An error message made it to Top Tweet status on Twitter in 2010. ““An unknown error message ‘APIEpicFAIL’ was received from the device”. The only user option: click on OK. When Duncan Campbell (@dunk) tweeted about this message, he commentedContinue reading… Avoid being embarrassed by your error messages
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Form assessment toolkit: a step in the right direction but misses the real issues
Records are crucial for government. Neil MacGregor, in his radio series A history of the world in 100 objects chose a government record – a Mesopotamian clay tablet – to describe the origin of writing, and explained that writing wasContinue reading… Form assessment toolkit: a step in the right direction but misses the real issues
Designing usable online forms
Designing usable online forms was a discussion group I led at ‘Building the Perfect Council Website’, a Headstar and Socitm Better Connected conference. Designing usable online forms BCPW10 from Caroline Jarrett #forms #formsthatwork
Design to read: guidelines for people who do not read easily
These guidelines are co-authored by Janice (Ginny) Redish, Kathryn Summers, and Caroline Jarrett. Orignally published in the June 2010 issue of UXPA User Experience, our work orginated in the ‘Design to Read’ project. Design to read project archive This articleContinue reading… Design to read: guidelines for people who do not read easily
Online forms: saving work or causing stress?
E-forms have benefits, but so do paper forms. To have a successful e-forms project, you need to choose the appropriate level of e-form. This 2010 talk to the International Professional Communication Conference also describes several indicators of e-forms project success.Continue reading… Online forms: saving work or causing stress?
The question protocol: how to make sure every form field is necessary
What is a question protocol? A question protocol is a tool for finding out which form fields are required. It lists: every question you ask who within your organisation uses the answers to each question what they use them forContinue reading… The question protocol: how to make sure every form field is necessary
Tips for designing complex forms, UPA2010
From tax returns to lasting power of attorney, some forms present both designers and users with a huge number of challenges. In this presentation to the 2010 Usability Professionals’ Association Conference, I highlight some of the pitfalls of designing complex forms –Continue reading… Tips for designing complex forms, UPA2010
How I got started in forms and usability
These slides are from a presentation I made as part of the Usability Fundamentals Panel at the UPA2010 conference, held in Munich in May. Getting started in forms and usability, UPA Munich 2010 from Caroline Jarrett
Embedded links and online reading accessibility
At the 2010 Society for Technical Communication conference in Dallas, Whitney Quesenbery and I were interviewed about the feasibility of removing links embedded directly within paragraphs. These have been described as “exit points” that confuse and disorient low-literacy readers. The interview wasContinue reading… Embedded links and online reading accessibility
UXLX: Label placement in forms – and other time-consuming controversies
Here’s a look at current research into where to place labels – the text that stands for a question – if you want your forms to be usable. This presentation to the 2010 User Experience Conference in Lisbon also examines someContinue reading… UXLX: Label placement in forms – and other time-consuming controversies