As part of the master's thesis, we created and designed a prototype of an interactive digital planner in PDF format using the design thinking method, which is applied with the help of an application created for this purpose.
In the theoretical part we first described the characteristics of planners and compared the advantages and disadvantages of printed and digital planners. We defined interactivity and described the interactive elements that a PDF can contain. Then we described the whole process of the Design Thinking method, which consists of five steps. We explained what a good user experience is for a product. Finally, we described the graphic elements that are important when designing a digital planner.
In the experimental part, we implemented five steps of the design thinking method. In the first step of empathic understanding, we conducted a market study on printed and digital planners, conducted a survey on the use of planners and conducted interviews with potential users. In the second step, we defined our problem in more detail and set clear guidelines for how to proceed. This was followed by the idea generation step, where we used the idea writing technique to get ideas for the content part, and sketching to get the draft layout of the planner. In the fourth step, we designed a prototype that is transparent, useful and extremely easy to use. In the final step, we tested the prototype with potential users to identify possible improvements. We found that they completed all tasks without any major problems and navigated through the pages without ant problems. The users' experience with the product was positive and they gave us some constructive comments that we will take into account when improving the prototype.
During the experimental part of the thesis, the method proved to be very useful in developing and designing an innovative product such as a digital planner intended for students with many commitments. The main feature of design thinking is that a lot of time is spent studying the target group and finding innovative solutions to the problem, which can lead to excellent results.
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