Categories
Software

Why Software Sucks

I’m in the middle of an absolutely awesome Technometria podcast with David Platt, author of the book Why Software Sucks. The episode is titled, appropriately enough, Why Software Sucks, the Podcast. It’s very much worth checking out. David has got some really good examples of what’s wrong with software today. His book blog (Suckbusters) covers […]

Categories
Customer Service

Symantec MySupport Follow-up

When I wrote about my frustration with the Symantec MySupport site last Friday, it was mainly a way for me to vent. I wasn’t expecting anything to come of it, which was why I was extremely surprised to find an email in my inbox this afternoon from a Symantec employee named Ben. Ben said someone […]

Categories
Design

Looking to Baby Toys for Design Inspiration

I recently began reading Robert Hoekman Jr.’s Designing the Obvious: A Common Sense Approach to Web Application Design, and can’t recommend it enough. As the title suggests, it’s all about creating web apps that are so easy to use that it seems like second nature. Reading about the concept of “obvious” design reminded me of […]

Categories
Web Development

Making Web Forms Easier to Use

I’m always excited to read or hear information that challenges conventional wisdom, so I really liked this article that arrived in my RSS reader this morning: Label Placement in Forms. In it, results and recommendations of a web form eyetracking study are given. Eyetracking records the movements of users’ eyes as they use a website, […]

Categories
RSS

Bloglines vs. Google Reader

When Google announced their web-based RSS reader called Google Reader at the Web 2.0 Conference last October, I took a quick look, but I honestly wan’t that impressed. I imported my list of subscribed RSS feeds and gave it a try, but it was really, really slow and buggy, living up to its “beta” label. […]

Categories
Web Accessibility

Website Accessibility Soon to be a Requirement?

In the last week, a National Federation for the Blind (NFB) lawsuit against the the Target Corporation has been given permission to proceed, with potentially huge consequences for all businesses with an online presence if Target loses. Last Thursday, a federal district court judge ruled that the inaccessible Target.com website violates the Americans with Disabilities […]

Categories
Web Development

MODx: A Different Kind of PHP CMS

Right now I’m in the middle of designing a website for one of the new businesses. It’s work that I enjoy very much, giving me the chance to stretch the creative side of my brain and apply my knowledge of branding, marketing, accessibility, usability, and most recently, search engine optimization. During the initial design round, […]