

He would erase lines and try different shapes. Due to its restrained UI, John spent more time focusing on the details of his drawing in Paper (notice the extra detail lines in the tree and the ground).Īdditionally, he was more explorative with Paper. I found it fascinating that John appeared to be more “creative” while using Paper. When asked later why he chose the brush, he replied: “Because I knew it would cover more area.

Instead, he intuitively selected the paint brush. I assumed that he would continue using the pencil and simply change the palette to red. When it came to the task of “color the roof red”, I was surprised that John immediately selected the paint brush, without hesitation. “I want to get rid of that.” (John selects the eraser and quickly removes the lines). Therefore, John was continually drawing lines in areas on the surface that he did not intend. Unfortunately, the palm registers on the iPad as input. Most users, when drawing, apply their palm to the surface to steady their hand. “Uh-oh, how come that did that?” (Indicating lines, toward the bottom of the screen, he did not intend to draw) That’s not to say that drawing on a multi-touch surface was completely without error. Using the stylus and iPad did not require him to establish a new mental model of how the tools operated in the digital environment. However, it appeared that drawing came naturally. I expected some fumbling as he became familiar with the concept of drawing digitally. “Do I have to select the deal?” (Indicating the pen)Īfter selecting the pen, I was astonished how quickly John began to draw. Upon opening Paper, John began to draw but nothing was happening (He had the eraser selected).

I explained that if he was having trouble he could ask questions and I would provide assistance. I asked him to “talk out loud” and explain what he was trying to achieve within each application. I let him practice feeling the stylus and iPad and gave him minimal instruction in both applications. I stressed to John that the desire was to observe him using both applications and that the study was not a test on his ability to accurately draw the images.
