We stopped talking about the framework in the late ’90s because we were doing more web work and we weren’t sure if the framework applied to the web. At the time, we couldn’t see the progression, but we now know that it was because we were stuck in the middle of Stage I and it’s hard to see what’s coming from where you are.

Now, more than ten years later, we’re finding ourselves talking about the framework once again.

One problem we often see is when the user researchers get overzealous in their improvement suggestions. They start to make recommendations in cases where there may not be any clear evidence the change will eliminate frustration or improve the design in a measurable way.

Ashley McKee discusses an article by Jeff Patton in which he outlines the buyer head and the user head, two aspects of human behavior that surface when encountering new products.

… If the online portion was the only thing involved, our customer would’ve been delighted with the results and likely shopped again. Because of the total user experience, she’ll likely resist shopping with the brand again.

In this organization’s case, the usability of the site involves only those people who directly influence the design of the site. However, to create a pleasurable user experience, we now have to involve people from all over the organization, including those people dictating how the store operations are designed and implemented. …

Recorded December 21, 2006, we discuss the big user experience stories from 2006, including the Wii, the Target accessibility law suit, moderated vs. unmoderated testing techniques, and more.

Present for this recording were Jared M. Spool, DeWayne Purdy, Lyle Kantrovich, Kyle Pero, and Nate Bolt.

(Duration: 28m 37s)

Recorded December 21, 2006, we discuss the big user experience stories from 2006, including the Wii, the Target accessibility law suit, moderated vs. unmoderated testing techniques, and more.

Present for this recording were Jared M. Spool, DeWayne Purdy, Lyle Kantrovich, Kyle Pero, and Nate Bolt.

(Duration: 27m 8s)

(Duration: 28m 15s)

Recorded December 21, 2006, we discuss the big user experience stories from 2006, including the Wii, the Target accessibility law suit, moderated vs. unmoderated testing techniques, and more.

Present for this recording were Jared M. Spool, DeWayne Purdy, Lyle Kantrovich, Kyle Pero, and Nate Bolt.

 

 SpoolCast #4.1: Where Did The Year Go?: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Someone once told me that if a CEO of a major corporation wanted to get his people focused on something, all he had to do was to buy 3 books on the subject and leave them in a pile on his desk, where all his subordinates can see them.
I guess that’s what interested me when [...]

With the new year comes a redesigned Wall Street Journal newspaper. Understanding that WSJ readers might need assistance with the change, the paper produced an 8-page reader’s guide to explain.

I see a major role for personas to be dissemination of information about users to others in the organization. When well executed, the entire organization understand who the design is for and the subsequent design rationales.