Task 3

HCI  is known as human computer interaction. This is how people use computers. A web site has to be simple, useful and accessible. 

This link shows what HCI is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtvwustmEDI

Ten usability heuristics

Visibility of systems status - The system should always keep users informed about what is going on, through appropriate feedback within reasonable time

Match between system and the real world - the system should speak the users language, with words, phrases and concepts familiar to the user, rather than system oriented terms.

User control and freedom - users often choose system functions by mistake and will need a clearly marked exit to leave the unwanted state without having to go through an extended dialogue. 

Consistency and standards - users shouldn't have to wonder whether different words, situations or actions mean the same thing. Follow platform conventions.

Error prevention - Even better than good error messages is a careful design which prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. Either eliminate error prone conditions or check for them and present users with confirmation option before they commit to the action. 

Recognition rather than recall - minimize the users memory load by making objects, actions and options visible. The user shouldn't have to remember information from one part of the dialogue to another. Instructions  for use of the system should be visible or easily retrievable.

Flexibility and efficiency of use - accelerators unseen by the user may often speed up the interaction for the xpert users such the system can cater to both inexperienced and experienced users.

Aesthetic and minimalist design - Dialogues should not contain information which is irrelevant and rarely needed. Every extra unit of information in a dialogue competes with the relevant units of information and diminishes their relative visibility.

Help users recognize, diagnose and recover from errors - error messages should be expressed in plain language.

Help and documentation - even though it's better if the system can be used without documentation, it may be necessary to provide help and documentation.

http://mnmlist.com/

This is an example of a uncluttered website. This example has a simple layout which uses white space to show simplicity. The styling is linear as it is a just scroll down format. 


http://www.restaurantguideatlanta.com/

This the second example of a cluttered website. Theres too much text and advertisements. This doesn't keep to the three step rule as there is so many options.


Web design mistakes 

• Legibility problems
• Non - standard links
• Flash
• Content that's not written for the web
• Bad search
• Browser Incompatibility
• Cumbersome forms
• No contract information or other company info 
• Frozen layouts with fixed pages widths
• Inadequate photo enlargement

Three click rule

The three click rule is an unofficial web design rule concerning the design of website navigation. It suggests that a user of a website should be able to find any information with no more than three mouse clicks. It is based on the belief that users of a site will become frustrated and often leave if they can't find the information they are looking for within three clicks.

http://www.iamyuna.com/ This is a example of the three click rule.

Site maps

http://www.apple.com/sitemap/
http://pages.ebay.com/sitemap.html 
http://www.number10.gov.uk/site-map/

These are examples of site maps for three different websites. Apple and Ebay have the same format, which in my opinion is more effective than number 10. Number 10's layout has too many categories which is confusing for the user. In my opinion I think that the bigger companies have more experienced designers and this is why the site maps are more clear and effective. Going back to the number 10 site map is too businesslike and this would put off certain users.

User feedback

http://www.apple.com/contact/feedback.html
https://opm.princeton.edu/forms/request-WWW.html

These are two feedback pages. I personally think princeton university has too many information boxes, personally this would put me off as I wouldn't like to receive junk mail and also I would be concerned that my information that would shared with other websites. So in my opinion Apple have a much better layout.

Accessibility 

http://www.hsbc.co.uk/1/2/accessibility;jsessionid=0000s-eB518ot9sAPpZPDNIg0Y-:12c58o847
http://www.tesco.com/direct/?redirect=default
http://www.apple.com/accessibility/
http://www.rnib.org.uk/professionals/webaccessibility/Pages/web_accessibility.aspx

I feel that all of these websites are very accessible, however the last link is over packed and hard on your eyes. Tesco is also over packed, however its easy to navigate. The apple site has kept to the simple white space again, this theme runs throughout their website, this is one of the main rules of website design, because if the design changed the user would be confused. But overall I feel that these websites are easily accessible.