Nielsen Norman GroupEvidence-Based User Experience Research, Training, and Consulting
Because applications must help people complete tasks (rather than just consume information,) they often magnifiy ordinary usability challenges. Below you'll find tips on everything from labeling commands to organizing steps in a logical workflow -- all gleaned from our first-hand research with real application users.
For more in-depth analysis of application design and usability:
Winning app UIs include domain-specific solutions that allow humans to focus on deeper issues while the software takes care of the mechanics.
Smooth-flow task performance makes application use pleasurable. But disruptions are all too common due to crinkly design or creaking implementation.
'Chrome' is the user interface overhead that surrounds user data and web page content. Although chrome obesity can eat half of the available pixels, a reasonable amount enhances usability.
Overloading different outcomes on similar commands can be confusing. Using the same command for multiple actions enhances usability if the results are conceptually the same.
Actions at one step of an application impact subsequent steps. When users don't understand this relationship, usability suffers.