Media: Good Experience challenges Information Architecture

"The Page Paradigm" by Mark Hurst has caused sparks. Read the original on the Good Experience website and follow the links to the discussion it has provoked.

Hurst asserts that 'On any given Web page, users will either... click something that appears to take them closer to the fulfillment of their goal, or click the Back button on their Web browser.'

For a taster of what has caused the furore: 'So-called "breadcrumb links," which show the user the exact hierarchy of the website as they click further down, are a nice but mostly irrelevant technology. It's not that users don't understand the links; it's that they don't care.'

He goes on: 'What about all those other elements on the site - partner promos, silly "branding", overdesigned navigation, graphic advertising, and the rest - that have nothing to do with the Goal? From the user's perspective, they are pointless at *best* - at worst, an active motivator to tell their friends not to go to your website.'

Since the article was circulated in February (yes, I admit, I missed it at the time...) Hurst has had plenty of mail and he captures the best reactions on a follow-up page.

Associated Link: Good Experience: The Page Paradigm

All change at the top for System Concepts
Source: System Concepts Ltd, 3 July 2009
 
Leslie Fountain has been promoted to joint Managing Director of leading usability consultancy System Concepts.

Life in UCD immortalised in fiction: you couldn't make it up
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Sarah Herman's fictitious book on life in a user-centred design company has hit the shelves and The Guardian's book pages...

Interfaces Magazine - Issue 79: The Education Issue
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The latest issue of Interfaces is now available as a free download from the Interaction Website.

Two new Behavioural research Tools from Noldus
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Tool updates make on-site behavioural data collection easier.

Cell Phones that Listen and Learn
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New software tracks a user's behavior by monitoring everyday sounds.

Top Six Don’ts for Usability Testing
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Six tips for creating quality usability tests to ensure useful feedback from testers.

Usability: ‘Lovely software. But I can’t work it’
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In a recent survey by Global Graphics, 77 per cent of office workers estimate they lose up to one hour a week because business software is difficult to use.

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Most Doctors cite Usability as critical to Electronic Health Record Adoption
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It's all about 'meaningful use'.

Glossy monitors look good but can hurt
Source: QUT, 23 June 2009
 
A new advisory cites research which suggests high gloss monitors make users sit awkwardly.