WebWord.com Newsletter Issue #40

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ISSUE #40

16-January-2000

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                WebWord.com Newsletter
              "Usability & the Internet"
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                      List Owner 
                    John S. Rhodes 
                   John@WebWord.com
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January 29, 2000                    Newsletter #40
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Table of Contents

1. Who is Jakob Siegal?
2. Reader Feedback: How Useful is Cool? (Part I)
3. Reader Feedback: How Useful is Cool? (Part II)
4. Reader Feedback: Wal-mart.com
5. International Usability: The Community Doesn't Exist?
6. Request: International Usability Resources
7. What Can You Find at WebWord.com?


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ITEM #1

A new WebWord.com interview is now online:
--> http://webword.com/interviews/flanders.html

"Who is Jakob Siegal?"

Vincent Flanders knows why web pages suck. He wrote
the book on it, literally. His Web Pages That Suck
web site, which was turned into a book, is one of the 
best out there for folks that want to learn how to 
create better web sites. He understands why sites are
so bad. And, he's witty.

I asked Vincent several questions, such as:

  * What are the three most common things web 
    designers do to ruin their web pages? 

  * Within some context of your choice, describe the 
    perfect web page.  

  * Imagine that you suddenly had the power to launch 
    an attack against every single web page on the 
    internet. What would you eliminate or destroy in 
    your moment of glory?  


You can read the interview here:
--> http://webword.com/interviews/flanders.html


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ITEM #2

Reader Feedback: How Useful is Cool? (Part I)

In the last WebWord.com newsletter (#39) I pointed
to a site that used some code to produce an effect
that seemed pretty useless to me... 
http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Orchard/6104/

Here is some reader feedback about that effect:

From James, a Micromuse Web Administrator:

  "Very good point about the crosshair script John.  
  After thinking it was a 'cool' effect for about 10 
  seconds, enough to look at the code, it began to 
  annoy me intensely, as there was no way to stop it.  
  The same goes for the annoying yet clever effect at
  <http://stud1.tuwien.ac.at/~e9227474/english.htm>, 
  a site for a useful thumbnail creation product. 

  "A lot of the new commercial sites opening here in 
  Britain seem to be creative driven and very big on 
  design that looks good but has little functionality 
  and is very heavy - some even demand that the user 
  is using a fast web connection and has a Shockwave 
  plug-in, this annoys even users who have both.  The 
  prime example is <http://www.boo.com> .  

  "What the grid script could be used for, with much 
  modification, would be to box select with two clicks
  an area of a picture for enlargement, eg a map, but 
  this would not be totally intuitive.

  "Great newsletter and site, keep it up."

James, thanks for the comments. It is my impression 
that for every new web usability professional, there
are about 30 new designers that don't care about the 
customer experience. Perhaps this is harsh, and 
perhaps this will make people angry. However, I know
that when I am designing sites I design what *I* like.
I am a victim of my own design whims, just like everyone 
else. It is only when I test users and perform 
usability evaluations do I see the site from the 
outside. What do others think? Comments? Write me 
at john@webword.com


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ITEM #3

Reader Feedback: How Useful is Cool? (Part II)

Here's what Sean Lindsay, Editor of DisabilityTimes.com,
had to say:

  "Apart from the general silliness of the 'cool 
  document crosshair' effect (which as you've probably
  noticed significantly reduces readability on the 
  page), there are some legitimate uses for such 
  scripted effects, and unfortunately one huge 
  drawback.

  "It is possible in IE5 to change the cursor image 
  using just style sheets. I've used it to ensure that
  a script-driven text button appears exactly like a 
  regular hyperlink, with a 'hand' cursor. This helps 
  people understand that it's a clickable function.

  "Of course, by declaring styles for various classes 
  of hyperlinks, designers could use different cursor 
  images to indicate different kinds of links, eg a 
  PDF symbol for PDF download links, a credit card for
  an ecommerce link, email icon for a mailto: link, 
  etc. It's a method of giving the user more 
  information about the link they're about to click on.

  "There's even a company that markets a 'browser 
  add-on' which provides a complex way for designers 
  to achieve the same effect: http://www.cometcursor.com/
  Who even have their very own privacy scare (Wired, 
  30 Nov 1999):
  http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,32788,00.html

  "The feature does have some value for children's 
  websites, where changing cursors could be used as a 
  reading aid.

  "The drawback of this is that the information about 
  the link is stored in a location that is inaccessible
  to blind users. Plus a flickery cursor changing to 
  previously unseen images is potentially confusing to 
  any user, let alone users with cognitive disabilities.

