Pete's Scrapbook

I think some of the most common design discussions/arguments I get into include:

• People DO scroll. Put the most important stuff above the “fold”sure, but don’t worry if users have to scroll to see the whole page.
• It’s more important that users know where a click is going to take them than that they can get somewhere in less clicks. Don’t reduce the number of clicks to get somewhere at the cost of being clear and informative.
• Don’t be scared of space. It’s really important, makes a layout seem more confident and actually helps people read more easily. Don’t squash things up.
• Don’t try and fit everything on the home page. It’s more than likely that users won’t land on the home page first anyway. Make good use of the promo spots on other pages too.
• It’s important to use good language with clear instructions - to help your users as much as possible rather than just using nice icons etc.

Today I came across this lovely article on the Six Revisions website that not only supports a lot of my arguments - it even gives references!

10 Usability Tips Based on Research Studies

I’ve bookmarked it in about 5 different places so that I can call on it next time I need to present my argumentsdiscussions.

I’ve been reading through a couple of interesting user experience articles this weekend.

Winning a user experience debate (UX Booth)

This provides some good advice about handling critique when it comes to usability and user experience. It also provides some suggestions for formulating responses. I quite like their idea of the “validation stack”: user evidence; user research; design theory - in that order.

Can experience be designed? (Information Architects)

This is a great article! Just the right balance between scepticism and sincerity. There are some people who make me cringe when they latch on to the “user experience” buzz words. This article cuts through a lot of the hype with what is obviously a real understanding of the challenges involved in designing and building interfaces with an emphasis on usability.

I’ve just read through a couple of good articles about the importance of designing for the user experience. They’re nice and simple and to the point.

When you startup with UX - UX Magazine
http://uxmag.com/strategy/when-you-startup-with-ux

This is a great article - giving an insight into how some of the successful startup companies use UX design and why it’s important to design for users.

Design the experience - Drawar
http://www.drawar.com/articles/design-the-experience

A nice overview of why user experience design is important on the web. A good one to keep an eye on because the ideas are going to be expanded on in the coming weeks.