iPad Usability

What I got out of these two articles is that the user experience for iPads (and I would think tablets in general) still has a ways to go in terms of usability. I tend to agree more with the study than the rebuttal that usability should be standardized in at least some form. This doesn't mean that a designer cannot be creative, but the designer still has to take into consideration the ease of use. I'm a tablet user, and I find myself frustrated when a website tried to optimize itself a tablet, and makes the experience worse than the desktop experience. As for apps that are meant as a substitution for an existing website, I have found that if that app doesn't provide a better user experience than the website, I'll uninstall the app and just use the website.

As the study showed, there have been significant improvements in tablet ease of use for the web, but there is still progress to be made. Splash pages can be a bane of tablet (and phone) users. They rarely serve any purpose other than to give information about the app that you just downloaded, and the fact that it is something that will pop up every time you start that app is ridiculous. I'm also not a fan of using swipes on a website, even if it's designed for tablets. They rarely work as well as their app counterparts, as they often flow at a choppy rate instead of smooth like the app does (or at least should). Also, it should never be easy to accidentally click/select something!

I did like what was discussed about memorability. I'm an avid gamer, so for myself, remembering how something works once I've used it is usually not a problem. The only time it can become an issue is if the interface is overly complicated, which a tablet app shouldn't be.

It's good to see that the experience is improving for tablet users. This will become more and more important down the road as tablets become more available and common (they're reaching that $100 price point that will put them in more hands than ever before). If a designer can't adapt properly to that interface, they will get lost in the shuffle with those who do properly adapt.

Don't Make Me Think - Chapters 1-3

I love how the author in chapter lays it all out so simply in chapter one. The idea of "don't make me think," is really quite sound. I do find myself quite frustrated when I visit a particular website and can't figure it out quickly. It does seem like this problem is more prevalent in corporate sites than in private, user run sites. One of the things that stood out to me in this chapter is that with just a little thinking on the designer's part, a site with tricky or difficult usability can be modified to something much more user friendly. This can be something as simple as changing buzz-words that were used (like Jobs vs Jobs-o-Rama) or changing a not so obvious link to an obviously clickable button.

Chapter two focused on the user experience when they first visit a website. After reading it, even as a designer I can see some of myself in what the author describes. With so much information out there, and so many sites that offer such similar information, it’s more important to design your site in a way that the user will find what they’re looking for with minimal effort. I know that when I go to Amazon, which is a site that I visit daily, I’m often looking for something specific on the homepage. If I don’t find it right away, I’m not going to dig through the homepage, I’m going to either go straight to the menu to take me to the category I’m looking for, or I’m going to simply type what I’m looking for in the search bar and go on from there. I’m rarely interested in any of the other information on there that doesn't pertain to what I’m specifically looking for. The average user is likely to spend even less time searching for what they want than I am, so you need to make it as easy as possible or you risk losing them to someone who will.

The third chapter goes into the idea of using traditional media designs for building your website. The best example was the idea of using a newspaper design as a starting point. You have the name of the site at the top, your main feature under the name (like a story headline, main product information, etc.), and you have your sidebar which can be a table of contents or additional headlines (like on a shopping site the list of categories available or a blog with bio info and additional links). It once again focuses on how a user looks at your site. Like a newspaper headline, you want to design your site to show the user what you feel is the most important feature on your website and to go there. You want to make it easy and obvious so they aren't trying to figure out where things are like links, descriptions, and pictures are. A designer shouldn't be afraid to use traditional conventions, because they work. That doesn't mean that a designer can’t try to come up with something new, but they had better make sure that if they do, it’s at least as good at the original convention if not better.

Mistakes In Web Design

The article in question (Top 10 Mistakes in Web Design) points out some excellent examples of poor design in web pages. The mistakes that are presented are issues that ultimately make a website more difficult for a user to navigate. There are definitely parts of this article that I agree with, while there are other aspects that I’ll admit I've never noticed as annoying or bad when browsing.

The one that stood out to me that I probably agree with the most is the idea of using PDF files for text (#2). This has always bothered me for a couple of reasons. First, it required me to have a PDF reader of some sort. While this typically isn't really a problem on a PC/MAC, it can be a major issue on a tablet or smartphone. Another reason I dislike PDF files as normal text is that I find that they slow down my device, as well as my general experience with the website I’m browsing. Again, this is more prevalent in mobile devices that tend to have slower processors and less memory, not to mention the fact that PDF files can be very difficult to read on screens smaller than a tablet.

