Common Excise Traps

You should be vigilant in finding and rooting out each small item of excise in your interface. These myriad little extra unnecessary steps can add up to a lot of extra work for users. This list should help you spot excise transgressions:

  • Don't force the user to go to another window to perform a function that affects this window.

  • Don't force the user to remember where he put things in the hierarchical file system.

  • Don't force the user to resize windows unnecessarily. When a child window pops up on the screen, the program should size it appropriately for its contents. Don't make it big and empty or so small that it requires constant scrolling.

  • Don't force the user to move windows. If there is open space on the desktop, put the program there instead of directly over some other already-open program.

  • Don't force the user to reenter her personal settings. If she has ever set a font, a color, an indentation, or a sound, make sure that she doesn't have to do it again unless she wants a change.

  • Don't force the user to fill fields to satisfy some arbitrary measure of completeness. If the user wants to omit some details from the transaction entry screen, don't force him to enter them. Assume that he has a good reason for not entering them. The completeness of the database (in most instances) isn't worth badgering the user over.

  • Don't force the user to ask permission. This is frequently a symptom of not allowing input in the same place as output.

  • Don't ask the user to confirm his actions (this implies a robust undo facility).

  • Don't let the user's actions result in an error.

The existence of excise in user interfaces is, along with navigational issues, the primary cause for user dissatisfaction with software-enabled products. It behooves every designer and product manager to be on the lookout for GUI excise in all its forms and to take the time and energy to see that it is excised from their products.




About Face 2.0(c) The Essentials of Interaction Design
About Face 2.0(c) The Essentials of Interaction Design
ISBN: N/A
EAN: N/A
Year: 2006
Pages: 263

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