Simian Design

January 6, 2004

User-Centered Design Findings for 2003

Human Factors International has put out Key Research Findings Related to User-Centered Design (2002ñ2003). Some good nuggets in here. Some of my favorites?

Design guidelines can be helpful, but they should not be construed as rules. Users can (and do) learn and adapt to new environments ñ even when things are not quite as expected. (Spool, 2002)

Design guidelines should be specific. Their effectiveness should be measurable and testable. That is, they should be "operationalized". (Spool, 2002)

Which is to say, spend time focusing and getting good guidelines that are specific. Then don't be afraid to break them. And, because I hate expandable/pop-out menus...

Expandable menus are slower to navigate than sequential menus. This is particularly true when users are deeper in a site. (Zaphiris, Schneiderman & Norman, 2002)

Sequential menus helps users develop a better sense of orientation within a site. (Zaphiris, Schneiderman & Norman, 2002)

But lots of good nuggets in here.

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Tagged As Design, Info Architecture, Interaction Design, Strategy, UI Design, Usability

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Posted at 08:48 AM