PUBLIC MARKS from amyrussell with tag Usabiliy

“I’m sick of users,” announced Josh Bernoff in a recent blog entry, leading one to initially believe that he has joined the ranks of indifferent (or outright hostile) developers, clients, and other uninterested parties reluctantly associated with producing applications and websites. However, Bernoff’s distaste is semantic, not social. He argues that the term “user” emphasizes technology over relationships and encourages a flattened and skewed view of the people interacting with the products. He challenges the readers to “try, just for a day, to stop using this word. You’ll be amazed at how differently you think about the world.”

A running discussions I have with my mom revolves around a cellphone: I think she should have one; she disagrees. I say it makes sense to carry one in case of emergencies; she says her regular phone is good enough for her. I say her regular phone doesn’t work in the car; she states that you shouldn’t talk and drive. Her logic defies a response.

For most of us, visual presentation has a greater immediate impact than text or numbers alone. Graphs are effectively used in presentations for that very reason: they quickly convey that Column A is larger than Column B, or that Line 1 has outperformed Line 2. They allow us to easily grasp the overall concept before drilling down into the details. When done well, they allow us to convey complexity with ease (see Tufte, Edward).

There I was the other day, skimming through the New York Times online when I mistakenly double clicked on a word (which is why I shouldn’t continually mess with my mouse settings, but that’s another post). The next thing I knew, a popup window appeared displaying a definition of the very word I had double clicked. Disconcerting at first but with a closer look I realized that the New York Times has given me a reference search tool right at my fingertips.

You’re the team lead for developing the next killer app, and word is passed along that the marketing campaign is being built around the user-centric design of your new app. Unfortunately, no budget has been allocated to hire someone with the desired skill set to achieve this lofty goal. Your developers are heads down into the code and have neither the time nor interest to become user experience gurus. What to do?

Nothing is more frustrating than having your software beep at you when you’re trying to do something you *know* it can do, and you’re flummoxed as to why it’s resisting your every effort to continue on with your work. All attempts are met with the same impersonal beep, whereupon you conclude that (a) the software hates you and (b) your only recourse is to begin swearing with enough proficiency and creativity to make a sailor blush. You just might be the victim of a mode error.

Two days ago, Hitwise released statistics showing that Google accounted for 64% of all searches in March 2007. I would have assumed the percentage was higher, given the sheer ubiquity—and utility—of Google, whose name, like Xerox, has become synonymous with its function. The competition lagged far behind, with Yahoo search claiming 22%, MSN trailing with 9%, and Ask.com bringing up the rear with 3%. That’s 98% of all searches conducted during the period, and the significant factor is that all four of these search engines operate in essentially the same way, producing flat, one-dimensional lists of results.