Month: April 2017

  • Resampling

    Changing physical size of image may require changing size or resolution. Resolution – number of pixels per inch square. If resolution of image does not match resolution of device displaying it, image resolution must change. If image does not fit destination space in current resolution then image needs to be resized. Downsampling – keeping size…

  • Introduction

    Photoshop is the leading app for image editing, not easy to use though. Key tasks include: Removing a colour cast (i.e. the unnatural predominance of a single colour). Removing unwanted background objects. Superimposing text on a picture. Giving a 3-D bevelled appearance to text objects. Creating a collage from a mixture of images. Increasing the…

  • Story Boards

    Good practise to create story board for each page in website. Common though to create single story board for pages with same functionality or in same category. Example of information collected by story board template: Screen Name and Classification used for archiving. Other useful information is recorded. Notes pane can contain draft graphic representation of…

  • Navigation Basics

    Navigation chart – shows way around website. Can be one chart or split for different navigation levels. Four main types of navigation: Linear Non-linear Hierarchical Composite, or Complex Good principles: No more than seven (plus/minus two) nav buttons “3 clicks convention” – user never more than three click from main page Keep it simple Label…

  • User Testing

    Three to five testers using system, explaining their decisions out loud. Observer records observations without offering help. Testers should be representative of target audience. Identify trends in user behaviour during use of system to spot problems. System can be prototype or existing system, either way it needs to be operational.

  • Ten Usability Heuristics

    Web Usability: Usability Inspections Ten Usability Heuristics Ten general principles for user interface design – more rules of thumb than specific usability guidelines, hence “heuristic”. Visibility of system status – the system should always keep users informed about what is going on, through appropriate feedback within reasonable time. Match between system and the real world –…

  • Heuristic evaluation

    Web Usability: Usability Inspections Heuristic evaluation A heuristic technique (/hjᵿˈrɪstᵻk/; Ancient Greek: εὑρίσκω, “find” or “discover”), often called simply a heuristic, is any approach to problem solving, learning, or discovery that employs a practical method not guaranteed to be optimal or perfect, but sufficient for the immediate goals. (Wikipedia, 2017) In context of usability, heuristic…

  • Nielsen’s views

    Jakob Nielsen – five concepts: Learnability – system ease of use. Efficiency – how well system maps interface to user interaction. Memorability – how easy it is for users to remember how to do something. Errors – how well errors are handled and prevented. Satisfaction – user satisfaction with system. Top ten web design mistakes…

  • Design for usability

    User Centred Design – identify users needs & requirements. Define purpose of website. Perform User Requirements Analysis – define users assumptions & future behaviour on site. Implement these steps when designing & producing objects & functions. Become familiar with general rules & guidelines for website usability such as: Web Site Usability Handbook by Mark Pearrow…

  • Usability

    Generic term – design features enable=ing something to be user-friendly. Measure of quality of user experience with product or system such as: website mobile device software application Usability problem WRT WWW: Millions of users with different skills, knowledge, experience and expectations International & multicultural make-up of users & websites Billions of websites Tens of thousands of…