CHI 97 Electronic Publications: Special Interest Groups (SIGs)
Measuring Website Usability
Jared M. Spool, Tara Scanlon
User Interface Engineering
800 Turnpike Street, Suite 101
North Andover, MA 01845 USA
(508) 975-4343
Jared.Spool@uie.com, Tara.Scanlon@uie.com
KEYWORDS
Web design, usability testing, usability evaluation, searching.
© 1997 Copyright on this material is held by the authors.
Introduction
Web design is still primarily an artistic endeavor. However, we are beginning to see empirical research results that tell us what pitfalls to avoid in order to create successful websites.
In this SIG, we will discuss the latest research results available. Individuals designing websites will find out what is known about successful design, as well as what questions are still unanswered.
This SIG will also be a forum for researchers to discuss methods and share objectives. Researchers will have an opportunity to interact with website designers to understand the research still required to identify the key to successful design.
Following the session, we intend to consolidate the discussion into a simple 2 to 5 page summary and send it to all participants.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Deciding what to look at:
- Are there different classifications of sites or interaction styles?
- What are the key research elements to focus on?
- How important is Java/ActiveX technology versus "plain old" HTML?
- How relevant are new technologies, such as VRML or streaming video?
Picking users:
- Should we be focusing our research on users who already have web access?
- Should we focus on tomorrow's users?
- Are there ways to categorize users that would benefit designers and researchers?
Design elements:
- How do animation and graphics help or hinder the user?
- Does page layout play a role in information retrieval?
- Are there navigation structures that are more likely to lead to user success?
- Does white-space play a role in user success?
- User usage patterns:
- What type of questions are the users asking?
- How long should a user stay on a page?
- How do users find information in lists?
Site styles:
- How important is it to measure branding?
- Is cross-site navigation a critical variable?
Domain relevance:
- How does user familiarity with a domain bias their ability to succeed?
- Should sites be designed for multiple levels of domain knowledge?
Methodologies:
- How do you determine success? Success of retrieving target information? User satisfaction? Confusion or fatigue? Task load?
- What is the best way to communicate the results of testing?
Measurement tools:
- How do you log links traveled?
- How do you measure the size of a site?
- Are their complexity metrics that can be used?
CHI 97 Electronic Publications: Special Interest Groups (SIGs)
