the way user interacts with an artifact and the reaction and/or behavior to the environment
27
votes
6answers
4k views
Why is Google's “I'm Feeling Lucky” button still next to the search bar?
I'm sure that Google must put a lot of thought into the display of its homepage. With such a minimalistic design, every element matters.
So what's up with the "I'm feeling lucky" button? Why is ...
3
votes
6answers
114 views
Low-fidelty vs high-fidelity: Do they elicit different types of reactions?
You often read claims that lower fidelity prototypes illicit different reactions than higher fidelity prototypes.
This came to mind again today because I came across it when reading a post on UIE ...
183
votes
25answers
30k views
How can users be prevented from pouring water into the bean compartment of a coffee machine?
Typical coffee machines have two user-accessible compartments: one for water and one for coffee beans. Pouring water into the bean compartment kills most machines, the repairs cost a fortune.
Now ...
112
votes
12answers
6k views
Why shouldn't we use words such as 'here' and 'this' in textlinks?
Over the years of surfing on the web I have found numerous examples of people saying that you shouldn't use the word "here" in a textlink etc. Personally I like the idea of using the word, because it ...
6
votes
1answer
152 views
How do users use spatial memory?
I have some questions about how spatial memory works and the effects on user interfaces:
Do users seek items by spatial memory? What do they actually "link" to a position - a particular object ...
8
votes
3answers
237 views
How to differentiate icons for *client* from *server* IT services (mail, web, filesharing and so on)
I need to design a UI that includes widgets to control a server computer, and a client computer.
This means I'll be doing similar pairs of icons for mail (mail program vs mail server), web (browser ...
1
vote
1answer
125 views
Why at some web are pages always from 1,2,3 … for newest messages?
When I visit some pages, they have newest items first; page 1 has always the newest items. Some examples are imdb boards and icanhascheezburger.
I think this is case of top posting, because messages ...
4
votes
3answers
225 views
Is offering more than one openid/social-sign-in option a good idea?
Lots of sites nowadays offer the option to log in via Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and so on, and sometimes a standard username/password option as well.
While this goes a long way toward helping users ...
3
votes
1answer
201 views
Search input on mobile device
I'm designing an mobile-web-app (ie: not a native app) for touchscreen smartphones.
When you add a search input, do we need to add the search button (for processing the search) or use the one present ...
6
votes
2answers
444 views
Auto-suggest confuses users; How do I improve it?
I wanted to get some ideas on how a problem like this might be avoided. A mobile app (android, ios) that I work on uses a local sqllite DB to power an auto-suggest feature on the search screen. The ...
1
vote
3answers
126 views
OpenID login takes a second, how do I make it feel quicker?
Users on my site log in via OpenID. This is what loggin in looks like:
Click the login link in the header
Click one of 6 OpenID providers
(wait one second)
If they're there for the first time: Log ...
3
votes
2answers
88 views
How to mark cells in a spreadsheet that are meant to be edited?
I just put together a spreadsheet to demonstrate how some calculations work. Three of the cells act as inputs. The values in those cells kick off a cascade of calculations in other cells containing ...
11
votes
6answers
446 views
How easy should I make it to delete content?
We want to make it easy for people to perform task in an application, but we also want to prevent them from accidentally deleting something. Where is the middle ground between these two opposing ...
7
votes
7answers
710 views
How to measure self reported computer proficiency? Ideally with one item
For a usability test, I'd like to have a simple measure for computer proficiency, to be able to see, whether it has an impact on successfully handling the tasks.
How can we best measure that?
A ...
14
votes
6answers
600 views
With 'OK' button, 'Cancel' should appear as secondary button or link?
When I make web application designs, every time I style form or overlay boxes with OK and Cancel button. I think of making them different. But is it a good practice?
Some people recommend primary and ...
3
votes
1answer
71 views
Multiple items in one basket that get processed at different rates on completion of checkout
Does anyone have any good ideas on how to solve the problem of having multiple products in one order (basket) that are processed at different rates once the user completes their purchase?
An example ...
