Hope that UK Local Government will make 2005 Online Service Delivery Target

Local e-Government Minister Phil Hope has declared his confidence that British local councils will all meet the 2005 deadline for e-enabling their services. He said that most councils have already made good progress towards the target, which includes expected savings of £1.2 billion by 2007/2008 as a direct result of e-government investment. His announcement stressed the financial aspects of the transition, rather than any consideration of the delivery of services.

He was speaking as the publication of "Implementing Electronic Government 4" revealed that the average council is 79% ready. There will be support till the end of the year for councils to make the target. After that, there is a schedule of intended savings through efficiency. Critics have suggested that Hope's vision is short on quality, effectiveness and service development.

Meanwhile, a new report suggests that the Government is slowly getting its own house in order, with an improvement in usability in many sites. The report by Porter Research, is an annual assessment of the state of key UK Government websites and it suggests that design and navigability are improving, with more consistency of approach. The redesigned Department of Health website achieved the highest score of 85.6%.

But some sites that were meeting the Government's own targets last year have suffered from poor maintenance, as pages get longer and other guidelines are flouted.

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
Source: UN, 2 July 2009
 
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
Source: Interaction Group, 1 July 2009
 
The latest issue of Interfaces is now available as a free download from the Interaction Website.

Two new Behavioural research Tools from Noldus
Source: UN, 30 June 2009
 
Tool updates make on-site behavioural data collection easier.

Cell Phones that Listen and Learn
Source: MIT Technology Review, 29 June 2009
 
New software tracks a user's behavior by monitoring everyday sounds.

Top Six Don’ts for Usability Testing
Source: FutureNow Inc., 27 June 2009
 
Six tips for creating quality usability tests to ensure useful feedback from testers.

Usability: ‘Lovely software. But I can’t work it’
Source: FT.com, 26 June 2009
 
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.

And what do you do?
Source: Dexo Design, 25 June 2009
 
How do you describe your job role? Here are the results of a recent 'Preferred UX/UI Title' Poll.

Most Doctors cite Usability as critical to Electronic Health Record Adoption
Source: TMCNet, 24 June 2009
 
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.