don't
make me think
Krug used to write
computer manuals, but in 1989 changed to usability testing and interface
design. He advocates a common sense approach to web design, and says that
there is no 'right' way to design, but there are guiding principles that
are already accepted, although all are learning their way through a new
medium. Krug is a big fan of the Amazon
website, and the book has many illustrations from this, and other, sites.
He devotes the last three chapters to the importance of testing, and how
to test sites.
From the word go sites should be self-evident or self-explanatory,
in order to make sites user-focused. Users are the more likely to return
if they feel 'smart', and by trying to be too clever, you will add to
the 'cognitive workload', and makes users feel less intelligent. Krug
insists that conventions work for a reason, and that if you decide to
deviate from this, you must at least understand the rules that you are
breaking. Users don't necessarily understand how the web works, they skim
pages, and choose the first reasonable option, rather than the 'best'
option, and pages must be optimised to allow users the best chance of
finding what they want.
Krug devotes a lot of attention to navigation, which
he compares with directional/item signs in the supermarkets, although
online the user loses any sense of scale, direction and location, and
it is up to the web designer to offer some idea of this through navigation
elements. Sites should identify a particular need, and try to answer it,
keeping the overall site simple. There are many ideals for what a site
can involve, but compromises must be made, and
designers should avoid the temptation to add 'just one more thing'. (January
2002)
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