All posts from
October 2008

Interplay between Usability Evaluation and Software Development PDF Logo

Added on 15 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
Proceedings of the International Workshop – “The goal of this workshop is to bring together researchers and practitioners from the Human Computer Interaction and Software Engineering fields to determine the state-of-the-art in the interplay between usability evaluation and software development and to generate ideas for new and improved relations between these activities. The aim is to base the determination of the current state on empirical studies. Presentations of new ideas on how to improve the interplay between HCI & SE to the design of usable software systems should also be based on empirical studies.” (MAUSE COST Action 294)

An Interview with John Carroll

Added on 14 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“If you are ACM, you always put the computer first! (…) today, we identify professions like usability engineer and interaction designer, even user experience designer. But in the early days, it was human factors engineers and documentation designers. That human factors constituency was critical in the early days.” (Tamara Adlin – UX Pioneers)

Ontology of Folksonomy: A Mash-up of Apples and Oranges

Added on 14 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“Ontologies are enabling technology for the Semantic Web. They are a means for people to state what they mean by the terms used in data that they might generate, share, or consume. Folksonomies are an emergent phenomenon of the Social Web. They arise from data about how people associate terms with content that they generate, share, or consume. Recently the two ideas have been put into opposition, as if they were right and left poles of a political spectrum. This is a false dichotomy; they are more like apples and oranges. In fact, as the Semantic Web matures and the Social Web grows, there is increasing value in applying Semantic Web technologies to the data of the Social Web. This article is an attempt to clarify the distinct roles for ontologies and folksonomies, and previews some new work that applies the two ideas together – an ontology of folksonomy.” (Tom Gruber)

Start-up developing new Web interaction paradigm

Added on 14 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“According to the Siri PR pitch, the product is ‘a new interaction paradigm for the consumer Internet experience that applies intelligence at the interface.’ (…) If we want our technology to have world-changing impact, bring it to the interface: get useful knowledge from all those intelligent people on the Internet give the benefit of this knowledge to everyone, says Tom Gruber.” (Dan Farber – CNET)

Web Apps Are Dead – Long Live Web Apps

Added on 10 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“Edwin Aoki is a Technology Fellow at AOL. Holding a joint degree in Computer Science and Sociology from Harvard College, Edwin believes strongly in the ability of technology to bring people closer together and to make our lives easier. He’s worked at Apple Computer, GO Corporation, and Intuit before joining Netscape Communications in 1996. At Netscape, Edwin worked on the Netscape Communicator browser, enterprise products, and web applications prior to the company’s acquisition by AOL. Currently, Edwin oversees architecture and technology strategy for many of AOL’s consumer facing desktop, web, and mobile products. A published author and California native, Edwin is based out of AOL’s Silicon Valley office. When he’s not at work, Edwin is involved in wildlife conservation and likes to spend time with big cats.” (Future of Web Apps London 2008)

Technology & Psychology

Added on 10 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“Suw Charman-Anderson is a social software expert specialising in the use of blogs wikis, and other Web 2.0 tools in business. She’s worked with British and American companies – in the tech, pharma, travel, media, financial and public relations sectors – to help them understand how social software can be used both behind the firewall and for customer communications. Suw worked as a freelance web designer and project manager from 1998 to 2002, designing websites and intranet sites for companies such as PricewaterhouseCoopers and Hutchison3G (now 3). She then ran her own internet start-up for two years before turning her passion for blogging into a successful consultancy.” (Future of Web Apps London 2008)

How do UK banks’ websites treat worried customers?

Added on 8 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“I’m following the ‘credit crisis’ with my CXP hat on, and specifically look at how banks try to keep their customers calm, explain what is happening in simple language, and make it easy for worried customers to talk to someone at the bank. Because it is hard to find out what instructions employees are getting to comfort customers, or what mail is being sent to customers, I went to the homepages of the top 20 banks in the UK and checked the experience customers are receiving.” (Tim van Tongeren – The Experience Design Scout)

Extending Card-Sorting Techniques to Inform the Design of Web Site Hierarchies

Added on 6 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“Card sorting is a useful technique for discovering user perspectives on site navigation. However, designers or user researchers who conduct card-sorting exercises should be aware of the method’s challenges and assumptions. This column has presented a number of alternative methods that can extend and complement card sorting and thus provide the most comprehensive insights for designing an effective information hierarchy.” (Michael Hawley – UXmatters)

In Search of Strategic Relevance for UX Teams

Added on 6 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“To make UX strategically relevant – so UX is not an afterthought, but can contribute to strategy – you need to produce stunning results that blow away your stakeholders. Then, you’ll be able to hire more world-class researchers and designers. Once you have truly great people onboard, work to build trust. Achieving this, in part, depends on your organizational structure, so demonstrate your thought-leadership by recommending the right model for the organization, not just the model that’s right for you at the moment.” (Jim Nieters and Laurie Pattison – UXmatters)

Concepts versus Products: Usability is about Execution

Added on 3 October 2008 Peter Bogaards
“You can have a great plan for a User Experience Strategy, but you should really consider whether your company is able to execute that strategy. The same thing goes for product concepts, I believe. A groundbreaking, radical new product concept is inspiring, but if your company is currently not able to realize it and needs some time to live up to the strategy, by exposing your product concept to the public you have just told everyone in what direction you will be heading in the coming years.” (Jasper van Kuijk – uselog)