Foreword


Lynda Weinman
Author and Founder
lynda.com, inc.

Mike Kuniavsky and I met in 1994 when I was conducting research for my first book, Designing Web Graphics. I had found a web site called hothothot.com that I wanted to profile because of it's great concept, execution, and beauty. It was actually quite rare in those days to find a site that had any aesthetic merit whatsoever! Little did I know after finding this random nice site on the Internet that hothothot.com's web design company was practically around the corner from me. Mike and I met in person and began what has continued to be a professional kinship and friendship. Mike moved away to the bay area while I stayed in Southern California, but we've stayed in touch throughout the highs and lows of these long web years. I had never read anything Mike had written before receiving this manuscript in the mail. I was a little concerned that I might not like his book because this topic has been written about before and there are even some good books on it. I wasn't sure if it was going to be a "me too" kind of book, or if it had something original to say.

After reading the book, I can attest that there is no other book like this on the market. And I mean that in the best possible way! It is written in a conversational style, as if Mike is sitting right beside you. The good thing about having him there is that he's had tons of realworld experience testing and researching the usability of web sites. Most other authors out there market themselves as consultants or experts, but haven't really run their own projects like Mike has. He doesn't come at you as the all-knowing dogmatic "expert," but rather as seasoned veteran willing to share his war stories and victories.

Mike offers many practical procedures to conduct and analyze the results of your own custom usability tests. He shares lots of personal stories from the trenches, many of which are painfully ironic. The hope is that his knowledge will help spare you the pain of making the same mistakes others have made before you.

This book is wonderful. I know you might think I'm biased, but I liked Mike from the beginning for a reason—he knows his stuff and he shares what he knows with humor, generosity, and wisdom.




Observing the User Experience. A Practioner's Guide for User Research
Real-World .NET Applications
ISBN: 1558609237
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2002
Pages: 144

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