The goal of my thesis was to design and implement the visual style and user interface for a Liferay-based e-learning environment, called Project Learn. The assignment came from Arcusys Oy, which is an IT service company specialized in open source learning environments. The finished Project Learn works as a demonstration and testing environment for the customers and as a template for the upcoming e-learning projects at Arcusys.

For the environment to appear as user friendly and attractive, it needs a clear theme – user interface and visual style. I met potential users of the environment through nine interviews and usability tests and got acquainted with usability rules via literacy.

The interviews indicated that the current e-learning environments are in need of visual enhancement and especially the ease of use should be prioritized. With the help of the interview results I was able to see problem areas in Liferay environment and to fix those in Project Learn.