What is ISO/IEC 25064 - Common Industry Format (CIF) for usability: User needs report about?
ISO/IEC 25064 describes the Common Industry Format (CIF) for reporting user needs. This specifies the contents and provides a sample format of user needs reports. Specification of management needs, as well as other stakeholder needs, is considered to the extent that they directly impact on user needs. The purpose of the User Needs Report and the intended users of the information are identified, as well as the relationship of user needs to other outputs of human-centred design. The audience of this standard includes all users stated in the scope of ISO/IEC 25000. Annex B of ISO/IEC 25000 describes the users of the information item “user needs report” in detail. Annex A of ISO/IEC 25064 provides a list of typical users of a User Needs Report. User Needs Reports include:
- Documentation of information collected from various sources relevant to user needs
- The consolidated user needs based on the analysis of the collected information
The User Needs Report is applicable to software and hardware systems, products or services (excluding generic products, such as a display screen or keyboard). User Needs Reports are relevant for existing and new products, services and systems, although the extent to which use needs are reported depends upon the type of system, product, or service involved. It can also contribute to determining, verifying, changing and elaborating the context of use. The content elements are intended to be used as part of system-level documentation resulting from development processes such as those in ISO 9241-210 and ISO/IEC JTC1/SC7 process standards.
Note: ISO/IEC 25064 does not prescribe any kind of method, lifecycle or process. To ensure that these content elements can be used within the broadest range of process models and used in combination with other information items, the descriptions use the classifications in ISO/IEC 15289 and ISO/IEC 15504-6.
Who is ISO/IEC 25064 - Common Industry Format (CIF) for usability: User needs report for?
ISO/IEC 25064 on Common Industry Format (CIF) for usability: User needs report is useful for:
- Systems and software engineers
- Information technology industry
- User needs assessment department
Why should you use ISO/IEC 25064 - Common Industry Format (CIF) for usability: User needs report?
The human-centred design approach of ISO 9241-210 is well established and focuses on making systems usable. Usability can be achieved by applying human-centred design and testing throughout the lifecycle. In order to enable a human-centred approach to be adopted, it is important that all the relevant types of information related to usability are identified and communicated. This identification and communication enables the usability of a system to be designed and tested. ISO/IEC 25064 provides a framework and consistent terminology for reporting on the assessment of user needs. Specifying user needs in a consistent manner will assist those developing and acquiring interactive systems.
ISO/IEC 25064 describes a set of user needs report content elements as part of a human-centred approach to design of interactive systems. A user needs report is intended to assist developers in determining user requirements for a system, product, or service.
