Usability for the Web: Designing Web Sites that Work (有污漬)

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Every stage in the design of a new web site is an opportunity to meet or miss deadlines and budgetary goals. Every stage is an opportunity to boost or undercut the site's usability.

This book tells you how to design usable web sites in a systematic process applicable to almost any business need. You get practical advice on managing the project and incorporating usability principles from the project's inception. This systematic usability process for web design has been developed by the authors and proven again and again in their own successful businesses.

A beacon in a sea of web design titles, this book treats web site usability as a preeminent, practical, and realizable business goal, not a buzzword or abstraction. The book is written for web designers and web project managers seeking a balance between usability goals and business concerns.

Features

• Examines the entire spectrum of usability issues, including architecture, navigation, graphical presentation, and page structure.
• Explains clearly the steps relevant to incorporating usability into every stage of the web development process, from requirements to tasks analysis, prototyping and mockups, to user testing, revision, and even postlaunch evaluations.
• Includes forms, checklists, and practical techniques that you can easily incorporate into your own projects.

Authors:

Tom Brinck is chief usability officer at Diamond Bullet Design, a firm specializing in web site design and usability consulting. Tom has M.S. degrees in computer science and cognitive psychology from Stanford University and the University of Michigan. He has done user interface research at Apple Computer, Toshiba, and Bellcore and is currently an adjunct faculty member at University of Michigan's School of Information.

Darren Gergle is a Ph.D. student in human-computer interaction at Carnegie Mellon University. Before beginning his graduate work, he was lead designer at Diamond Bullet Design.

Scott D. Wood is a senior scientist at Soar Technology, an R&D company focused on cognitive modeling, AI, and information visualization. He has more than ten years experience in software development, e-business consulting, cognitive modeling, and HCI. He holds a Ph.D. in computer science and engineering from the University of Michigan.

Table of Contents:

Click here for the full table of contents in PDF

Pervasive Usability

Chapter 1. Usability throughout the Design Process

Chapter 2. Target Audience and Target Platforms

Chapter 3. User Needs Analysis

Conceptual Design

Chapter 4. Task Analysis

Chapter 5. Information Architecture

Mockups and Prototypes

Chapter 6. Page Layout

Chapter 7. Envisioning Design

Production

Chapter 8. Writing for the Web

Chapter 9. Design Elements

Chapter 10. Usability in Software Development

Launch

Chapter 11. Pre-Launch and Post-Launch

Evaluation

Chapter 12. Usability Evalutation

Web-Enhanced:

PDF versions of forms in the book:

• Form 3-1 Client Interview/Web Site Information Worksheet
• Form 3-2 Goals Checklist
• Form 3-3 Web Site Survey
• Form 3-4 Focus Group Preparation Worksheet
• Form 5-1 Architecture Review Checklist
• Form 7-1 Mockup Checklist
• Form 7-2 Sample Mockup Development Schedule
• Form 7-3 Mockup Style Review Form
• Form 8-1 Writing Guidelines Checklist
• Form 9-1 Web Site Materials Request Form
• Form 9-2 Form for Brainstorming Icons
• Form 9-3 Form for Testing Whether an Icon Is Recognizable
• Form 9-4 Form for Testing Whether a Set of Icons Maps Uniquely to a Set of Concepts
• Form 11-1 Problem Report and Resolution Form
• Form 11-2 Problem Summary Report
• Form 11-3 Postproduction Checklist
• Form 11-4 Web Site Final Approval Form
• Form 11-5 Minimal Maintenance Checklist
• Form 12-1 A Detailed, General-Purpose Checklist
• Form 12-2 User Testing Preparation Worksheet
• Form 12-3 Typical Testing Script
• Form 12-4 Consent Form

Related Titles:

Human-Computer Interaction