CLSC 555 Information Systems Webliography: Usability of Systems
By
Carolyn Jensen

 

|Website Design | Usability Guidelines | Usability Testing |

 

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• Website Design
  • Web Design & Usability from WebReference.com
    A collection of Usability links including articles, manufacturers' usability design specs, and usability collections. Sources are varied, from academics to engineers, and topics cover a broad spectrum of different aspects of web design. Organization of the links, however, seems random and a bit confusing.
  • Usability First
    Provides information and resources for key issues related to usability in website design. A well organized page with definitions of key terms, an introduction to usability, and further resources section. Content seems objective, but the site is created by a digital services firm for which the information could be interpreted as advertising.
  • Designing More Usable Web Sites
    A list of related sites concerned with usability for disabled users including both governmental and private initiatives, forums and new technologies. A good perspective on usability that addresses concerns beyond the aesthetic including color blindness and voice recognition programs. The site is difficult to navigate, with general disability articles categorized together with more specific information.
  • Web Site Development Information
    General web authoring resources and tips, including detailed, specific good design practices. Addresses a broad spectrum of issues and concerns, all geared toward providing trouble-free access and enhanced usability. Includes reviews from users, but most are out-of-date.
  • Millward Brown IntelliQuest: Web Site Evaluations
    An example of a market research firm concerned with web design, usability, and evaluation of web sites . Interesting private-sector perspective on how heavily usability affects the perception of the product. Not particularly useful to the non-business owner.
  • Why Are Most Web Pages Organized in Similar Ways?
    Article breaks down the basic structure of a web page, and the reasons why certain layouts are more usable than others. Very simple and clear, with examples from well known web pages such as Yahoo and the New York Times. An individual perspective, with no real authority.
  • Design Elements
    Includes Style guides, standards, and guidance on image use. Covers the significant barriers to usability, explaining the problems and offering tips to solve them. Not as comprehensive as other sites.
  • Non-Dithering Colors in Browsers
    Describes the 216 palette, authored by the first person to identify and publish the colors. Organizes the colors by hue and value, with interesting commentary by the author. Very specific information, more useful historically than practically.
  • Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design
    Jakob Nielsen's classic article on typical trouble spots for web pages. A standard that still applies, forms the basis of much of the writing on web page usability. Slightly out of date, although the author adds updates to his site.
  • Web Pages that Suck
    A lighthearted survey of web pages that are flawed in various respects in order to help the user improve usability and good design by looking at bad design. Funny, interesting and teaches by example. An individual, biased view of what constitutes bad design.

• Usability Guidelines
  • Usable Web: 1056 links about web usability
    
  Techniques, design tips, and discussion of issues for web usability professionals, among other topics.  Very broad and comprehensive coverage of the topic.  THe collection of links, however, have not been updated since 2003 and will not be updated in the future, according to the author. 
  
•  The Usable Web
  Tips and techniques for building reader friendly Web pages.  A collection of easy to understand-, basic articles.  The scope of the page is not as wide as other similar sites. 
  
• Readability Of Websites With Various Foreground/Background Color Combinations, Font Types And Word Styles
  Study results showing the importance of legibility, and in turn, readability, to usability. Results are very interesting, exploring the differences in readability caused by various combinations of fonts and colors. The results might be thought too detailed and scientific to be extremely useful.
• Improving Web Site Usability and Appeal
  Guidelines compiled by MSN Usability Research address content quality, ease of use, and emotional response. Good depth and breadth of issues covered. Lots of text without examples makes it difficult to absorb.
• Usability Guidelines
  Scorecard lists key issues in usability such as navigation, functionality, user control and language and content. Simple, nicely broken down criteria for usability guidelines. Site does not offer instructions on how to explain a rating on the various measures of performance.
• Web Usability Guidelines
  College of New Jersey Information Technology Department's advice on web design. Novel approaches include "separate meaning from presentation" and "provide alternative descriptions for all images and multimedia." List adapted from an independent consultancy firm.
• Usability Guidelines for Web Sites
  A compilation of usability recommendations culled from a variety of sources. Recommendations are summarized nicely, with the emphasis always on the audience. List is not comprehensive, and advice is general enough to require further reading.
• Guidelines for Designing Usable World Wide Web Pages
  Study assessing the impact of specific measures on usability such as placement and font size of headers and footers and icon consistency. Introduces some finer points of usability, and offers an objective measure by which to judge the results. The topic may be too narrow for some users.
• Art and the Zen of web sites
  Informal discussion of usability concepts from the perspective of the audience. Format of putting recommendations in the form of questions is very effective. Not for the user looking for quick easy reference points for improving usability.
• Usability Must Die
  A perspective on the usability movement that takes issue with usability as a profession for advertisers and marketers. Interesting take on the issue, with a little heard opinion expressed and many seemingly valid points ("Usability is a tool that should be in the kit of all software designers/programmers.") The author, however, tends to rant, thereby lessening his credibility.
• Research-Based Web Design & Usability Guidelines
  Government publication consisting of 128 pages; addresses usability guidelines, their construction, and piece-by-piece analysis of the usability of a site. The most thorough resource on the topic, users can download the entire text in pdf. format. The detail may be too fine for some users.

• Usability Testing
  • Comparison of Usability Evaluation Methods (UEMs)
    A breakdown in chart form of a variety of usability testing methods with type, description, synopsis, pros and cons offered. Very clear, well laid out presentation. Site assumes familiarity with the topic in order to appreciate commentary.
  • Usability Testing in Practice
    An overview in plain language of the types and steps of different types of usability testing, including heuristic evaluation. Conversational style makes the process easier to comprehend. Methods covered not as comprehensive as on other sites.
  • Web design 'causes confusion'
    BBC report on a study of web users and their perceptions of content. Interesting topic showing the real life significance of design on usability. Site does not contain much detail on actual testing procedures.
  • Detecting 'Broke': Usability Testing of Library Web Sites
    The Yale University Library, in completing two usability studies of its Research Workstation web site, presents the methods used to plan and conduct the studies, and discusses several ways of evaluating the data for long and short-term Web site planning. Good case study for library web site testing. An example of only one particular method of testing (field study.)
  • Designing for the User: How to Test for Usability
    Conference notes from Washington State University include Usability Assessment Methodologies and Procedures for Formal Usability Testing. Thorough overview of testing methods with comment and analysis. Assumes extensive background knowledge of field, data from 2001.
  • Usability testing at OCLC
    OCLC's procedures for usability testing explained, including lab study, remote testing, and heuristic evaluation. In-depth explanation of the methodology, including what to test and how they test. No actual studies or results are offered.
  • Usability testing of library websites: Selected resources
    A compilation of articles, books and websites on the topic. Articles and books mainly academic in nature and peer reviewed. Website contains no real information in and of itself aside from further resources.
  • The Usability Methods Toolbox
    Describes an exhaustive list of testing methods and techniques used in usability evaluation. Offers several paragraphs explaining the method, advice on when it should be used, and further resources. Site has not been updated since 1998.
  • Digital Library of MIT Theses Usability Test Results
    MIT study where users were given 5 tasks to complete, asked post-test questions, and asked to do the same with an alternate image display system at another institution. Site offers detailed information on Methodology, questions asked, and results. Results, while often generalizable, are sometimes specific to the institution and its system.

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Created by Carolyn Jensen
© Carolyn Jensen 2004