Re: Usability Assessment: A Common Sense Activity

[David Neeley <dbneeley -at- gmail -dot- com>]

Steven,

To put it simply, in this post you are talking through your hat with
scant specialized knowledge regarding what a truly professional
"usability expert" might know or do.

Unfortunately, just as in technical writing, there are too many
poseurs and too few true professionals. That does not mean there are
no such experts around--merely that not everyone who claims the
distinction can justify it through performance.

Generally, a true usability expert will study the responses to the
product by many users to determine where there might be difficulties
that can be overcome not by documentation (usually) but by changing
the nature of the product's interface. Thus, the suggestions that flow
from such a study are based upon actual observation in the real world
rather than simply from theories.

Of course, after some experience is gained, some things will become
well-known and rarely need to be studied again. Clumsy design mistakes
in software interfaces, for example, are often among these. For
example, some time ago I downloaded an interesting document from Apple
that discussed the shortcomings of the Windows interface and
illustrated the benefits of a consistent look and feel for the user.

One very interesting usability specialist is Jakob Nielsen,
www.useit.com. You may or may not agree with his theories, but at
least he speaks with considerable experience. (He presently has an
interesting comment on the use of email newsletters by both candidates
during the last week of the campaign--from a usability standpoint.)

I contend that developers are rarely the ones to be in final charge of
a program interface...nor, unfortunately, are tech writers. Both
become accustomed to some kinds of interaction that quickly become
habits--and, like all habits, are rarely questioned sufficiently. If
you doubt this, consider how many users of Word, for instance, have
taken the time to train themselves properly on most of the keyboard
shortcuts available, even though the use of these shortcuts is
demonstrably faster and easier than always using the mouse.

One precept I have found to be useful is that making complex things
simple to use is often very difficult. In software, too many programs
offer the user far too many non-essential choices in the interface,
and attempts to make them more context-aware are often also
questionable at best...again, Office would be an exemplar of this.

Personally, I wish more applications had multiple interface options to
fit users of various levels of expertise. A freeware HTML editor, 1st
Page 2000, has offered this feature for some years now...and, properly
executed, it would be very useful in many other applications.
www.evrsoft.com

Finally, in designing anything, I have observed that many of the best
practitioners often have a sense of beauty they often refer to as
"elegance." A mathematician may find a particular proof "elegant" when
it is expressed economically but correctly. A hand tool designer may
consider a particular execution "elegant" when it fits the hand
beautifully and helps in the accomplishment of its designed tasks. An
industrial designer, in fact, will often say that the most useful
items are often also the most beautiful.

Interface designers are similar. If you doubt it, look at the regard
that Apple is held in because of their hardware and software
designs...and compare them with Microsoft's products.

David

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