We have performed a research online and some people’s opinions suggested that there is a need to have the ability to search the Hansard database effectively and preferably with useful features. For example, one user in a forum called Byron Langslow showed frustration towards ineffective browsing of the Hansard database online; there are existing websites that allow browsing the Hansard database, however. the official parliament website enables users to view debates but it does not seem straightforward for the public to use. The browsing is generally very poor. A list of topics can be chosen from a list ordered alphabetically, which is a great feature but searching by dates does not seem effective. Another website is available to search the debates, it also has a better user interface. It also allows searching through a search bar. However, it is too simplistic as it searches for any text with a given string of words and therefore it is semantically weaker.

We anticipate the most reasonable scenario of users on our system would be in an office type of environment. They would typically be well educated people who have an interest in British politics and will want something quick, effective and accurate. It would be important to keep a simplistic design in order not to distract the users whilst reading debates. Search speed is something that will need to be taken into consideration because our users will have high expectations and will not want to waste their valuable time waiting for a simple search query.

We carried out a simple usability test, this test used the “think aloud” technique. Through this technique we assessed the design of our website. When first landing on the website, there is a search bar, which makes it obvious that the user can type in and search. below the search bar, there is a little description that describe what the website it used for, this information is clear and concise. After a search is made, the system displays results very neatly, the user also has the choice of viewing them in a list or a grid. Each result displays a sample of the text, the speaker name and date. This information is useful for quicker browsing.

We have undertaken the iterative design process throughout this project because it is more effective than the traditional waterfall methodology, especially for our particular scenario. This process of iteratively designing each component of the application and developing it before moving on to the next is ideal for us as a team in learning about the tools and platforms we are using to produce these components; the aim of this project is to be a learning experience and this design process facilitates that very well. Our iterative design process is shown through our development of prototypes for individual system components and the continuous upgrade of these partitions through testing and evaluation.