New York

ahmedabad

Website Evaluation

Content Organization
§ Site organization is acceptable, but is overwhelmed with the dynamic HTML presentation.
Navigation
§ There is no global navigation. It is impossible to get from one section of the site to another without going back to the home page.
§ Inconsistent placement of "home" button. Sometimes it appears at the bottom left of the frame, sometimes not. When on the careers home page, there is a box at the top left labeled "home." That box does not appear on any other pages. The user never knows what to expect.
§ Local navigation is inconsistently placed. In "Environment" within "Careers" navigation is by a series of boxes on the left of the active frame. At other times, the local nav is at the top of the frame.
§ Lack of consistent breadcrumb or pointer makes it difficult for the user to get an idea of where they are on the site.
Labeling
§ Inconsistent: Within the case study area, three pages are titled with a generic description of the client company. The fourth page is titled with a project description
§ Misleading: "Mission" leads to a fact sheet or "About Us" information, as well as "Mission." Note that the same label is used on two different levels of the hierarchy, in addition to the top-level "Mission" not indicating that the fact sheet information is included under it.
Usability
§ Changing illustrations on home page confuse the users as to their location within the site. It is not immediately clear that one is on the home page when the illustration is different than when one started.
§ Because of implementation using dynamic HTML, functionality is not optimized when using Netscape. For many pages, the global navigation items are lost below the fold.
§ The internal back button on the site does not always work.
§ On some pages, such as "Current Openings," the content grows to fit the entire frame; all local navigation items are lost.
§ The "Home" button at the top left does not always work.

Information Design

The Information Design Lifecycle

Delivery to User

The delivery of information to the user should be done carefully - at the right time, to the right user, at the right time and at the right level of governance. This is critical to ensure that the right decisions are ultimately taken and implimented

Find Information

Where is information available? Who has it? How will it be used?
In this first stage we prepare to find information by learning about user and target audience - who are they, what are their activities, what kind of decisions they take, what information they need for the decisions, etc.
We then look at sources of information, and the quality and quantity of information that matches the needs of the user. It will also be necessary to look at the timeliness and trustworthiness of information necessary.
It is critical to remember that the information needs of the user may change over time and at different stages of the decision-making process.

Collate and Analyze

How can we match user needs with information available?
Information collected is matched with users by identifying the strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats (commonly called the SWOT analysis methodology).
In this stage, the information is analyzed for the relative advantages it offers, the action it enables, the improvements can be implemented, the opportunities made available, and the obstacles faced.
At this stage, information is only comprehended and categorized for later use. This analysis is essentially non-judgmental and seeks to understand the context where the information is to be used.

Build Patterns

What are the interlinakages between the different pieces of information?
This is where the interlinkages between the different categories and pieces of informantion is identified. There are always problems-behind-problems (that is, a 'visible' problem that is actaully caused by another 'invisible' problem), and there are solutions-for-solutions (that is - solutions that lead to more solutions). The collected information should illustrate and relate to such problems and solutions.
The patterns of interlinkages between the different pieces of information highlight such cause-effect relationships. Flowcharts, framework and outlines are created to illustrate these relationships, and identify key points / themes that need to be emphasized. Pertinent information is hen used to flesh out the outline.

Feedback and Review

What enhancements can be envisaged to the info patterns?
A focus group created out of the end-users is created to review the information patterns created in the previous stage. This is important to make sure that the information collated meets the needs of the users.
It also enables channels of information flow to be created to ensure that timely and current information is delivered to the user continuously.
The focus group provides feedback and suggestions for improvement so that the cycle can be improved further.

Iteration

The information design cycle may be repeated several times iteratively, based on the feedback and review obtained from the focus group, until it meets the users needed requirements.
This is indeed a continual process where new information and changing needs of the user require further analyses and pattern building. This is done in close consultation with the focus group, or directly with the end-users themselves.

My Portfolio Site

Usability Questions

Hi

I was Interviewed by Dr Eric recently and the questions asked are compiled for you all.
Come up with answers if possible and lets share it!

- What is bad about drop-down boxes?




- What should be the error message in the following case? Its important that a user be at least 21 to become a member.



- How much space, in terms of percent, should be left to accommodate European languages?

- If a user enters 4,ooo (instead of 0, user enters alphabet o) as salary by mistake, what should be the error message?

- July 7, 2005 – submitted by Ravi Sharma of Mumbai, India

- What should be the best way to design any code for identification process of huge amount of products or materials, or anything?

What key points and care should be addressed while designing such a coding system.

Eric's response: There is SO much more to code design than most people realize. Here are some principles that pop to mind...

Keep the code as short as possible
Make Alpha, Numeric, or a mix depending on typing style (standing bank clerks use all numbers, as their hand is on the numeric keypad for example)
Leave out frequent confusions (like V and B for a code read over the phone)
If the code list is longer then five digits chunk it (123-121-9991)
For expert typists avoid using the same key twice in a row (it breaks up the keying pattern)
Consider a check digit to validate the entry


- What is your assessment about the branding treatment in the above shown website snapshot?


- Should there be help on an e-commerce site for providing help on how to shop?

- What is your assessment about this e-commerce site?