Archive for the ‘Usability’ Category
Jan
17
2007
at 1:57pm
Someone dropped this on my desk back in the summer (just to borrow) so I figured I might as well give it a read. It isn’t something I would have gotten myself – I’ve never been a fan of Nielsen. Well, not for quite a few years anyway. I’ve been reading the book on occasional lunch hours for months and I’ve finally gotten through it all.
Brief Review
This is a very well researched book based on actual usability studies. It is good to know that this is not just someone’s opinion (well, mostly) but actual experience with actual users. The book covers a broad range of topics, including some things that people may not consider to be usability problems: namely writing and disclosure of key information.
Read more…
Posted in Usability | 2 Comments »
Dec
08
2006
at 1:14pm
I came across this NewsTarget.com when my mom sent me a link to an article on fake avocado dip (seriously. Read it, it’s good). I was really impressed with the NewsTarget site for a couple of reasons. Obviously it’s got lots of great content, written in an informative and engaging way. It’s also got a great design: upbeat, colourful, clean, elegant, and above all, appropriate for the site (although unfortunately table-based).
Read more…
Posted in Design, Great Websites, Marketing/SEO/Monetization, Usability | 7 Comments »
Oct
26
2006
at 2:43pm
A few weeks ago I decided it was time to do something about the external links on the site I maintain at work. There are a few reasons why I felt the need to do this:
- It’s just good usability. Sending people to completely different sites unexpectedly has got to be disorienting
- The housing site has a parituclarly vague mix of internal and external links. External links often show up in unexpected places, including….
- On the navbar — this was the biggest problem I wanted to address. Some of the links from the navbar (particularly under the “residence services” section) go to external sites.
There are two problems that need to be solved here: what icon to use and how to apply them using HTML and CSS. Read more…
Posted in Design, Usability, Web Standards | 18 Comments »
Oct
18
2006
at 3:00pm
I came across Environmental Defense the other night when I was looking for lists of safe fish to eat as recommended by Marion Nesle‘s book What to Eat. But that’s besides the point. I was immediately struck by how engaging this site is. At first glance it’s nothing special – basic web site, mostly text, conservative, partially table-based layout. Nothing special, right?
Well, maybe not. Read more…
Posted in Design, Great Websites, Marketing/SEO/Monetization, Usability | 1 Comment »
Sep
14
2006
at 3:42pm
I’ve just come across some rather strange ramblings from good ole usability “guru”, Jacob Nielsen that I thought I’d share. The first comes from a July 2006 article on screen resolutions. The first part of the article is sensible enough – design flexible width layouts. I would add that some people have browser elements (such as side panels) that take up more space on the screen. You can’t use screen resolution alone to decide how big someone’s browser is. He does have some good points about people with large screens not using maximized windows.
The bizarre-o stuff comes further down when he starts rambling about how in the future all professionals will have gigantic monitors and that web designs will have to cater to that.
Read more…
Posted in Design, Usability | No Comments »
