Phone Number Usability
I had a problem with a recent order on Zazzle, so I went to their Web site to find their phone number. It’s 1-888-892-9953, but I had no way of figuring that out from the screen I landed on or from the QWERTY keyboard on my cell phone. In the old days Z equaled 9 on the phone, but today’s cell phones don’t hold with the old phone conventions. The alternate for … Read entire article »
Filed under: Usability
Twitter changes @ Replies
How do I know if someone’s talking to me? I look for my name. Who doesn’t? That’s why I was so pleased to see that Twitter changed the sidebar menu from @Replies to @Username this morning. This change makes a lot of sense, particularly for new users who don’t know that @ = reply. Oh, and if you’re not following me on Twitter, you have two chances: @zesmerelda & @chicagobites! Twitter’s been rolling out … Read entire article »
Speech Usabililty
NYT’s presentation of Obama’s acceptance speech
Kudos to the NY Times for their presentation of Barack Obama’s speech. This interface highlights the text, paragraph by paragraph, as Obama is delivering it. As paragraphs are delivered, the transcript advances. Clicking on a particular paragraph advances the video, and advancing the video advances the transcript of the speech. Chapter links are provided to the right if you know which section you’d like to advance to. The emphasis in the NY Time’s presentation is the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Usability
Bad Packaging Design from South Beach Living
I received this South Beach Living sample with my last Peapod order and stuck it in the freezer for one of my meat-eating friends. It wasn’t until one of those carnivorous friends mentioned her mistake of putting this in the freezer instead of the fridge, that I realized it wasn’t a frozen food box. It’s the exact same size as Lean Cuisine, Weight Watchers, and a host of other frozen dinners. I … Read entire article »
Filed under: Usability
Easy feedback for Target
I appreciate good usability and elegant design. So when I received this e-mail from Target regarding an order cancellation, I was more than happy to give them feedback. This was a simple decision point, didn’t require me to log into anything, and took no time. Too often, companies want to know absolutely everything in a feedback form: address, demographic information, if no then why no, if yes then why yes, etc. It’s annoying … Read entire article »
Filed under: Usability