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Web Usability. What is usability. Usability is the measure of the quality of a user's experience when interacting with a product or system — whether a Web site, a software application, mobile technology, or any user-operated device. . In details.
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What is usability Usability is the measure of the quality of a user's experience when interacting with a product or system — whether a Web site, a software application, mobile technology, or any user-operated device.
In details Usability is a combination of factors that affect the user's experience with the product or system, including: • Ease of learning • Efficiency of use • Memorability • Error frequency and severity • Subjective satisfaction
Ease of learning How fast can a user who has never seen the user interface before learn it sufficiently well to accomplish basic tasks?
Efficiency of use Once an experienced user has learned to use the system, how fast can he or she accomplish tasks?
Memorability If a user has used the system before, can he or she remember enough to use it effectively the next time or does the user have to start over again learning everything?
Error frequency and severity How often do users make errors while using the system, how serious are these errors, and how do users recover from these errors?
Subjective satisfaction How much does the user like using the system?
Web usability 1 “On the Web, usability is a necessary condition for survival. If a website is difficult to use, people leave. If the homepage fails to clearly state what a company offers and what users can do on the site, people leave. If users get lost on a website, they leave. If a website’s information is hard to read or doesn’t answer users’ key questions, they leave. Note a pattern here?” Jakob Nielsen
Web usability 2 • Define the purpose of the Web site • Identify target users • Get to know your users • Define the users’ tasks • Determine scope, usage and change characteristics of the information • Define the “personality” of your site
Typical Web user behaviors which have design implications: • Users do not always start at your home page. • Users may be interested in only a small part of your site. • Users scan before deciding whether to read the entire page. • Users find it harder to read text on-line. • Users care about their time. • Users don’t want to spend unnecessary effort. • Users do get lost. • Users do appreciate pages that are pleasing. • Users do not have the same platform or the same browser. • Some users have text-based browsers.
Web Site Usability Checklist • Design a clear and simple navigation system • Keep the content clear and simple • Support your brand • Keep colors and page layout consistent • Provide for visitor feedback • Test the site on real users
A simple navigation system According to Web usability expert, Jakob Nielsen, a good navigation system should answer three questions: • Where am I? • Where have I been? • Where can I go?
Keep the content clear and simple 1 You may attract visitors with an eye-catching design, but content is what keeps them at the site and encourages them to return. Content is also the best way to boost your site in search engine rankings.
Keep the content clear and simple 2 • Make page content easy to scan • Avoid using text inside images whenever possible • Add ALT and TITLE attributes to all images • Contrast, contrast, contrast!
Support your brand A good brand creates or reinforces a user's impression of the site. When your site is strongly branded, that means that visitors will think of you first when they go shopping for your product or service.
Keep colors and page layout consistent Visitors should never click on an internal link in your site and wonder if they've left your web site. Choose your colors and fonts carefully and use them consistently throughout the site.
Provide for visitor feedback Forms are critical to the success of ecommerce sites. But any site usually needs at least one form to allow for user feedback.
Test the site on real users Usability testing helps you replicate the experience of the average Web site user and correct problems before online visitors find them.
