Whether you’re designing web pages, web-based applications (e.g., SaaS), or native mobile apps, one of the basic building blocks is the humble text-input field: a box where the user can enter some text. Uses of this widget are plenty and not the topic of this article. We should point out that there are many issues in application design relating to workflow and other big-picture questions that are important for good application user experience. (These topics are discussed in our full-day Application Design course.)
In this article, we focus on the nitty-gritty of input fields. Each of these issues may seem minor, but we repeatedly see these usability guidelines violated —...
Be cautious with the source of the data used for personalization. For example, when you personalize information by location or role for an intranet, the database that stores this information must be kept up-to-date. We’ve heard several intranet teams complain that they would like to implement
When it comes to modal dialog boxes, our winners have very distinct ideologies. At one extreme is Seating Management. As a real-time application monitoring a physical environment, Seating Management didn't set out to interrupt hostess work in any way. If a hostess wants to seat 5 guests at a table
For example, one link from Emory University’s homepage reads, Restoring vision and hope. What does that mean? Hope for what? Vision for the future? The meaning only becomes clear when the text below the link is read. That descriptive text is necessary for the reader to understand that the link
2 Billion Downloads Later, Apple’s App Store is Still Going Strong
The App Store is obviously one of Apple’s most important assets in the mobile market. While Microsoft’s Zune HD, for example, is getting a lot of favorable reviews, the absence of an application ecosystem makes it a far less compelling product than Apple’s more expensive iPod
Images of Fitbit next smartwatch reveal heart-rate improvements
Fitbit is on schedule, as its boss James Park keeps reminding us, to launch its next smartwatch by the end of the year. We don’t know what the smartwatch will be called, though Blaze 2 seems likely, but thanks to leaks we know its design and some of the hardware improvements. Images obtained by
A 60-Second Trailer of the 60-Day Report on Cybersecurity
Melissa Hathaway came across our radar recently when President Obama tasked the former Bush administration aide with leading a 60-day review of Bush’s Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative; a largely classified, purported $30 billion, multi phase plan to address cybersecurity issues
Beyond Usability: 3 User Experiences Reshaping Their Industries
At first, you might think that such an innovation in the field of reverse logistics should not be discussed in a UX article, but many pieces of the user experience are improved by optimizing this backend operation. A traditional UI-only solution to the problem of high demand would be to clearly
a checklist for designing mobile input fields
Beyond Usability: 3 User Experiences Reshaping Their Industries
Take Uber for example. While the experience is hugely popular and generally pain free, there is room for enhancement — especially for large groups travelling together. Currently, a group must problem-solve in order to figure out how many “ubers” to call and and how many passengers can fit in
Mobile Microsessions
Both iOS and Android apps can take advantage of intelligent assistants— Siri and, respectively, Google Assistant — to allow users to quickly interact with the app using voice. In iOS, applications can provide shortcuts to Siri that enable users to perform certain frequent tasks or tasks that
User Intent Affects Filter Design
Note that the main problem here is, again, failing to recognize the user intent — namely that the user is still engaged with the filters area. The same techniques that we describe in the first section of the article can be successfully applied to determine whether it’s safe to scroll up or
Contextual Menus: Delivering Relevant Tools for Tasks
Swipe gestures are not deployed consistently in all lists, so people don’t always think to use them and as a result, the gestures become less discoverable. Swipe actions are accelerators intended to speed up interactions for power users, but the actions available through the gesture should also
Usability 101: Introduction to Usability
If you run at least one user study per week, it's worth building a dedicated usability laboratory. For most companies, however, it's fine to conduct tests in a conference room or an office — as long as you can close the door to keep out distractions. What matters is that you get hold of real
WP Engine: 2018 in Review
New year, new you, did you say? Well, that was our reality in 2018 as we rolled out some of our favorite new platform additions. We took the lead on the Amazon Polly plugin, the first plugin to bring voice technology to WordPress. The WP Engine Digital Experience Platform continued to evolve and
a checklist for designing mobile input fields
Fortune Names WP Engine a Best Place to Work in 2018 .
