This section covers the different design considerations that need to be made when creating a website. There are many principles and heuristics that should be adhered to (and can be user interchangeably) - these notes focus mainly on Nielsen's 10 heuristics, which are commonly used in UX Design.
What are they?
● Principles for thinking about different aspects of design
● What to provide & what not to provide in an interface
● Derived from a mix of theory based knowledge, experience & common sense
● Ensures the designer provides certain features in an interface
Cont
The principles are based on human psychology - how we react to something. It’s
recommended to keep to these principles to help with familiarity.
E.g. Coffee machines have changed over time but the principle stays the same.
Visibility
Make functions obvious.
Cont.
● Users shouldn't have to think about an action - what they're supposed to do should
be made clear enough.
● For something to be usable, the main action should be presented at the beginning. It
should be obvious & it should be centred.
● Visible elements such as the change of a mouse when hovering over a button should
be used.
Feedback
● Sending information back to the user about what has been done
● Includes sound, highlighting, animation & combinations of these
● Feedback used properly provides the necessary visibility for user interaction
Cont.
It shows the users that their action has been completed - the feedback is a form of
confirmation.
● Restricts the possible actions that can be performed
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, ● Reduces chance of making mistakes
● Physical objects can be designed to constrain things
○ E.g. only one way you can insert a key into a lock
Consistency
Design interfaces to have similar operations & use similar elements for similar tasks.
E.g. keep the menus in the same position across sites.
● Consistent interfaces are easier to learn & use
● Decreases the workload for the user
Internal consistency
● Designing operations to behave the same within an application
○ This is difficult to achieve with complex interfaces
External consistency
● Designing operations, interfaces etc to be the same across applications & devices
○ E.g. MS Office, Apple
Affordance
Attributes of an object that give clues to its operation.
E.g. make buttons clearly distinguishable.
● Sensory characteristics that intuitively imply functionality & use
We see the handle & expect to pull the door, but
these doors have a “pull / push” indication. This
can be confusing if you’re not paying attention to
the text.
The removal of the handle means the only
possible action is to push the door. This helps if
you cannot read / do not understand the
language in the above example.
Cont.
Text / buttons such as “Next” gives the user an expectation of what might happen
next.
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