Here’s a subject I haven’t given much thought about before. Usability News has a couple of interesting articles about whether not to include colons at the end of form labels. Read More
UX Design
Review of Quimble: Service to Create Online Polls
Recently I posted a poll asking what people in the web industry wear to work. I used a free service called Quimble. Seeing as their tag line is “polls done right” (a very bold statement) I decided to post my thoughts about my polling experience.
Read MoreChildren’s Museum Web Site is Not Very Usable
My family recently took a trip to Phoenix to get some well-needed sun. Looking for things to do to entertain our two-year old son, I thought we might visit the “Phoenix Children’s Museum”:www.childrensmuseumofphoenix.com.
How to Show Whether Form Fields are Required
Just Add Water has a useful article on techniques to show whether form fields are required or optional.
Writing Content for Diverse Audiences
UX Matters has a thought provoking case study in its March issue about writing web content that needs to appeal to a very different set of audiences.
Eight Guidelines for Usability Testing
Tim Fidgeon of Webcredible has put together a useful collection of guidelines to ensure you get the most from your usability testing. Read More
Using Eye Tracking to Evaluate the Usability of Search Forms
In the second in his series on using eye tracking to evaluate user interfaces, Matteo Penzo examines the “usability of search forms”:http://www.uxmatters.com/MT/archives/000068.php in the January issue of UXMatters.
He compares how novice and experienced users tackle search forms on Google, Amazon, eBay, Flickr and useit.com (!) and arrives at some interesting (but not entirely unexpected conclusions).
Are Focus Groups Worth the Effort?
When it comes to developing web sites – particularly content and features, I’ve often wondered about the usefulness of focus groups and whether they really provide you with information on which you can make a well-grounded design decision. Read More
Good Recap of Recent Usability Research Studies
The December UI Design Letter from Human Factors International has a great recap of “usability research findings”:http://www.humanfactors.com/downloads/dec05.asp#kath from the past few years.
Web Site Usability Testing: Thoughts and Takeaways
I recently ran one of our regular usability sessions for our “hospital web site”:http://www.seattlechildrens.org. It’s always a fascinating experience watching real users -fumble around- navigate our site and the web team always learns a lot from it.