computer science

User onboarding

User onboarding is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand User onboarding rather than just read about it. In short: User onboarding is the process of improving an individual's requirements and success with a product or service. This term is often used in reference to software products, and it can be done in a manual or automated way.

Key takeaways

User onboarding belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect User onboarding to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of User onboarding from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

User onboarding is the process of improving an individual's requirements and success with a product or service. This term is often used in reference to software products, and it can be done in a manual or automated way. It is the process through which new software is designed such that new users are provided and acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and behaviors in order to become “up and running” and effective users of website, app, or software service. The term originates from the human resources term, onboarding, that refers to the mechanism through which new employees acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and behaviors in order to become effective organizational members. The goal of user onboarding is to get the users to understand the key principles of the product and to show them how it can be useful to them. If it can make the point of the product clear and easy to understand, it can improve the likelihood of acquiring engaged customers. Offering a free trial is an example of how you can implement user onboarding. If someone is able to see how the product is useful and exciting to them within a free trial period, it can take them from being a user to a consumer—willing to invest in order to continue their experience.

Onboarding techniques

Leveraging the right user onboarding techniques based on the specific requirements can be extremely beneficial for businesses. Below are different user onboarding techniques and their classifications.

Single sign-on or social login - Ease the login and add less friction with SSO or Social Login. Interactive tutorials, Walkthrough - In-application tutorials that help to onboard new users, highlight features in your application, and also reflect your value proposition faster and easier. Beacons, tooltips - Raise visitors attention by adding beacon to any element on the web page. Checklists - Leverage gamification effect (see Zeigarnik effect) and provide a clear step-by-step on-boarding flow. Coach screens - Opening screens stitched together that appear mostly after the splash screen moves away. Training videos - Context-based training videos

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with User onboarding

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what User onboarding claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to User onboarding before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about User onboarding ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of User onboarding

In research: User onboarding appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses User onboarding in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: User onboarding is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Software architecture, Software engineering stubs, Software engineering terminology, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for User onboarding outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study User onboarding in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what User onboarding means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain User onboarding out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is User onboarding in simple terms?

Why does User onboarding matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study User onboarding?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on User onboarding.