Prototyping user interface using my Visio forms

[BekkiM]

I have a series of user interface forms wireframed in Visio. There are about
8 pages that, in the live application, a user must complete on our web site
to lease an apartment from us. We're planning on doing some usability
testing prior to actually going live with the application and I would like to
be able to create an interactive demo of the pages directly from my
wireframes, but I'm completely stumped.

It seems to me that Save as Web Page is the right route, as I'll end up with
a version that can be relatively easily demo-ed as a web site, which will be
like what it will be in real life. However, I'm having a very hard time
understanding if I can use "link to database" to allow the forms I've
designed to function as data entry forms. Is it possible to capture the
user-entered value in a text-box, save it in the database, then display those
values in subsequent pages of the demo?

For example, the first page allows a user to create a profile (name, dob,
etc.). I'd like to persist that information on the following pages (e.g. in
a header that says "Welcome John Doe"). Can anyone give me some pointers?

Thanks!

 

[Mark Nelson [MS]]

I'm not sure how this can be done. Saving as a web page essentially makes
your diagram static. You may be able to get hyperlinks to jump around the
document, but there would be no way to provide data input. It seems like
your best bet for a functional prototype would be to stay inside Visio. You
can try using the Custom Properties dialog to let the user enter data. Then
use the Shapesheet to set up references to that information for use in other
shapes. Of course, your prototype will look like Visio in this case. One
possibility may be to use the Visio drawing control inserted into a form to
give your app a different look.

Lots of paths to explore here but none of them straightforward.

--
Mark Nelson
Office Graphics - Visio
Microsoft Corporation

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

 

[Steve Thackery]

Blimey, this is doing it the hard way, isn't it?

Wouldn't it be much better to use a website editor for this job? There are
various free ones, as well as commercial ones at any price you want to pay.

Steve

 

[BekkiM]

lol

It sure is--and it's exactly what my development team has been saying. It
was just that I had mocked up the wireframes in Visio long before anyone
thought of using them as a prototype for usability testing. Guess I'll move
to FrontPage and use my wireframes as a background image. Thanks!