When it comes to usability design, my definition of “prototyping” is an interactive artifact that accurately simulates the interface experience. The interactive elements perform as expected (dropdowns, rollovers, sliding panels, etc.) and the click path of the task flow is also simulated correctly.

Prototypes allows a UX designer to determine what is and what is not working within their designed schema. There is no other practice that I know of that is more immediate, effective and economical.

I think the idea of using prototypes has been seen as a valuable tool in web design for over 10 years, but up until recently it has been seen as a luxury. Like user testing, prototyping is often seen as a step in the project plan that is quickly abandoned because of time or budget considerations.

But as we continue to move away from flat content web pages into more RIA interfaces, the use of prototypes will become mandatory. There are too many unanswered questions and unexplored nuances if we rely strictly on wireframes.

There have recently been some postings in the UX blogosphere about prototyping so here is a roundup of a few:

David Verba posted an article over at A List Apart speaking about the benefits of prototyping, not only as a proof-of-concept tool for the interaction designer, but as an effective communication artifact that helps bridge the language barriers between various web design disciplines (graphic designers, technical developers, client stakeholders).

Alexa Andrzejewski over at Boxes and Arrows posted a very detailed tutorial on using Flash for prototyping. The only downside as I see is the interface elements are not actually being built and revised in flash. Rather she is using flash as a delivery mechanism for screenshots created in some other graphic design application. Her use of screenshot images as a click-through in flash is very reminiscent of postings screen shots in HTML pages with the “interactive” elements actually using image maps hotspots.

For me, I am sold on the idea of prototyping. Its just a matter of how to incorporate an efficient solution into my work flow.

My Dream UX Application:
I am looking for a tool that allows me to build the interactive elements in the application using a pallet of components. Ideally, I would be able to drag and drop elements into a workspace, define transitions, gesture reactions, conditions with error handling and extended click paths.

Options:
Axure.
I haven’t run across anything like this yet but I am going to check out Axure (free 30 day demo). It seems to be the leader in a very small pack. I plan on posting about my experience with it as soon as I get a solid understanding of its offerings.

Thermo:
Many UX designers, myself included, wait with baited breath for the release of Adobe Thermo. Thermo looks like the dream app for quickly prototyping hi fidelity interface designs. Aral Balkan posted some mouthwatering videos taken from a Thermo demonstration at the 2007 Adobe keynote.