che Usability?

Video killed the radio star; is it also killing your web site’s usability?

Maybe that question is a bit dramatic, but research shows that users view well-crafted short videos that take advantage of the medium’s dynamic nature — and by short I mean between 30 and 60 seconds.

Read the rest of this entry »

Got my hands on TechSmith’s Morae 2.0 about a month ago and I’m digging it.

Morae Bundle is a usability software kit that enables you to record tests, observe users, and create presentations for your usability testing.

Read the rest of this entry »

I was watching an afternoon talk show the other day. OK, it was Oprah, but I was really sick and couldn’t change the channel.

She had a dude from 3M showing off their new Flag Highlighter and Pen. (In your best Seinfeld voice say, “It’s great because it’s a highlighter that holds flags!”)

Why am I talking about this?

Glad you asked. Oprah asks the 3M guy how they came up with the product. “Did someone tell you that they wanted this?”

The 3M guy responds, “No, we watched people use our products and thought this would be a great invention.”

3M was using a user-centered design process to create a product that people did not know they needed yet. Specifically, they conducted a task analysis.

Read the rest of this entry »