January | 2009 | The Law Firm Intranet

Archive for January, 2009

James Robinson Outlines Five Intranet Publishing Models

January 26, 2009 in information architecture, Web Design
Tags: Publishing Models

We are always on the look out for articles that define intranet models. What better way to start planning for and designing your own intranet than to see what thinking others have to offer. Hopefully, our own Model for Planning and Implementing an Intranet will prove useful to you. There are more models available on the Internet that you should check out as well including James Robertson’s Five Intranet Publishing Models as outlined in his Column Two blog.

The models as he defines them include:

fully centralised publishing

decentralised publishing

publishing with review

federated publishing

end-user content contribution

Along with defining the five models, Robertson goes on to provide a description that includes lists of advantages and disadvantages. But don’t stop at the end of the post as his reader’s comments are very interesting as well.

~ Nina Platt

Bad Usability Calendar

January 26, 2009 in Usability, User-Centered Approach, Web Design

The team at Norway’s NetLife Research group has once again delivered their Bad Usebility Calendar, this time for 2009. Downloadable in 13 languages, the calendar features 48 classic design flaws. They point some of them out but you may have to think to find the others. The previous calendars for 2005 to 20o8 are also available.

Resources on how to design functional web sites with your users in mind include:

Krug, Steve. Don’t Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, New Riders Press, 2nd Edition, 2005. One reviewer on Amazon, points out five of the key points in the book:

1.   Don’t make me think: Basically the web user does not want to venture into a site that requires them to figure it out. It should be self-evident. How do we use web pages:

a.   We don’t read pages, we scan them

b.   We don’t make optimal choices, we satisfice

c. We don’t figure out, how things work, we muddle through

2.   It doesn’t matter how many times I click as long as each click is a mindless unambiguous choice

3. Get rid of half the words on each page, then get rid of half of what’s left.

Neilsen , Jacob. useit.com – Jacob Nielsen on Usability and Web Design, Don’t miss signing up for his email newsletter, AlertBox: Current Issues in Web Usability. 1995-

UI Design Newsletter, Human Factors International (HFI), 1998- The HFI site also includes access to best practices, white papers, webcasts and training.

If anyone else has recommendations for readings, training, etc. on usability, web design, designing for the enduser, etc., please leave a comment with your suggestion(s).

~ Nina Platt