Utilizing User-Centered Design for the University of Victoria's International Connections Mapping Application

This thesis explores the design of a website to communicate international activities undertaken by or associated with the University of Victoria. The research was seeded by and undertaken in collaboration with the University of Victoria's office of Vice-President Academics and Provost, and the Office of International Affairs. The thesis introduces and implements a product design process to create a mapping application for the university to display all of its international connections. The thesis advanced the study of how to incorporate users into the design process of an online map.;User-centered design is an established practice of studying users and collecting their feedback during all stages of design. This process has begun to be used for online mapping. A challenge with online mapping is that potential users can be an unwieldy community. In this case study the users could come from anywhere within the UVic community, but also the public. With such a large and diverse group, incorporating all the potential users into the design process is not possible. A challenge therefore is to capture feedback from a meaningful representative sample of potential users.;This research describes a process of user-centered design in which a sample of users were surveyed at the beginning of the process to determine their requirements and preferences for a mapping application, and then interviewed to test the usability of the product.;The thesis concludes with recommendations for design and layout of an online mapping application, including identification where further study or decisions are required.