The main body of printed or written matter on a page.
41
votes
11answers
3k views
Is clockwise or counter-clockwise rotated text easier to read?
When rotating text with css, should it be rotated clockwise or counter-clockwise? Is one more readable than the other?
Counter Clockwise: — ...
33
votes
3answers
2k views
What's the deal with Windows 8 elements with ALL CAPS?
Here's how Microsoft new Windows Azure portal elements look like:
and that seems to be "Windows 8 style". Visual Studio 2012 also has plenty of user elements in ALL CAPS.
For dozens of years ALL ...
26
votes
8answers
4k views
All capital titles: good or bad?
What is the recommended use for all capitals titles? For example:
THIS IS A TITLE.
The website http://camvine.com/ has all capital titles, e.g. MARKET SECTORS.
Good, bad?
22
votes
11answers
2k views
Should a full-sentence HTML link include the period in the linked text?
In HTML, if a full sentence is used for a link, should its terminal punctuation (i.e., period) be included in the linked text?
Consider these two examples:
<a href="about:blank">Watch the ...
21
votes
8answers
970 views
Is there ever a requirement to allow text to be underlined when it's not a link or a header
We've built a custom CKEditor within one of the sites we've developed to allow users to add and edit the content on particular pages. However the editor by default comes with an Underline option and ...
20
votes
8answers
621 views
When should hyperlink text be used?
Should text links always be text or are there cases when it makes more sense to simply link the URL?
Examples
A text link might look like this: Responsive Web Design Techniques, Tools and Design ...
20
votes
7answers
661 views
Why are software EULAs typically displayed in a tiny non-adjustable box with lots of scrolling?
From my experience whenever I have to install a piece of software I'm presented an end-user license agreement (EULA) in the following way:
Specifically the EULA is a long text in legalese and I ...
19
votes
4answers
903 views
Best way to handle long URLs
I have a list that contains long, in terms of character count, links and I am wondering if my solution is a good solution in terms of UX.
My solution is that if the link is over 80 characters, then ...
19
votes
7answers
738 views
Should all button text start with a verb?
I'm reading The Grammar of Interactivity on UXBooth and finds it quite interesting. However, the article quotes David Hamill who said (or wrote):
Buttons are for actions, like “Get a quote,” ...
19
votes
6answers
512 views
Why doesn't pasting (Ctrl-V or Command-V) default to unformatted text?
Like most people, I use copy and paste a lot in my day to day life, but I can't think of a single time that I have wanted to copy the formatting over with the content. Instead, I always seem to have ...
18
votes
8answers
238 views
Do we still need text scaling links on websites?
Links/buttons to adjust font size used to be one of the accessibility must-do's but do we still need to include the text scaling links on our sites?
Most modern browsers and operating systems support ...
16
votes
3answers
409 views
Usability of vertical text
I am playing with ideas for a menu that I want to add to some site designs and was wondering: How usable is vertical text in any portion of a site (specifically menus)?
For example
You can have ...
15
votes
5answers
598 views
Why do most dashboards use capital words?
Most car manufacturers seem to use ALL CAPS for the interiors's buttons and switches, at least when they are not using symbols. Example:
They even use capitals for things that are not even ...
15
votes
5answers
457 views
Which is more likely to be read and processed: (related) text placed above or below an image/video?
I'm thinking about layout on pages where the main asset is visual — for instance, a photo of an item from the collection on a museum website, or embedded video as on YouTube and many news sites. ...
15
votes
2answers
218 views
Slanted cursor+background for italic text?
In most applications that I'm familiar with, a text cursor in insertion mode is universally represented as a vertical blinking bar:
As you can see, for some italic letters this creates visual ...
13
votes
4answers
2k views
Is left-aligned text generally preferable over centered text? [duplicate]
I am currently reviewing the usability of some internal reports. One thing which strikes me as odd is that all the text is centered. I always prefer left-aligned text.
But apart from my personal ...
13
votes
3answers
252 views
Can I optimize this command-line interface?
I am designing a command-line interface for users and administrators to interact with an online radio system. One of the administrator tasks is assigning songs and albums to various genres. This is ...
12
votes
4answers
341 views
Is it ok to add content when the users selects and “copies” something on the page?
Some websites (using tools like tynt) have started to add something a little surprising at first : When the reader copies part of the article or blog post, something, say the url of the piece, is ...
11
votes
5answers
2k views
Modern approach to textarea (or alternatives)
For a simple text editor for longer articles I am looking for advice and inspiration on programming/designing a minimalistic and modern textarea (which does not necessarily have to use the tag) ...
10
votes
7answers
460 views
Ideal Donate Button Text for Nonprofit Website
What would be the ideal text for a donate button? My client would like to use "Give" as the button text, but should I urge for "Donate", as I feel this is more of the convention.
9
votes
8answers
552 views
How can I distinguish two different types of buttons, without using labels everywhere?
I'm developing an application to count traffic at intersections. There will be two different types of buttons:
one to count trucks ("lkw" is the german abbreviation for a truck)
one to count cars ...
9
votes
3answers
183 views
Collapsible content vs. static text for FAQ/Information page
I am designing a simple FAQ/information page. We already have one, which you can view here: http://merchantfuse.com/site/general
As you can see we use collapsible content boxes.
However I am ...
9
votes
3answers
203 views
Usefulness of on-site text resize tools
I'm not sure what to call them, but anyone know of research on the effectiveness of including the ability to resize text onscreen via a buttons/toggle. I mean the "aA" button you still sometimes see ...
8
votes
4answers
506 views
What name is this text effect known by?
upgrade your career today in the SO careers advertisement below
the letters PS in the CS4 logo
How do I tell people that this is what I am talking about. Is there a commonly used name for ...
