Intro to UXD
“On Saturday the 16th I gave a presentation, ‘Introduction to User Experience Design’ to the Society for Technical Communication at Ktech in Albuquerque.” (Chris Rivard – Clearwired)
Real Wireframes Get Real Results
“Wireframes are in fact the first design iteration, and this overlap of visual design can be uncomfortable for teams. However, denial is not the way to fix this issue. Good collaborative relationships should make this overlap an opportunity to reduce work, not fight over ownership. Concern that wireframe might be mistaken for a visual design, or worse, be criticized for lacking design, may be holding the entire project back. It is much easier to communicate within the project team than the outside audience. Consider ways to make the transition as smooth as possible, for example having the wireframe be designed to import into the designer tool without retyping all the text.” (Stephen Turbek – Boxes and Arrows)
Multilingual website: A different approach
“Before you can launch a successful multilingual website, certain issues need to be addressed, including how the webserver chooses what language to present to the specific end user and how to handle pages that need be launched but have not yet been (fully) translated. In the year 1517 Martin Luther needed no less than ninety five statements to cause a reformation. I will do my best to address all of the issues mentioned before in the next eight statements.” (Cornelis Kolbach – cornae.org)
Blogs and Community: Launching a new paradigm for online community?
“Online community has been an important part of the Internet, mainly forming around email lists, bulletin boards and forums. In recent years, the ascendancy of blogs has introduced a new platform for communities. This article looks at some of the emerging patterns of blog based communities and raises some questions for their strategic application.” (Nancy White – The Knowledge Tree) – courtesy of mathemagenic
Classifying Web Search Results
“Search is a subject that I’ve always been interested in. Especially internal or enterprise search, within a site. Not web search like Google or Yahoo!. Sure there’s lots of search engine optimization (SEO) or marketing (SEM) tricks you can do to improve your ranking in the web search engines. But that’s never really held any fascination for me.” (Chiara Fox – Adaptive Path)
On the Meta-Usability of User Interface Standards
“Interface standards provide context-specific guidance for implementing a system based on the task goals and functions within it. A solid standard provides guidance at two levels. At the level of look and feel, it ensures consistency throughout the application or site. To be meaningful in usability terms, the standard also must provide guidance to support a consistent experience at the functional level.” (Kath Straub – uiGarden.net)
Information Architecture Podcast Show Notes
“Today we pull from various podcasts to discuss the effectiveness of plain language to improve usability; including conversations with one of the founders of Information Architecture, Peter Morville and Vice President of products and usability at Google, Marissa Mayer.” (Jeff Parks)
Card Sorting with Donna Maurer
“(…) on the topic of card sorting. I think she has a very nice and practical approach to card sorting.” (Gerry Gaffney – UXpod)
Hear From 2005 Event Leaders
“Hear from World Usability Day 2005 event leaders the impact their programs had on their community and what’s on tap for 2006! Everyone was asked to introduce themselves, tell us about their World Usability Day event in 2005, the impact it had on their community and what their plans are for 2006.” (UPA World Usability Day – Nov. 14, 2006) – courtesy of keithinstone
Current Trends in Web Design
“(…) this article covers most of the current design trends which I recognize as high-quality ones.” (Pavel Senko – ontoinfo)
Beginner’s guide from a seasoned CSS designer
“(…) here are six of those principles, as I feel the advice is still timely for those of you just starting in design/CSS.” (Cameron Moll – Authentic Boredom)
Communicating Design: Developing Web Site Documentation for Design and Planning
“Communicating Design is for everyone who creates, uses, or approves documentation during the web design process. Covering 10 of the most common types of documents, the book walks readers through creating and presenting each deliverable. It describes the document’s essential contents, tips for preparing the document, strategies for managing risk, how to structure presentation meetings, and lots of other practical advice.” (Dan Brown) – courtesy of petermorville
Information visualization conversation with Fernanda Viegas and Mike Migurski
“(…) if you look at the academic information visualization community, researchers aren’t focusing on the social side of their applications. Infovis folks love to explore techniques that allow them to scale the data they are showing. But what happens when you scale the audience that’s looking at a visualization?” (Peter Merholz – IDEA 2006 Blog)
Understanding Business and Design Through Casino Poker
A four part series – “Business shares a lot in common with poker. The goal in both is to make as much money as possible—either over the long or short-term—to win. You are competing against other people with similar objectives, with a finite amount of potential returns available. In order to be successful, you must observe and understand people and situations, devise strategies based on those observations, and use skill to successfully execute the strategy and accomplish your objectives. In gambling, it’s called play; in business it’s called design.” (Dirk Knemeyer – Core77)
From GUI to E(motional) UI
“In 1988, Apple Computer produced some video scenarios showing how future computers would be able to understand hand gestures, read text, and respond to voice commands. Almost 20 years later, the world is still waiting for a natural way of using computers—though we are beginning to see some of our wildest dreams slowly emerge from the chaos of high technology and become real. In 2006, it is easy to believe that the masses will soon be able to use a computer without any keyboard or mouse. Beyond the constrained space of our personal computer’s monitor, keyboard, and mouse, I’m looking for the sort of revolution that would overtake the wild dream of Blade Runner. I can envision huge 3D virtual worlds and systems that are smart enough to feel a user’s mood and respond intelligently. Now, where do you want to go today?” (Leandro Agrò – UXmatters)
Book Review: Designing for Interaction
“Dan Saffer’s Designing for Interaction: Creating Smart Applications and Clever Devices was an ambitious undertaking. In fewer than 300 pages, he has attempted to cover the history, current practice, and notions about the future of the rapidly evolving discipline of interaction design (IxD). Whether you are simply curious about interaction design, are entering the profession yourself, or are collaborating with an interaction designer, Designing for Interaction is a good place to start your journey down the road of interaction design.” (Leo Frishberg – UXmatters)
The Place for Standards in Interaction Design and UI Design
“(…) standards are created over time. Use them based on your interpretation of their ubiquity and deconstruct which aspects of the system are truly standardized and which are variations on the theme around the standard. Conventions are to be respected, but use them within contexts and realize that using conventions outside their originating contexts can be troublesome for users who are expecting too much of the convention, but that convention may not work precisely in the new context you are designing in (…). Patterns and guidelines are tools to bring organization to the overwhelming infinite possibility of solutions. Don’t get caught laying on your laurels though and forgetting that our greatest asset as designers is creative discovery towards innovation through empathy.” (David Heller – uiGarden.net)
User Testing is Not Entertainment
“Don’t run your studies for the benefit of the people in the observation room. Test to discover the truth about the design, even when user tasks are boring to watch.” (Jakob Nielsen – Alertbox)
The Experience Design Institute
“The purpose of the Institute would be to give us a place to really get into these issues, other than the workplace, where real sharing across disciplines and approaches could take place on a regular, continuous basis.” (Bob Jakobson – Total Experience) – courtesy of experientia
FatDUX Blog
“FatDUX people are business professionals who understand the power of new media. We have a simple goal – to create Internet-based websites and applications that rise above the glorified business cards that populate much of today’s web. We share our skills, experience, and vision with clients who are looking for innovative communications solutions that grow their business.” (About FatDUX) – congrats eric