WebWord

“These are online games that, in my opinion, offer a “good experience” - good game design with an overall attention to quality. Unless otherwise noted, they’re all free, online, and available right now.”
Check out the list…

Once upon a time, I was worked with a company that hired 37signals to do web usability and design work. It really wasn’t that long ago that they only did consulting.
The ship has changed course. They are now a software company: “Simple softare to help you get organized.” Indeed, it […]

I need some help.
Does it bother you that athletes use peformance enhancing drugs? Does doping bother you? Be honest.
Now that you have worked through that exercise please explain the difference between “steroids” and cortisone. To make it easier, explain the difference between Mark McGuire and Giambi.
Mark evil, Jason wonderful. Right? […]

Despite the international audience of WebWord I find that I consistently and constantly use idioms. My expressions are probably very difficult for non-native English speakers to grasp yet I still use them.
The problem is that idioms are so easy to use. It’s as easy as pie to use them. The related problem […]

Daniel Szuc and Gerry Gaffney — “Planning is crucial if you want your user research efforts to be effective. You need to think about what information you need to gather, and why, before embarking on any research. Good planning, well communicated to the client or project, and followed by careful implementation will ensure your research […]

Doc Searls — “A friend of mine who watches these things tells me that Microsoft in the past would have shut down sales of pirated Windows copies on eBay — but isn’t any more, essentially allowing the eBay marketplace to discover the “true” value of the OS.”
Clever.
Read the posting…

“The idea behind is simple: There are many Usability Experts who want to contribute to software projects. And there are many developers who want to make their software more usable, and as a consequence, more successful.”
Visit the site…

“But what would happen if interest rates suddenly weren’t so benign, or if foreign governments, corporations and individuals stopped investing so heavily in America? Some analysts fear such actions could trigger doomsday scenarios in which the bills come due and Americans can’t pay, with devastating consequences for the entire economy.”
Good overview of debt in the […]

BrightPlanet — “U.S. businesses could achieve $33 billion in savings annually through better ways to find previously discovered Web content. This white paper describes how keeping search queries, the search process, and their attendant results persistent is the missing link in deriving true value from the global document warehouse that the Internet has become.”
Good points […]

Your Memory Stinks and Search Engines Smell It
Human memory is incredibly bad. In fact, it is so bad that you probably don’t remember what you ate for breakfast just a few days ago. The interesting thing is that human brainpower is pretty impressive; we are outstanding at pattern matching and problem solving. Memory has everything […]

“6. Be mindnumbingly simple. Extra clicks are deadly. People just won’t do it. ”
Good list. Read it. Take action.
Read the posting…

What Mamma Don’t Talk About
No one really understands search, or searching. Don’t be fooled! There is a poverty of understanding on this topic for many reasons, but the primary reasons are hubris and ignorance. Too many people are reluctant to admit they don’t understand search, and too many in turn are too weak to resist […]