8
votes
6answers
264 views
How to choose the text on the submit button in forms?
REGISTER
Username
-----------------------
|_____________________|
Password
-----------------------
|_____________________|
.------.
| Submit |
'------'
When designing forms, do you customize ...
8
votes
3answers
583 views
Readability - what is the best way to display a stand alone date in an email?
I have an application that is sending an email to someone reminding them of an appointment.
What is the best way to display such a stand-alone date?
The reason I have such a question is because (as ...
8
votes
3answers
312 views
Best way to select a typeface?
What process do you use to select a typeface? How do you determine which types are best for long passages of text, which are best for headlines, etc.?
8
votes
4answers
250 views
Relationship between font-size and width of container
Are there any studies done which tell us the relationship between the font size and the optimal width of the container they are in?
For example, 12px font size is going to be too small in a container ...
7
votes
5answers
370 views
Zebra striping for body text?
The general consensus is that zebra striping a table makes it a little easier for people to keep track of which row they're on...but is this reduction of cognitive taxes only for table rows? I at ...
7
votes
4answers
428 views
Context sensitive help for wordy user preferences
Current UI
Here is a poorly designed panel on a preferences dialog for the open source audio editor 'Audacity'. I'd like to do something about it.
How it got that way
In the past the text beside ...
7
votes
3answers
491 views
How to better name modal buttons “Cancel Request” (submit), “Cancel” (cancel)? [duplicate]
One modal-box asks the user wether they want to really cancel the request. Now there are two buttons (submit) and (cancel), but how to best name them? All other modals use text like "proceed" (submit) ...
7
votes
2answers
149 views
Combination of text and drag and drop search
I am designing a filter function for a software application (not a web site) which contains multiple input controllers. A text input is used in combination with a drop zone for files (for drag and ...
7
votes
2answers
563 views
How to design usable web site terms & conditions?
What are some guidelines and examples for designing usable legal terms for web sites? I know that most users don't read it, but are there innovative ways to improve readability and presentation of ...
6
votes
4answers
1k views
Choosing high contrast text color (in relation to background color) dynamically
My application has an area with some number of controls. Each control's background color expresses a state of some sort. The controls are also numbered via some text in their foreground. For ...
6
votes
2answers
208 views
Why does ESPN subtly change the color of some of its article text?
This is something that's bugged me for years: I'll be reading a story on ESPN and notice that the first paragraph is dark gray, and the second paragraph is often black. I've even taken a screenshot ...
6
votes
2answers
90 views
Which one to use in printing: CW or CCW rotated vertical text?
What are your opinions, which of the following text are easier to read?
CCW text in one row
CW text in one row
CCW text in two rows
CW text in two rows
And what if the writing is on a vertical ...
5
votes
4answers
259 views
Is is better to place text above or below icons?
This UX.SE question discusses the use of text above vs. below images & videos, and in general the answers say below.
I'm thinking that it must be different with icons, since their purpose is ...
5
votes
4answers
292 views
Preselect Text On Selection
I'm wondering if there is a rule of thumb for the scenario where a user selects a textbox that has content in it. Would it follow that all the text in it should always be selected to allow a user to ...
5
votes
2answers
142 views
Aligning text data in a grid
I've been asked to look at one of our legacy applications from a usability perspective. On one screen, we have a situation where data is displayed in two columns (eg. Key: Value) where we've ...
5
votes
2answers
170 views
How should I format question-response sections in a document?
I work on proposals that need to be formatted in question-response sections. Currently, we use different colors to distinguish between questions and responses. However, members of my team want to make ...
5
votes
2answers
219 views
Where can I find research on readability of web sites?
I am looking specifically for text alignment (e.g. left vs. full justification) and what size/width text sections ideally have.
5
votes
1answer
112 views
What is the optimal vertical margin between paragraphs?
Here on ux.StackExchange they have gaps that are a bit smaller than one line height (~88%), but I’ve read a few times that 100% of the line height provides best readability because it continues the ...
5
votes
2answers
132 views
How to calculate the best width of a text element
I am developing a visual editor where the nodes in the editor can contain text. The size of the text can vary, and can contain any character. Since it is important for me to minimize the size of the ...
4
votes
5answers
489 views
Is “chars” a universally understandable abbreviation for “characters”?
I'm trying to limit instructional text in a form.
Can I shorten "75 characters" to "75 chars" and have it be clear to a fairly inexperienced Web user?
4
votes
4answers
259 views
Is there a convention for identifying final vs. placeholder text in wireframes?
I'm working on a bunch of wireframes where I have a mix of near-final and copy-guide text.
Near-final copy are text that our visual designers should use in their designs verbatim, and copy-guides are ...
4
votes
3answers
357 views
Emails in plain text or HTML?
When communicating with customers, is it better to send emails in plain text or html formats?
Each has different strengths and weaknesses, but the question of which is better still remains. Which ...
4
votes
2answers
106 views
What is a good text for a tooltip to explain a tour's intensity on a website?
I'm working in a website that will sells tours. Each tour has a physical intensity. We have a slider bar that represents that intensity. It goes from green - yellow - red. The current text that appear ...
4
votes
5answers
2k views
Best way to align text on a website?
Curious about text alignment on websites. For a blog, for example, is it better to have left-aligned or justified text? I like the look of justified text but I'm not sure if there's any downsides to ...
4
votes
2answers
102 views
Should i line wrap my emails?
When my coworkers send their emails, some would diligently line wrap the body text into lines that are at most, say 78 characters wide, others would use no line break in a paragraph, and the ...
4
votes
1answer
163 views
Should Font Faces be the Same Across Different Devices?
My company has been working on a fluid grid design for our website so users can access information through their mobile phones and tablets. I was thinking of incorporating a font change on various ...
