They are the websites that make you go "Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!" - the ones that try to fool or confuse you for their benefit. They use black-hat, anti-usability tricks to try to cod users. Typical tricks are adding unwanted travel insurance, hiding the unsubscribe link,  or spamming everyone in your email contacts to join you in some crummy social network. Now UK user experience ...
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A few days our blog looked at examples of how Irish public sector organisations are putting data online for the public to use as part of these organisations'  internet strategies. But the process is not without its perils, and privacy concerns often come to the fore. A case in point is property prices. While planning applications have always been in the ...
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Universal design informs high-usability, accessible eGovernment service Can you build an eGovernment website in about four months to collect millions of euros from the public? Yes you can, and you can make it highly usable and accessible at the same time... and  bilingual too. That was the message from Claire Gilligan, Assistant Director of the Local Government Computer Services Board (LGCSB), at ...
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IE6 is dead. Well, almost. This morning the web analytics company StatCounter.com reported that IE6's user base in the US and Europe fell below 5% for the first time last month - it is now down to 4.7% from 11.5% 12 months ago. Several major websites have already begun phasing out support for Microsoft's Internet Explorer 6 (IE6), including YouTube and ...
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iPad apps are inconsistent and have low feature discoverability, with frequent user errors due to accidental gestures. An overly strong print metaphor and weird interaction styles cause further usability problems. - Jakob Nielsen’s Alertbox, 10 May 2010 Where the **** do I click? It’s one of the most frustrating sensations for an Internet user, casting around a screen wondering ...
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What have "coterminosity", "lowlights" and "wicked issues" got in common? They are all on the 2010 banned words list issued by Britain's Local Government Association (LGA). The LGA, which describes itself as a voluntary lobbying organisation that acts as the voice of the local government sector, says its list consists of "words that shouldn't be used by the public sector to ...
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Google has only developed 3% to 4% of the potential of Internet search. Daft.ie staff are incentivised with real time bonuses. Facebook hires job candidates who have done their homework and have the guts to challenge some of its thinking. Jolt is investing in community managers to manage the conversations and online interactions about its games. These, and other, ...
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Senior archivist Catriona Crowe and her colleagues in the National Archives should be feted by Ireland’s many (in fact, too many) web award schemes for the runaway success of the 1911 census project. The digital archive is gaining serious traffic. Start typing “1911 Census” into a Google search box and once the first digit is typed, the scale of ...
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AMAS Director Fiachra Ó Marcaigh is presenting at DEFUSE (Design For Use), part of Design Week 2009. DEFUSE features 13 presentations in the Ignite format (20 slides, each displayed for 15 seconds) on interaction design and related topics. DEFUSE is organised by the Interaction Design Association Dublin, which is marking its first anniversary. The Dublin branch of the international association for interaction ...
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Many online retailers have two pressing needs at the moment. The first is a purely business one - how to increase conversion rates, average order values and repeat visitors. With budgets tight, the aim is to optimise your existing ordering system and get more for less. The second is about compliance - and usability too. How does your site meet the EU's "distance ...
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