Archive for 2007
Web Forms: Layouts Done Right
From LukeW Interface Designs comes this handy guide for laying out forms. He explains when and why to use vertical labels, left or right justified horizontal labels, backgrounds, content separation and actions. …not all Web applications use forms consistently. Variations in the alignment of input fields, their respective labels, calls to action, and their surrounding visual elements can support or impair different aspects of user behavior. Thanks to Michael Dutton of IS&T’s Usability Lab for this post idea! [read more]
“Crowd Sourcing” via the Web
There was an interesting story on NPR’s Weekend Edition called “Businesses Harness Power of the Crowd” by Margot Adler. A company called Innocentive.com is using the web to call out for research, ideas or products, using monetary awards or prizes as an incentive. It’s an interesting way to open up work and creative inventions to everyone — “the crowd.” And with rewards at $100,000 USD or more, there’s plenty of incentive for web surfers to participate… Many thanks to Tom Pixton of the MIT Publishing Services Bureau for this post idea! [read more]
When Good Shopping Carts Go Bad…
Should any of you encounter web work that involves a shopping cart, here’s a summary of common mistakes: http://www.guuui.com/posting.php?id=2021 In this article, SURL revisits a study from 2002 of common e-commerce problems. They found that all of the following 2002 issues remain in 2007 Thanks to Michael Dutton of IS&T’s Usability Lab for this post idea! [read more]
My Videos, or “Vimeo”
At least that’s where I’m guessing they got their name. Vimeo is a video hosting service I heard about it through Dooce.com who started using it for placing videos on her site. It seems to have less problems with playback than YouTube or DropShots has had. I’ve uploaded a few videos to test it out, and can vouch for how fast and easy it was to join and upload. You can also just email a video to your site. I have to say, I really like that they used a video to explain their site’s purpose rather than just display text on a page. They are really embracing their medium,... [read more]
Animated paper cut-outs explain Social Bookmarking
There’s a company called The Common Craft Show that makes series of short explanatory videos whose goal is making sense in under 5 minutes. The videos are made with (literally) hand-animated paper cut-outs and they call the format “paperworks.” The result? Very cool, short, clear videos that help make sense of things for the masses. Why bring it up here? Because they made a really cool one for Del.icio.us, tthat does a really good job of explaining social networking concepts: http://www.commoncraft.com/show Many thanks to Robyn Fizz, IS&T News Coordinator, for passing... [read more]
