Usability Articles
Circumventing The Dark Side of Design
A Tale Old As Time Humans have had the tendency to be deceptive to one another for longer than any existing historical document can recall. One of the most infamous examples of this act being used as a literary device is the myth of the Trojan Horse in Homer’s Odyssey. This victory trophy, given to […]
Why Software Accessibility Matters
I’m a designer with Color Vision Deficiency (CVD). A lot of people, myself included, refer to CVD as “color blindness.” The term “color blind” can be a bit misleading and gives rise to all kinds of funny questions like, “What color is my shirt?” or, “How do you dress yourself?” The reality is, I do […]
A Pandemic Isn’t a Reason to Stop Researching (but… It Might Be a Good Reason to Start)
When it comes to doing user research, I’m always going to recommend learning with someone in their own space. Seeing someone use your product in their environment will always add more context to your investigation. Generally, research falls into these categories: exploratory/generative research (looking to understand problems, needs, goals, etc.) evaluative research (benchmarking your understanding, […]
Importance of User Research
Unfortunately, the word research has gotten a bad rep over the years. Someone hears research and suddenly they think high dollars and waste of resources. Most people think of it being a waste of time without understanding it’s value, importance, and outcomes. But it’s important. So important that it’s probably the reason the experience of […]
Rocket Surgery Really is Easy!
I just finished reading Rocket Surgery Made Easy by Steve Krug (perhaps you know him from his other book Don’t Make Me Think). Here’s what I thought. What’s the point? Learn how to do usability testing yourself to gain most of the benefits of hiring someone to do it and lose most of the negatives […]
Usability, and more…
Last week, we had 3 days of training. Jeff Patton came in to talk to us about usability, and how to work with our clients to make sure we produce something they actually need. He introduced ideas and concepts that weren’t entirely new…he simply put the ideas and concepts together in a process that makes […]