Another aspect I agree with involves fixed text sizes (#5). I wear glasses and am near sighted, which means a lot of the time when I’m reading a website (especially on my tablet or phone), I’m doing so without my glasses on. When text is too small (without me having to zoom in), I find it quite frustrating. I’m not saying the site should be entirely in 24 point fonts, but I shouldn't have to constantly adjust the zoom in my web browser to read your site.

One part I had to think hard about whether I agreed with or not was #7, Everything That Looks Like an Advertisement. Now I agree with the fact that some of the aspects of advertisements are not the best options when trying to get a user to view parts of your site. Animations are a thing of the past as far as most websites go. When I took my web design class back in 1997 or ‘98 (it’s been a while), they were all the rage. Since then, I've discovered that they’re mostly just annoying and skip them altogether (and depending on how intrusive they are, possibly the entire site). I also agree that pop-ups have no place on any website, regardless of whether it’s advertising or not. I often associate pop-ups with ad-ware and malware so I avoid any site that uses them, or I use an pop-up blocker (which means I’m not seeing whatever the designer wanted me to see).

I was going to say that I disagreed with the part regarding banner blindness, until I read the article that was linked and watched the eye tracking video. I’ll admit I was amazed as how quickly the user moved through the page, barely acknowledging the Fidelity ad, which was almost immediately covered partially by a drop-down menu. With that additional information, I can see why using banners are part of your regular website design might not be a good idea.

In regards to violating design conventions, I can see where it might be a good idea to do so. An example would be if an artist was looking to show off a particular style. Now, this doesn’t mean that the design should be overdone, what it does mean is that if you’re looking to distinguish yourself from the pack, doing something different may be necessary. With that in mind, the designer still needs to keep the rules of usability in mind, because if the user finds the site difficult to navigate, they will likely leave and look elsewhere.

I’ll admit, there are parts of the article that I have little experience in, such as low search engine visibility and bad searches. I do understand though that these are incredibly important aspects to keeping the user on your site. If they can’t find what they’re looking for (I know I do this), they will look elsewhere. Since the user isn't going to take a lot of time wading through page after page of text looking for their answers it is often faster to just go down the list of search engine finds.

For example, if I’m looking for information on a movie and I don’t find it on Wikipedia in a reasonable amount of time, I will likely next go to IMDB to find my information. That means that for future searches I’m more likely to just go to IMDB since Wikipedia didn't have the information I was looking for the last time.

The article does bring up a lot of good examples, and I definitely feel that they will be useful as I start working on my own interfaces and websites.

Mobile Usability

In reading the two articles (Mobile Usability Update 2011 & Tablet Usability 2013), as someone who owns both a tablet and touch phone, I do agree with the fact that companies still have a ways to go in improving the web experience with those types of devices. I especially noticed this in the tablet study. My tablet is an Android based, and one of my biggest complaints regarding apps, is that many of the apps are simply blown-up versions of the apps for phones. This is a problem that seems less common on the iPad.

My disappointment in this is that they don’t take advantage of the extra screen space that a tablet provides. In situations like that, I often find myself using the web page itself instead of the app. The downside to this is that a well-designed app is typically faster and easier to navigate than a web page. The website, while it may provide the most usability and information, can be hampered by the web browser that you’re using (and there is no shortage of good and bad browsers out there).

Another issue I agree with is in the use of mobile websites. A major issue I have is when using my phone and a mobile website is available, either the website does not provide an easy way to find it (if I’m not taken to it automatically). It also works the other way when I’m using my tablet and I’m taken automatically to a mobile site, often an easy way to get to the full desktop site is not available.

One thing I didn’t agree with was from the 2013 study regarding gestures. I’ve not had issues regarding gestures when navigating apps. My tablet has a ten-inch screen, so seeing everything in the app or a web site is usually not a problem for me, so I typically don’t find myself missing things that I’m intentionally looking for. I can see where this could be an issue for those that either have smaller tablets (like the iPad mini) or have difficulty seeing.

I am happy to see that, according to both of the studies, companies do appear to be working to improve the mobile web experience for all users (minus the function phones, which are quickly becoming obsolete).

First!

I've never understood people who post "First!"on forums and message boards.