This work is part of a three year PhD project to examine how Software Visualization(SV) can be applied to support the design and construction of Genetic Algorithms (GAs). A user survey carried out at the start of this project identified a set of key system features required by GA users. A visualization system embodying these features was then designed and a prototype built. This paper describes what genetic algorithms are and how they can be applied. It then reviews some of the survey results and their impact on the design of the visualization system. The paper concludes with an exploration of how the resulting prototype may be evaluated.