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Heuristic evaluation of documentation?

Subject: Heuristic evaluation of documentation?
From: Jean Hollis Weber <jean -at- jeanweber -dot- com>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Sat, 04 Oct 2003 10:36:10 +1000


Geoff Hart wrote,

Be careful with Neilsen. He's an extremely bright man who's added much
that's good to our field, but he also frequently mistakes personal
preference for established fact. For example, I've used some of the Web
sites he claims are great based on his heuristic reviews and design
guidelines, and had a terrible time getting to where I wanted to go.

Sometimes the site designers change the site after someone reviews it, turning it from very usable to very unusable. I've had many recent experiences of going back to sites that I've been happy with in the past, and found them redesigned to the point that I couldn't find anything, or at least not easily. Most irritating.

Of course, if the site's navigation is unchanged from the time Neilsen reviewed it, then your comment about personal preference is spot on. Another area where many reviewers' preferences (or prejudices based on out-of-date research, perhaps) are at odds with many users' preferences is in the short vs long pages debate.

Regards, Jean
Jean Hollis Weber
jean -at- jeanweber -dot- com
The Technical Editors' Eyrie http://www.jeanweber.com/


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