These slides come from a seminar I ran for MSc students at the University of York in February 2011. MSc Seminar on Forms Design from Caroline Jarrett View the slides as a PDF: Forms design – what matters toContinue reading… Forms design: what matters to users?
Tag: forms design
Top five books about forms design – 2010
Added note in 2025: It’s still possible to find all these books. I’ve updated the links to them and put a bit of context into them. It’s December, and we’re coming up to the gift-giving season. In case you wantContinue reading… Top five books about forms design – 2010
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?
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
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
Can I use an asterix to indicate optional fields?
I was asked recently: ‘Our form has many required fields and few optional fields. We think that we should use an asterisk to indicate the optional fields. Do you agree?’ It makes sense but it is also a bad idea.Continue reading… Can I use an asterix to indicate optional fields?
Usable forms
How can we design forms that are easier to read? In this presentation to the Media Trust I highlighted problems in both the ‘conversation’ and ‘appearance’ of some typical forms – and shared tips for improving the experience of users.Continue reading… Usable forms
Where to place labels in forms
Small details can affect a user’s experience of filling out a form. At the 2009 UXPA conference Caroline Jarrett explains what some of those small details are and how to make forms more usable.
Forms that Work: book by Caroline Jarrett and Gerry Gaffney
Forms that Work by Caroline Jarrett and Gerry Gaffney is published. The authors explain where to get the book and in 2025 update the post to explain why they won’t be doing a new edition.
Delivering Better Ballots
“An election is not held to test voters’ ability to follow instructions, but to receive instructions from the voters as to which candidates they will elect. No legitimate public purpose is served by designs that distort those instructions.” It’s goodContinue reading… Delivering Better Ballots