NewsFlash

(web-based app)

NewsFlash on Laptop

Overview:

NewsFlash is a web-based application that offers a speed reader aimed at dyslexics. The speed reader allows users to speed read news articles pulled from the Google News API. The application also offers users access to their own customizable speed reader where they can paste any text and speed read anything they want.

Our main goal with this project was to create an application for people very unlike us. We were able to learn more about a minority that we initially knew very little about.

My Role:

UX Designer, Wireframer, Front End Developer

Deliverables:

Storyboard, Wireframe, Prototype, Redesigned Prototype, Finished App

Tools:

Problem:

Most speed reading tools for dyslexics require a user to input what they want to be read before it begins. We solve this hindrance by automatically presenting users with pre-made speed readers based on current news articles. We chose to use news articles to present current and always-changing, relevant information to the user. The users improve their speed reading skills and learn about current events without having to rely on multiple apps to do so.

First Storyboard

Storyboard solving an article readability issue for dyslexics

Second Storyboard

Storyboard showing the ability to quickly read articles

Understanding:

  1. Dyslexics rely heavily on speed readers since it eliminates mind distractions at higher reading speeds.

  2. We needed to have a system that allows users to control the speed of the reader so that they can work to improve their speeds.

  3. Some dyslexics have an easier time reading with certain fonts. Certain fonts are developed for dyslexics.

  4. We would need to include a font changing system to accomodate different users.

  5. It would be a good idea for users to have a reason to use our application as opposed to the others that exist on the web.

  6. There are no speed readers that display dynamic content such as current news.

Pre-Font Change

Font and speed changing options

System-wide Font Change

System-wide font change

Initial Design:

We determined that the best way to engage users in the app would be to offer dynamic content for the speed reader. Many other speed readers exist that offer a text box to speed read what the user inputs. We wanted to do more and providing news seemed like the best approach. We utilized the Google News API to populate our app. The first screenshot below demonstrates how we initially displayed the articles. Upon pressing 'read' the user is presented with a popup modal that begins to display the content of the article, one word at a time.

We also wanted added another page to give the user an idea of what our app did by presenting an example speed reader that read off pre-created content which can be seen in the second screen.

First Initial Design

Initial design of individual articles on the home screen

Second Initial Design

Speed reader demo which was ultimately scrapped in the final design

Final Design:

We wanted users to be able to quickly glance at each article to see which they would like to read without having to spend a lot of time to decipher the content. Each article was shown with its own image, title, and quick synopsis as opposed to the content of the article to make it easy to see which article was of interest to the user.

It was important for users to have more control over how the speed reader would display words so we created the options to change the speed at which the words were presented and the font at which the content would be shown. The second screen shows how both of these can be changed at the 'Getting Started' page. Also on the 'Getting Started' page, we included a custom input box that allows users to input any amount of text to show up in their own personal speed reader.

We thought it would also be a good idea to allow the user to save articles in case they wanted to revisit them in the future.

First Final Design

Final home screen which allows the user to change reading speed and shows images for each articles, article header, estiamted time to read at designated WPM, and the option to save each article

Second Final Design

Final Getting started page which is where users can interact with their own speed reader, change the global font, and reading speed

Future Considerations:

  1. Due to the limited availability of the Google News API for free users, we were not able to pull the entire content of each article (a reason why the time to read timer would be so low). For future use, we would need to fund the cost of full access to the API.

  2. The app is far from being in its final form. In order to ideate further, we would need to interview dyslexics and conduct user testing.

  3. It would be nice to nice to include a tracking system that allows users to keep track of their progress such as how many articles they've read, and how long each took. It would also be nice if the user could adjust their reader speed in real time as opposed to before the reader started.

Learnings:

My main goal with this app was to create and design an application for users very unlike myself. That meant diving into uncharted territory and learning about a population of people i would not have otherwise known about. I now know a lot more about dyslexics and why speed readers are important to them. I even learned that some of them can read up to several thousand words per minutes.

Due to the limited time-frame and resources we were unable to engage with actual dyslexics and relied heavily on online resources which limits our perspective on the topic.