessary to user-centered software design, but evaluating groupware systems prior to full deployment can be challenging and costly. Existing groupware evaluation methods focus on individual users, expert inspections, or require the system to be rolled out. We describe a method -- based on Gutwin and Greenberg's mechanics of collaboration (MoC) framework -- for evaluating prototype groupware systems that have not yet been deployed with the minimum number of users needed to be truly functional. We believe this is a valuable method for evaluating early prototype groupware.