The very next question after “Wait, UX be integrated into Agile?” is usually “Okay, how’s it done?” Yes, UX can absolutely be integrated to Agile and while there are others, two of the most popular methods are ‘Sprint Ahead’ and ‘Just in Time.’ UX was born for Agile It should be no surprise that UX [...]
Last week in an homage to Saturday morning cartoons (The Spinach and Kryptonite of Personas), I talked about strengths and weakness of Personas. I concluded with Personas are still worth it and there are ways to increase the Spinach (their strengths) and minimize their Kryptonite (weaknesses). Strong Research = Strong Personas The single most important [...]
An online process should never be more than 3-clicks, right? Wrong. It isn’t the number of clicks, its ‘does the user know what to do next.’ I often run into folks scarred by the 3-click rule. I imagine that they must have endured some medieval torture for breaking the rule in the past because they [...]
I spend my college years as a cook and worked with some great chefs, one of whom imparted some wisdom on how to tell if someone had solid experience in cooking. “Hand them a knife and ask them to dice something,” he said. Someone who has less experience will grip the knife like a hammer [...]
A few years ago Jeff Atwood posted what I consider to be the best blog article articulating the limitations of A/B testing….course, it doesn’t hurt that I also love the move ‘Groundhog Day.’ Please visit his site Coding Horror and specifically the article: Groundhog Day, or, the Problem with A/B Testing If you’re unsure what [...]
While I have seen just about every episode original Star Trek, I am not an avid fan (doesn’t everyone say that?). Really, you won’t catch me in pointy ears or discussing the feasibility of warp drives…seriously….quit looking at me like that! However, there is one episode that always jumps out at me when I see [...]
‘You can’t get there from here.” I grew up in a very rural part of the country and yes, folks really do say that. The same can be said for trying to develop a great website or application without User Experience (UX), you can’t there from here. You view your product like you view your [...]
I often think about why I don’t use certain applications or websites. As a usability person I want to understand what it was about the experience that left a negative impression or caused genuine frustration? Why did the application or website seem ill-fitting, like clothes tailored for someone else? Often the reason applications and websites [...]
Without great content, your website may be just like an infomercial. There are a lot of things we say that we don't always really mean...."Have a nice day"…."That color looks good on you"...."That was a really great point.....to name a few. But when it comes to web development, the one I often hear [...]
Quick, what is the worst website you have been to (or application you have used) lately? For me, it was a support site I was using a few months back that left me with more gray hair than when I started using it, a mere 20 minutes earlier. Now, could you describe in basic usability terms [...]