2
votes
1answer
85 views
Is there a disconnect between the fields of neuroscience and user experience on the topic of horizontal-bias?
Jakob Nielsen says that: Horizontal Attention Leans Left
While evidence from neuroscience, as described by Jeremy Tunnell (Product Manager for Stack Exchange) suggests that "the brain’s visual system ...
6
votes
3answers
77 views
Form prompts inside form fields always wrong?
I've noticed in the edit-profile form on UX Stack Exchange a weird prompt with an important message - the date format.
Personally I would consider it terribly wrong (force to memorize data format, ...
5
votes
4answers
122 views
Is it bad to post an app update to only show ads?
So, I have made an app and it's getting it's fair share of action on the Play Store. It is free and currently contains no adverts.
I am nearing completion of integration with Flurry Ads. I am also ...
3
votes
1answer
92 views
Name and Company - One field or Two?
I am laying out a form on a website with the typical name & address fields. While I've done this a number of times, I have began to try and trim fields from my forms that will be on smaller ...
5
votes
4answers
172 views
Is a short stay on Web Page always bad?
There are a lot of articles discussing the fact that users tend to leave a web page in a very short time. Anything from 10 to 30 seconds is what you can expect from a user - and that is generally bad. ...
0
votes
3answers
80 views
placement of interaction elements on screen?
What is the best place for interaction elements?
Here's the situation: In our software there is an object (in this case a list with several items) that a user wants to work on. A user could perform ...
3
votes
1answer
64 views
Should your Help section have questions or topics?
Which is more user friendly? Organizing your Help section with popular phrased questions or topics?
Clear topics are easier to scan whereas with popular phrased questions you have a chance to match ...
3
votes
3answers
222 views
Which is the better user experience for a web app: an integrated support ticket module or a separate app?
I am building a new web app which hopefully will be subscription based, and I am wondering what will be better:
to develop a quick ticket module
or
redirect user to separate knowledgebase / ...
3
votes
1answer
71 views
Is there a good reason to have HTML and PDF version of TOS?
We have our Terms of service available as HTML and PDF. Is there a good reason to keep providing PDF version?
It's extra work:
Several languages
Privacy policy / tos
Room for mistakes between html ...
3
votes
1answer
129 views
Different approaches to prompting Mac users about accepting an EULA
I’m a bit technical in my reasoning here but I hope that will be okay.
What other approaches are there for displaying the EULA? Are there any who actually offer a non-disruptive prompt? Is there even ...
3
votes
2answers
57 views
Where to place advanced search option in a shopping app?
Should users be provided with options to adjust budget, color, category etc. while searching or on the catalog page ?
I think providing advanced search options on the catalog page where relevant ...
4
votes
3answers
80 views
Who should be able to pause/restart/quit the game in a turn based game?
I have a game that consists of players making moves in turn, on a single console (Xbox 360).
Up to 16 players can play in one game. The xbox can have up to 4 controllers associated/connected to one ...
2
votes
2answers
106 views
Less noisy cell buttons on a table
I have table where almost all of its cells are a button that works independently. When I add a 3D button-like design to each cell, the table becomes a large chunk filled with buttons and looks a ...
2
votes
2answers
91 views
Mobile, “Show Remaining” or “Show All”?
In a mobile screen I have n data items in collection, but I am limited to show first 3 or 4 items from it. For the rest I can put a button below 3rd or 4th item which can lead my user to a popup where ...
5
votes
2answers
109 views
Forms: Is it right to show empty fields in an info page?
In an application i am designing, there is a form, where the user completes the fields and some of them might remain empty (not filled by the user). Then we have the info page showing all these fields ...
7
votes
2answers
136 views
Are people used to seeing a “My Cart” link in the header?
I have been designing an E-commerce platform where users will be able to buy Apps from the marketplace.
I had thought of placing "My Cart" links in a number of places, such as:
Docked widget in ...
6
votes
3answers
169 views
Should we use Microsoft's feature names, or our own? “Autofilter” vs “Column filter”
Many Microsoft softwares, like the Office suite and the Windows Explorer, feature a type of column filter that they have dubbed the Autofilter.