  "It's better to label links on the page, in a 
  degradable way. See for example the use of icons on 
  my website, to indicate external links and email 
  links: http://www.DisabilityTimes.com/  This also 
  showcases URLs without file extensions, that we 
  discussed some time ago. For example the website's 
  Accessibility Policy is:
  http://www.disabilitytimes.com/about/policy/accessibility

  "If you're viewing the site in IE, you'll see the 
  (positive) effect of the cursor style sheet. In the 
  navigation bar is a link entitled 'Bookmark this 
  Page!'. This is actually a script button, marked up 
  with styles so it appears as a hyperlink. It makes 
  its function clearer, I believe."

Sean, great comments. Very useful and very informative.
Visit Disability Times Today...

-->  http://www.DisabilityTimes.com


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ITEM #4

Reader Feedback: Wal-mart.com

From Mary Beth Restivo:

  "I read with great interest the comments about 
  WalMart's new site.  I wanted to let you in on what I 
  consider a very well run site: petsmart.com

  "With 10 pets (2 dogs, 7 cats and a rabbit), I've set 
  up an account thru their site for automatic deliveries.
  I admit it did take a couple of tries to get the 
  quantities and delivery times right.  That was mostly 
  because I wasn't sure how much stuff I go thru in a 
  month.  But now I don't even have to think about it. 

  "And as far as responsiveness, they are great.  I've 
  emailed them on a few occasions about some items.  
  Initially, there were specific products I wanted to 
  see on the site; a particular type of cat litter and 
  a specific type and size bag of dog food.  Well, they 
  emailed me back within a couple of days (apologizing 
  for the delay!) saying my items would be added within
  a month.  And they were.  Now that's what I call 
  customer satisfaction!

  "I'll tell you, toysrus.com could take some lessons 
  from petsmart.com.  Even with the holidays, I was able
  to order extra items (mostly Christmas presents) 
  online from petsmart.com and they showed up within a 
  week.  No excuses, no 'sorry we didn't anticipate the 
  large volume'.  They've got their act together."

Mary Beth, thanks for the comments. Hearing what people
experience on the front lines is very useful. It shows
us how to treat, or not treat, our own customers. 


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ITEM #5

International Usability: The Community Doesn't Exist?

Why is it so hard to find information on usability 
around the world? I've looked around quite a bit and,
to my dismay, there is a dearth of information. Here
are a few items I found on Jakob Neilen's useit.com:

International Web Usability
--> http://www.useit.com/alertbox/9608.html

International Usability Testing
--> http://www.useit.com/papers/international_usetest.html

But the question is still there. Why is there is so 
little information on usability as it applies to 
different cultures and different countries? In my
experience, there are few firms outside the United 
States that do usability testing. It is impossible, in
my mind, to think that usability is mainly an American
thing. Yes, I know that there are interface design and
usability companies in New Zealand, Australia, Great 
Britain, and the like. But, they are basically 
"Americanized" in my opinion. Can someone please tell 
me what's going on. Email me at john@webword.com


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ITEM #6

Request: International Usability Resources

On the heels of item #5 above...

I'm looking for international usability stories and 
information. I'd like to expand the scope of 
WebWord.com to cover these issues around the globe. 
If you know of resources or if you have content to share
please email me at john@webword.com

--

My request was on the home page of WebWord.com a few 
days ago. Here's some early feedback from Carlos R. 
Tirado of Tremendo.com <http://tremendo.com>:

  "Alejandro Floría Cortés from Zaragoza in Spain, has 
  some work available on the web (in Spanish of course), 
  with the title 'Usabilidad y Diseño Centrado en el 
  Usuario" meaning: "User centered usability and design', 
  at the following URL: 
  http://www.entrelinea.com/usabilidad/presentacion.htm

  "Alejandro cares about usability a lot, and has 
  communicated with Spanish 'webloggers' Gustavo Arizpe
  (http://estrategica.editthispage.com/), Raúl R.
  (http://www.subte.com/index.shtml) and me 
  (http://tremendo.com/bitacora/) and some consultants 
  in Argentina, hoping to create a spanish-speaking 
  community on usability. He can be reached at 
  alejandrofc00@hotmail.com ."

Thanks Carlos. I hope that other readers from around the
world share their ideas and resources. I'd be happy to
put together an Internal Usability Resources Page on
WebWord.com, but I'll need your help. Please email me
at john@webword.com

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ITEM #7

What Can You Find at WebWord.com?

Articles (Moving WebWord)
<http://webword.com/moving/>

Expert Interviews 
<http://webword.com/interviews/> 

Recommended Books
<http://webword.com/books/booksindex.html>

Newsletter Archive
<http://webword.com/archive>

Usability Reports 
<http://webword.com/reports>

Recommended Web Sites
<http://webword.com/hotsites.html>

Free Stuff
<http://webword.com/freestuff.html>

Friends
<http://webword.com/friends.html>


---- End of WebWord.com Usability Newsletter #40 ------

(c)1998-99 by John S. Rhodes. All rights reserved.

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