At WP Engine, we believe our people are the core of every success, award, milestone and every achievement. That’s because employees who truly feel empowered and validated by their workplace are energized to delight and inspire the customer in every interaction. When new employees walk through the
A Look at WordCamp Los Angeles 2018 .
There are so many things to love about WordCamp. The one thing that makes these events uniquely awesome is it’s inclusion of different people of all backgrounds, skills, and interests. This made for a comfortable, safe environment to truly learn and explore the open-source world of WP. Huge
Minimize Design Risk by Focusing on Outcomes not Features
UnitedHealthcare app for iPhone: The Build a Better Me feature allows users to track their diet and exercise routine (left). However, most people use this app to get personalized medical-coverage information, not to enter their dietary intake and workouts. That is usually better done on more
User Intent Affects Filter Design
Interactive filtering is usually associated with facets: as soon as users have selected a new possible facet, the results are displayed along with the set of new applicable facets (e.g., once the user has selected Refrigerators, new range-specific facets such as Freezer volume will be displayed
Storyboards Help Visualize UX Ideas
For example, a team improving a login flow (buttons, autofill, and/or a progression bar) can use the storyboard as a summary and reminder of the existing roadblocks in the process. If the images in the storyboard show that the user was frustrated when clicking the login button, but had no issues
Alexa, Where’s My Data?
An employee working from home in the proximity of a smart device may unknowingly record sensitive conversations. That data is then sitting on a server somewhere indefinitely. With more and more people working remotely and using these devices in their home offices, corporations must be aware of the
8 predictions for the future of IoT in 2017
As IoT gains momentum, the volume of data generated will be stratospheric. Not only will there be more data, but there will be different types of data, and data from sources that have yet to be considered. Big Data analytics will evolve into a distributed analytics model, which will help with the
Is Business Headed for a Cognitive-First Future?
And that’s a big deal: DataRPM has calculated that a 1 percent improvement in productivity across the manufacturing industry can result in $500 million in annual savings. Predicting anomalies can result in a 70 percent elimination of breakdowns, the firm says. With McKinsey predicting the IoT
7 Business Killers — Thoughts Startups Ought to Consider
The boomers are also the ones that are often trusted with the reviews for the new customer. Ask the boomer for reviews about your services — they genuinely want to help you and will follow through with a recommendation. Use them for your major source in a referral campaign and thus helps your
a checklist for designing mobile input fields
A 60-Second Trailer of the 60-Day Report on Cybersecurity
Finally, Hathaway sees this as a unique opportunity for the United States to work with countries around the world, and with organizations on an extremely local level. “We cannot succeed if our government works in isolation,” she added. It requires “leading from the top” from
How To Create a Successful Crowdfunding Campaign for Your Startup
A problem and a solution. The more relatable the problem your product or service is trying to solve is the more attention you’ll gather from your investors. For instance, not everyone likes walking to and fro from the video store. Netflix solved this problem by providing a one-time solution to
A Checklist for Designing Mobile Input Fields | Do Government Agencies and Non-Profits Get ROI From Usability?
Do Government Agencies and Non-Profits Get ROI From Usability?
Website use typically doubles when the site is made easier to use. Our studies of simplifying online information show that user understanding increases substantially when websites are rewritten according to usability guidelines. Lower-literacy users should be particularly important to government
Iterative Design and Testing of Icon Usability
Some users liked the man holding up a computer because "it says strength and power - I can do it for you." However, the icon was very busy with the large number of computers behind the person (of course, we hope to sell that much, but even so, icons should be simple!). Nobody liked the guru and
Nielsen's Law of Internet Bandwidth
Nielsen's law is similar to the more established Moore's law. Unfortunately, comparing the two laws shows that bandwidth grows slower than computer power. Moore's law says that computers double in capabilities every 18 months, which corresponds to about 60% annual growth. As shown in the table
