Media: Usability News on Page Design for Screens

Usability News, the publication of the Software Usability Research Laboratory (SURL) at Wichita State University with the same name as us, has again brought out an interesting edition, this time with a section devoted to page design and text layout.

Two papers look at this: "Effects of Line Length on Reading Online News" by A.D. Shaikh and "Is Multiple-Column Online Text Better? It Depends!" by J.R. Baker.

In addition, there is some user participation encouraged. "Perceived Personality and Uses of Fonts: We Need Your Input!" by A.D. Shaikh, J. Slocum, and Z. Zaccagni, is an extended abstract accompanying a survey form.

'Studies have investigated the perceived personality of fonts for printed text; however, similar studies have not been conducted regarding onscreen text. We are investigating the perceived personalities and uses of a variety of fonts used onscreen,' say the authors.

'We are eager to include diverse populations to better generalize our findings to those who are designing and developing for digital media.'

Follow the link below to find both papers and questionnaire.

Associated Link: Usability News! July 2005, Volume 7, issue 2

Poor Shopping Basket Usability will hinder Christmas Rush
Source: UN, 20 November 2008
 
A new study from eDigitalResearch identifies customer service and online shopping basket usability as the two key areas where online retailers need to improve.

Future Phones to Read Your Voice, Gestures
Source: Wired, 19 November 2008
 
Five years from now, it is likely that the mobile phone you will be holding will be a smooth, sleek brick — a piece of metal and plastic with a few grooves in it and little more.

Why Digital Research is important in tough Financial Times
Source: Financial Times, 18 November 2008
 
With the banking sector moving towards consolidation, it is crucial that customers are understood, reacted to and rewarded for their loyalty.

Get Ready for 'Ergobamanomics'
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Is President Elect, Barack Obama, a secret ergonomics and usability enthusiast?

The Most Dreaded Keyword Phrase
Source: SearchEngineLand, 15 November 2008
 
In website usability, one of the hardest obstacles to overcome is the mentality of “This is what I would do.”

User Experience Standards Missing from Web 2.0 Designs
Source: UN, 14 November 2008
 
Usability professionals should be more involved with the development of Web 2.0 tools.

New technology showcased at World Usability Day
Source: User Vision, 13 November 2008
 
Today is World Usability Day!

Review: 16 User Interface Prototyping Tools
Source: Dexo Design, 12 November 2008
 
People constantly ask me what the best prototyping or mockup tool is, so I decided to do a review of all the tools I’m aware of.

Radio 4's PM show announces Winner of 'Show Us a Better Way'
Source: BBC, 11 November 2008
 
Ever been frustrated that you can't find out something that ought to be easy to find? Ever been baffled by league tables or 'performance indicators'?

Cisco Systems extends Product Usability Research
Source: Catalyst Resources, 10 November 2008
 
Cisco is conducting extensive usability research with Catalyst Resources, into complex new technologies.