How to Use This Book

• Who Should Read This Book?
• What's in This Book?
• What Comes with This Book?

Frequently Asked Questions

Foreword

CHAPTER 1: Why Remote Research?

• The Appeal of Lab Research
• Is Lab Research Dead?
• What's Remote Research Good For?
• When to Go Remote
• Moderated vs. Automated
• When to Use Which Remote Method
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 2: Moderated Research: Setup

• Gearing Up: Physical Equipment
• Doing a Pilot Test Right Now
• Preparing for a Real Study
• Drafting the Research Documents
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 3: Recruiting for Remote Studies

• What's "Live Recruiting"?
• Live Recruiting Using Forms and Pop-ups
• Designing the Screener
• Paying Remote Recruits
• Choosing Good Users and Spotting the Fakers
• Recruiting Slow? Don't Sit Around --
• Fix the Screener
• Wait! Read On...
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 4: Privacy and Consent

• Certain Assumptions
• Set Up Your Web Site's Privacy Policy
• Basic Participation Consent
• Consent to Record
• International Consent
• Consent for Minors
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 5: Moderating

• Introducing the Study
• Time-Aware Research and Going Off-Script
• Smart Note Taking
• Working with Observers
• Quiet, Chatty, Bored, Drunk, and Mean
• Ain't Nothing Wrong with Using the Phone
• Wrapping Up
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 6: Automated Research

• The Structure of an Automated Study
• Recruiting for Automated Studies
• Different Kinds of Automated Research
• Task Elicitation
• Remote Card Sorting
• Surveys
• Other Methods
• Where Do I Learn About Tools?
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 7: Analysis and Reporting

• Moderated Analysis
• Automated Analysis
• Reporting
• Not All Research Is Research
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 8: Remote Research Tools

• Screen Sharing
• Recording
• Automated Tools and Services
• Chapter Summary

CHAPTER 9: New Approaches to User Research

• Top Secret (Reverse Screen Sharing and Remote Access)
• Mobile Device Research (Smartphones)
• One-to-Many Remote Moderating (Video Games)
• Portable Testing (Cars)
• Staying Current
• Chapter Summary

Chapter 10: The Challenges of Remote Testing

• Legitimacy
• Not Seeing the Users' Faces
• Technology Failures
• Not as Inexpensive as You'd Think
• Organizational Challenges of Web Recruiting
• Getting the Right Recruits
• Natural User Behavior
• Multitasking
• Security and Confidentiality
• Persistent Negativity
• Chapter Summary

CONCLUSION: Don't Waste Your Life Doing Pointless Research

Index

Acknowledgements

About the Authors