usability

Yesterday at Michigan State University, a group of like-minded designers and developers gathered at World Usability Day 2007 to discuss how to make software and web applications better for users. Web usability as a serious issue that is ignored more often that not, and results in the web being plagued with horribly designed sites and applications. There are too many bad websites and web applications out there, and more are being created every day, because of the lack of focus on usability.

A new networking community called Catalyze.org has made its debut. In Beta, its niche is the usability industry, specifically business analysts and user experience professionals. Anyone involved in web site design will find something of interest there.

While on a plane heading home from a conference I happened to meet the mother of a Human Factors employee for a well-known global Internet software company. As we chatted, she noted that when I spoke of my work, she could tell I wasn’t the critical type. She’s a human behavior specialist. In her practice, she helps people who have suffered trauma. There’s a way that you listen. A way you offer support. I realized she was paying me a huge compliment if she noticed something about me and how I conveyed bad news to my clients.

What’s a mode error or a modal error? In usability speak, that’s when the user confuses the mode they’re currently in, causing a wrong or ineffective action. For example, when I click on a contact’s note on my Windows Mobile OS (which has a very low overall usability), and I open up the keyboard to enter a note with my stylus pen, I can’t – I’m in read-only mode (indicated by the lack of a blinking text cursor inside the note field). Only after I hit “edit” at the bottom will I switch to edit mode to be able to enter something. I committed a “mode error.

Learn from your living room or heck, just stay in bed. The following are some educational and information opportunties coming up in the user centered design, human factors and search marketing industries. Human Factors

Why is it so difficult for me to get coverage of the college basketball tournament while I’m at work? After navigating the mess at cbs.sportsline.com to try to watch the games over the live internet feed, (they make it almost impossible to find the link for to watch the games live.) I’ve come to find out that the video for whatever reason doesn’t even work on my Linux box, not to mention crashed my browser several times. I’ve also heard a friend say he can’t get the video working on Firefox either for Windows. He had to use Internet Explorer. HELLO? I wasn’t even aware people still used Internet Explorer.

Usability and user centered designers, and those passionate about user behavior for everything from Internet applications, to search engines, to products you use everyday, sometimes come across as control freaks, anal retentive, irritating, boring, and demanding.

With just a shade under 50 submissions for the first round of the Usability Makeover Series, I had a hard time with the selection process. I ended up selecting Twiddy Outer Banks Rentals because I could tell they had already put a lot of effort into establishing user trust and usability. I think with a few tweaks the site could go from medium usable to extremely usable.