In summary, the ground we are covering is getting larger. Throughout this chapter, we got our hands dirty by taking the prototypes developed in the previous chapters and allowed those ideas to be pressure tested with users. User testing is risky because failure is always around the corner; however, as we discussed in this chapter, when failing their users an HCI designer has actually learned something. Failure is part of the learning process but nevertheless it is learning and improving a software solution. The sting of failure shouldn't last long because the ability to practice the iteration of a prototype solution is the basis of covering idea validation and usability refinement. The skills and practice of user testing prototypes will last long after this book because every HCI team should ABTI —always be testing and iterating.
In the next chapter, we will focus on more skills in part 3 of the execution of improving software solutions through data.