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    A new breed : wired for success : redefining the possibilities of solar powered electric fence energizers.
    (Massey University, 2014) Marks, Nicholas R
    Gallagher, world renowned for their electric fencing innovations, requested ways to develop their solar powered energizer range. The intent of this project was to work with Gallagher product specialists to identify key market gaps and use them to develop a conceptual design proposal for a new solar charged, battery powered electric fence energizer. Industrial design literature investigations provided a foundation for this project and specific methods were used to identify and utilize key information from the Gallagher product and energizer range and Gallagher’s competition. Other strategic research areas included; context of energizer use, common energizer issues, market gaps/opportunities, ergonomic principles, safety aspects, manufacturing guidelines and relevant state of the art technologies. The core research methods used to support the investigation and consider industrial design and business requirements were; market analysis, ethnography, surveys, informal expert interviews and focus group meetings with Gallagher departmental managers. Structured concept generation, test rigs, mock-ups, models, iterated design development and CAD renderings ensued. A potential market gap was discovered through these explorations where isolated farm blocks needed electric fencing, but had no mains power. The unit needed to be semiportable, yet had to have the potential power to supply the equivalent of mains powered energizer capabilities. Solar powered technology has widened the scope for design to solve this scenario, which provided the starting point for initial design concepts. The product was required to solve issues and objectives (functionality), be intuitive, easy to use and practical (usability), and appeal to the target market (desirability). The final design proposal is a modular energizer unit which allows the end user to customize the system to suit their individual needs. This investigation aimed to fulfil Gallagher’s brief to expand their solar powered energizer range, and uncover any other potential product opportunities in the market.
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    A comparison of the main methods for evaluating the usability of computer software : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1992) Henderson, Ronald Derek
    The aim of this thesis is to examine the dominant computer software usability evaluation methods. Four evaluation methods (logged data, questionnaire, interview, and verbal protocol analysis) were used to evaluate three different business software types (spreadsheet, word processor, and database) using a between groups design, involving 148 individuals of both genders. When each evaluation method was examined individually, the results tended to support findings from previous research. Comparisons were made to examine the efficiency of each evaluation method, in terms of its ability to highlight usability problems (both between and within the evaluation strategy). Here support for the efficiency of the verbal protocol analysis method was found. The efficiency of using two evaluation methods was also examined, where it was found that no significant improvement was obtained over the verbal protocol analysis used by itself. A comparison addressing the practicality of using these methods was also conducted. It seems that each method has differing strengths and weaknesses depending on the stage of the evaluation. From these results a theory for the effectiveness of evaluation strategies is presented. Suggestions for improving the methods commonly used, are also made. The thesis concludes by discussing the software evaluation domain and its relationship to the wider evaluation context.
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    An empirical study on the relationship between identity-checking steps and perceived trustworthiness in online banking system use : submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Information Sciences in Information Technology
    (Massey University, 2009) Zhang, Yang
    Online banking systems have become more common and widely used in daily life, bringing huge changes in modern banking transaction activities and giving us a greater opportunity to access the banking system anytime and anywhere. At the same time, however, one of the key challenges that still remain is to fully resolve the security concerns associated with the online banking system. Many clients feel that online banking is not secure enough, and to increase its security levels, many banks simply add more identity-checking steps or put on more security measures to some extent to give users the impression of a secure online banking system. However, this is easier to be said than done, because we believe that more identity-checking steps could compromise the usability of the online banking system, which is an inevitable feature in design of usable and useful online banking systems. Banks can simply enhance their security level with more sophisticated technologies, but this does not seem to guarantee the online banking system is in line with its key usability concern. Therefore, the research question raised in this thesis is to establish the relationships between usability, security and trustworthiness in the online banking system. To demonstrate these relationships, three experiments were carried out using the simulation of an online banking logon procedure to provide a similar online banking experience. Post questionnaires were used to measure the three concepts, i.e. usability, security and trustworthiness. The resulting analyses revealed that simply adding more identity-checking steps in the online banking system did not improve the customers? perceived security and trustworthiness, nor the biometric security technique (i.e., fingerprints) did enhance the subjective ratings on the perceived security and trustworthiness. This showed that the systems designer needs to be aware that the customer?s perception of the online banking system is not the same as that conceived from a technical standpoint.