Articles on usability

Since April 2009 you can find our thoughts on web usability and information architecture on The web usability blog.

Latest articles on the web usability blog: 

	This route is not available at the moment
	Route planner Mappy has an error message that says 'Sorry, this route is not available at the moment'. I'm not sure that's what they really mean though.
	Description tag: what is it and why is it so important?
	The description tag is a hidden piece of html code that can make the difference between some visitors via Google and loads of visitors via Google. This article answers some of the most frequently asked questions about the description tag.
	Experts don’t know everything, not even usability experts
	Web builders or information architects who claim they don't need to involve real users because 'they know what's best' are pretty pretentious.
	CMSs don’t manage websites – people do
	A CMS is a great tool that helps you create and publish content on your website. What a CMS can not do, is manage your website's content. You need a real live person to do that.
	4 examples of clumsy title tags
	Title tags are important if you want to do well in Google. 4 examples of what not to do and 8 tips on how to get it right.
	8 tips for the perfect title tag
	The title tag is very important if you want to score well in Google. 8 tips for the perfect title tag.

Older articles: 

• Reading on the web (21 March, 2005)

• Liquid layout: still a good idea? (19 January, 2005)

• Usability and design (1 December, 2004)

• Good results pages increase search success (12 May, 2004)

• Information architecture: step into your users' shoes (1 April, 2004)

• FAQ: some handy tips (16 February, 2004)

• Five tips to boost your online sales (18 December, 2003)

• Usability expert versus web builder (12 November, 2003)

• Make your homepage work (8 October, 2003)

• How to involve users (15 September, 2003)

• User expectations for web page layout (4 June, 2003)

• Liquid layout (4 April, 2003)

• Resolution and window size: a few figures (5 March, 2003)

• How to turn visitors into newsletter subscribers (5 February, 2003)

• Information space: tell the user where he is (8 January, 2003)

• Log file analysis and usability: see what users do (22 December, 2002)

• 10 tips for local government sites - Part 2 (4 December, 2002)

• 10 tips for local government sites - Part 1 (20 November, 2002)

• Make unsubscription easy (6 November, 2002)

• Forms: Limit the number of fields (23 October, 2002)

• A 'Help' section is usually a bad sign (9 October, 2002)

• The importance of consistent communication (25 September, 2002)

• A drop-down is not a command menu (11 September, 2002)

• Page size and downloading time (3 July, 2002)

• Non-html files: do's and don'ts (19 June, 2002)

• Visually handicapped users are users too (5 June, 2002)

• Avoid movement (22 May, 2002)

• Printer-friendly pages (8 May, 2002)

• Title tags: important details (24 April, 2002)

• Links: make it clear to users what's clickable (10 April, 2002)

• Site maps: do's and don'ts (27 March, 2002)

• Instructions for forms (13 March, 2002)

• Avoid cascading menus (27 February, 2002)

• User feedback (21 January, 2002)

• Contact information  (14 January, 2002)

• Provide a predictable navigation (2 January, 2002)

• Search: help your users (18 December, 2001)

• Icons speak louder than words? (10 December, 2001)

• Frames: an absolute disaster (10 December, 2001)

• Navigation: use clear terminology (27 November, 2001)

• Language choice tips (16 November, 2001)

• Return on investment of usability (13 November, 2001)

• Style sheets: some basic guidelines (13 November, 2001)

• Style sheets: why use them? (13 November, 2001)