Scenario for a mail order enquiry

It is a busy morning with a long queue of telephone calls. John, who only started the job this week, takes a call from Mr Jones. Mr Jones says he still has not received the goods he ordered 3 months ago. Mr Jones does not know his account number, but gives his name and address. John retrieves the account, and checks the status of the order. It shows that the goods were dispatched 7 days ago. He informs Mr Jones that they should arrive shortly. He also notices an error in the post code for the address, which he corrects.

Scenario for purchasing an airline ticket

Jackie wants to fly to Århus next Thursday, returning on the last flight on Friday. She wants to know how much this would cost, and whether it would be cheaper to take a different flight back. She is not quite sure how Århus is spelt on the computer. When she has found the right flight, she wants to confirm the purchase with a credit card.

Scenario for planning a route

Sue is going to a wedding in Yorkshire, and needs a route to drive from her home in Watford to the Church in Deepdale, and from there to the reception at Horton. She has not been to these places before. She wants to know the fastest route, and needs clear instructions as she will be travelling alone.

Advantages of using scenarios

Providing concrete scenarios of this type helps focus design around the real needs of the user. They give a design team gain a better understanding of how the system will be used.

Last updated 11-Jul-00