About: Discord is a communication platform widely used for gaming, social communities, and collaboration. It enables users to connect via text, voice, and video, fostering dynamic interactions in shared spaces. 

Problem: While Discord offers a status feature, it lacks a system for sharing personal notes with others. This limits opportunities for users to write thoughts, share ideas, or initiate discussions, which could enhance collaboration and engagement within communities. 

Project Goal: To design and implement a note-sharing system on Discord that allows users to write, share, and reply to notes. This feature will focus on seamless interaction, fostering more meaningful conversations and providing a space for idea-sharing across communities. 

In my research plan, my main research questions are:

• How do users currently utilize text channels or direct messages for sharing personal notes or updates, and what challenges do they face with these methods? 

• What types of collaborative note-taking and interaction features (e.g., comments, replies, tagging) do users find most helpful and engaging in other platforms? 

• How can the process of creating and replying to notes be simplified to encourage frequent use? 

I conducted interviews with five participants, ages 18-24, who all use Discord daily. This allows me to gather insights into their daily interactions, communication habits, and overall experiences using Discord. 

Key Insights:

• Simplicity and Speed Are Essential.  Users emphasized the need for a quick and easy process when creating and sharing notes. 

• Collaboration Enhances Engagement.  Users highlighted the importance of being able to reply to and comment on notes. They shared that having this feature would encourage more interaction and foster a sense of community, especially in initiating discussions. 

• Real-Time Updates Matter. Users expressed a desire for real-time notifications when others interact with their notes. They emphasized the importance of staying updated on responses, but also noted the need for more control over notification frequency. 

My high-fidelity prototype delivered an intuitive and engaging desktop experience for Discord users. It introduced a clean and user-friendly interface for the note-sharing feature, starting with a streamlined homepage, which leads to popups for writing and replying to notes. 

To improve this prototype further, I conducted two user testing sessions, which led me to these main revisions:

Conclusion: The new notes feature has successfully improved user engagement by simplifying the creation and sharing process and ensuring a more intuitive and focused experience. By addressing key user pain points and prioritizing clarity and accessibility, the feature now facilitates seamless collaboration and encourages meaningful interactions among users. 

Future Improvements: This project was completed during the last week of winter break. If I had more time, I would have liked to:

• Prototype more advanced features, such as note organization by topic or pinned notes for group channels, to further enhance usability. 

Reflection:

• Empathy Enhances Design: This project reinforced the importance of empathy in user-centered design. By understanding user frustrations with current note-sharing methods, I was able to create a more intuitive solution that aligns with their needs. 

• Clarity Over Complexity: Simplifying the note-sharing process demonstrated that clear, straightforward design choices can significantly improve user experience without compromising functionality. 

• The Power of Interaction Feedback: Incorporating dynamic states like hover and click animations highlighted the value of interactive feedback, which enhances user engagement and satisfaction. 

• Prioritizing Key Features: Identifying and addressing the most critical pain points ensured that the new feature meets user expectations while remaining aligned with Discord’s overall design philosophy.