It filters rows based on column content.
It adapts the ...
7
votes
8answers
535 views
How to visually suggest to the viewer that there is more than meets the eye in a elegant, neat looking way?
From a user experience design point of view, what would be a good way to let the viewer know, or better said, I want the user to "get it as he sees it" without further explanation that what I am ...
4
votes
4answers
118 views
Security issues if not forcing a user to sign up
I've built a simple web app Flask.io that enables users to create and share to-do lists.
It doesn't require sign up. This is an important differentiator. I don't want to force the user to register ...
3
votes
3answers
80 views
Constant canvas size vs. Resizable canvas
When developing a graphical editor there are two options when creating a canvas:
a canvas that has a constant size
a canvas that can be re-sized by adding figures at the edge of the canvas, or by ...
8
votes
3answers
188 views
Tag cloud for web site actions - a no-no?
I am building a website, and my designer came up with the idea of using a (3d) tag cloud to display the different actions a user can take (the site's functionality is somewhat complex, and so ...
11
votes
3answers
152 views
Is a Q&A site a reasonable replacement for a forum for a software product?
I'm building a website for an open source piece of software that revolves around backups and cloning. I was originally going to use phpBB for the forums, but then thought about the possibility of ...
6
votes
3answers
124 views
Where should I display 'free shipping if payment by debit card'?
I've been working on an e-commerce website, and the stakeholders want to add the following text: 'free shipping if payment by debit card'. Where should I display this on the website?
I think the most ...
3
votes
3answers
83 views
Asking for more info on whitepaper download then on trial sign up
Im currently researching how to handle lead generation forms.
I came across a website which has 3 slightly different forms for downloading a white paper, downloading an ebook, and downloading the ...
7
votes
4answers
272 views
Should I add a floating, fixed feedback button on the pages of my website?
I would like to add a Feedback feature to my website.
Should I add it as a floating,fixed button on the side?
Is that considered something users are annoyed by?
If I shouldn't, which method is ...
5
votes
3answers
123 views
What are the advantages of existing real world patterns in Information Architecture
When explaining real data structures to users, companies often use a parallel to the real world to help explain it. An example is the newsstand on an iPhone.
When is it a good idea to do something ...
3
votes
6answers
233 views
Why do some webmasters INSIST on having auto-playing music elements on their webpages? [closed]
Is there any positive reason why someone might implement an auto-playing audio feature onto a webpage? I seem to see it all the time, especially on band pages and so on. The frustrating thing is ...
5
votes
5answers
1k views
Easiest to read fonts
Has there been studies to determine what fonts make it easiest to read? I'm interested in the font type, but also size and color. For example, is dark gray better than pitch black?
Also of interest ...
2
votes
2answers
150 views
Enabling spell check in the UI
We are building an application which will contain spell checking features for areas where users will enter input.
We have already implemented the feature for our rich text editors, whereby spell ...
1
vote
3answers
188 views
How to convert a visitor/ browser to a user?
I run a social learning network that enables anyone to create a class/ workshop on almost any non-academic topic and allows users to register online. Anybody can be a teacher or learner. Its free.
...
2
votes
1answer
347 views
How do interstitial ads impact site UX?
(Spawned by How should Ad splash pages be handled for those with ads disabled?)
Has any data been published on the impact of interstitial (whole page ads between content) on the user's experience? Is ...
4
votes
2answers
374 views
What are the best practices for site-wide maintenance notices?
I manage a set of websites with a largely non-technical user base. We want to occasionally provide site-wide notices for forthcoming planned maintenance.
We've tried using a messages with red ...
2
votes
3answers
419 views
When and how to validate forms in a usability perspective?
I am implementing a business application and wounder what's the best way to validate forms, and when.
An example is a form where three textfields where a currency amount is expected. A valid input is ...
5
votes
5answers
186 views
What to do with non priced products when sorting by price?
On a page that lists products, we would like to give the user the option to sort the products by price.
The problem is some products do not have their price displayed and are "request a price." What ...
