Usability, Design, Navigation, Interfaces, Information Architecture, Accessibility.

I love me some API documentation.  High-tech, eye-crossing developer documentation - database theory, programming requirements. Technical writing at its finest and most detailed. Seriously, I’m into that. But most people aren’t.

What boggles me is how many companies will flat out tell you they realize their users will never open their manuals, and yet print the documentation anyway. How can you then be so surprised when your technical support is inundated with calls from angry users? Of course they’re frustrated - they thought they could just finish this one thing off in a few seconds, and ended up knee-deep in documentation muck. They probably spent 10 minutes just trying to find the darn manual you wasted trees, ink, and money on, and then they couldn’t find the answer they wanted quickly enough anyway.

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Was just earlier talking on Twitter about how UX design should be something everyone thinks about rather than shuttled off “only” to UX specialists and consultants, then found this handy dandy page from Smashing Magazine - 30 Usability Issues to be Aware Of. There are lots of UX resources out there that are accessible and easy, so folks can get an overview of usability, flow, and interface design, whether they’re UX specialists, technical writers, graphic designers, developers, etc.

Chances are simply by being aware of usability issues and the short list of psychology and human-computer interaction info on that article, you’re already ahead of your business competitors. It can be amazing how much a little difference makes.

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Having attended a few webinars recently, I have realized I enjoy the format. It allows me to see excellent presentations while networking with like-minded individuals, yet I don’t have to get a passport or get on a plane. Most recently I joined a local group in seeing Michael Hughes, a User Assistance Architect at IBM, as he spoke about task support clusters and designing micro-architectures for user assistance. I heard about it through the Society of Technical Communication (STC), and enjoyed networking with technical writers as much as learning valuable information.

Today I received notices about a few upcoming webinars relating to user experience design. The first relates to graphic design principles, and seemed to be on a rather general overview level. However, the second and third were through Rosenfeld Media and are much more exciting to me.

The first two “Future Practice Webinars” offered are Modern Web Form Design by Luke Wroblewski, and Using Mental Models For Tactics and Strategy by Indi Young. Each cost the same as the first webinar I mentioned above, but cover user experience design in deep detail, and include a copy of the speakers book in the webinar cost, both in print and digital format. Not one or the other. Both! So now excuse me as I try to find change in my couch cushions so I can join these webinars.

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So, I boldly pointed out in my previous entry that UX designers are there to “translate customer needs effectively”.

My spouse is a developer and we have this discussion quite often actually. He can recite the deepest details of coding and architecting software as if it’s a mysterious, ancient language (I like to compare it to Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics myself). I have no problem saying he is a genius. He understands details I can’t possibly hope to grasp, and he has no interest in interface design. While I’ve tried to explain to him how form improves function, and how flow makes people more creative and allows them to actually enjoy software, thereby making the software more functional for the user, he’s just not interested. Now we’ve had the discussion long enough that I can mouth the words “form AND function” across a crowded room just to see the face he makes.

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I started ranting on Twitter some time last night and realized it was apropos here.

I’m reading About Face by Alan Cooper, and Cooper writes,

If we design and construct products in such a way that the people who use them achieve their goals, these people will be satisfied, effective, and happy and will gladly pay for the products and recommend that others do the same. Assuming that this can be achieved in a cost-effective manner, it will translate into business success.

What I don’t understand is why companies are just starting to buy into this idea. As Cooper goes on to say, isn’t this quite obvious? The marketers and analysts gather data on buy-in and features, and the developers focus on making it happen within whatever environment they have to. Somebody is looking at ROI and features, and somebody is looking at coding functionality.

But who’s looking at translating customer needs effectively?

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Oh, perhaps this is just stating the obvious for you.

As a technical writer suddenly writing web content, I had no idea.

My brain so efficiently crunches data and spits it out in list format, complete with headings and summarized with concise sentence structure, that I have a hard time writing anything else.

Oh I’m great at brainstorming, researching, organizing notes, drawing up an outline, and writing efficiently. Edit mercilessly, we’re told as technical writers. Make it clear, use simple sentences that convey meaning with active voice, then put them in lists and give them headings. Cut the word count in half. Then cut it in half again. Write short paragraphs, avoid metaphors, jargon, and writing personally and informally.

But this web content thing! Showing my personality in what I write, and writing articles like those found in a magazine I’d curl up with and read while sipping tea in the evening? Wait, don’t I have to GET a personality first.

Online writing resources are no help - again demanding concise sentences and clear, quick writing rather than a conversational tone that invites the reader to crawl into the story with me. Journalism. I have no experience with journalism.

We’re all taught that online writing has to be hard hitting and quick because readers scan, and will not invest time in reading a meandering piece. Once again, I think Amber said it right before I even knew what I was doing, in her ALA article:

Content, on the other hand, fills a real need: it establishes emotional connections between people. The writing has heart and spirit; it has something to say and the wherewithal to stand up and say it. Content is the stuff readers want to read, even if they have to print it to do so. (And readers will print a long piece; just because something is published online doesn’t mean it must be read online). Content is thoughtful, personable, and faithfully written. It hooks the reader and draws him in, encouraging him to click this link or that, to venture further into a website. It delivers what it promises and delights the attentive reader.

More to follow.

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When I first mentioned buying The Design of Everyday Things by Donald Norman, I knew it was a well-respected classic for those in user experience design. Amber - a friend who designs Technical Poet - pointed out she did not enjoy it, in fact, because the examples related to engineering physical products such as tables, light switches, and tea kettles. I argued that the principles could be applied anywhere, and it was fascinating to truly understand cognitive theory.

But I think she was right after all.

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I have a confession.

I can feel that ol’ “buy a new domain name, dump the current one” feeling setting in. It’s inevitable. I get bored, and I think, if I just grasped this exciting new idea, and ran with it, I’d have the next big thing. This ol’ blog? No one’s reading it anyway right?

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If you follow me on Twitter you will have recently seen me having a virtual orgasm about Safari Books Online, which is a huge online reference library by O’Reilly. My account there allows me access to up to 10 books per month from the shelves, and let me tell you, by day two I’ve already got 5 on the go.

That said, if you’re not in the same position, you might still be interested in visiting Robert Hoekman Jr’s website as he provides free samples of some very exciting books - Designing The Moment and Designing The Obvious. I can’t possibly do better than this excerpt from Designing The Moment’s introduction itself,

Designing the Moment is:

• a “think-out-loud”view into design solutions from real projects
• a critical look at elements from every phase of a user’s interaction with a Web site or application
• a collection of principles and concepts to guide the design of everything from page layouts to social networking features

Most of all, it’s a blow-by-blow, expert analysis of the subtle details of an interface that make or break a user’s experience, and how to improve each and every interaction, one moment at a time.

So these two plus About Face 3 and Ambient Findability, along with Designing Interfaces, Designing Web Navigation, and Information Architecture For The World Wide Web… ok, plus the books on Ajax, CSS, Dojo, and JavaScript… and the ones on search engine marketing, web design for ROI and SEO… no wonder I never leave my desk and bookshelves.

Also, when can I find time to learn .Net and Flex. Argh. I need to have more brains plzktnx.

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