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Hypermedia and the Web
Bush’s Hypertext Vision
• Vannevar Bush, 1945 “As We May Think”
• Vision of post-war activities, Memex
• “…when one of these items is in view, the other can be instantly recalled merely by tapping a button”
Nelson’s Hypertext
• Coined “hypertext” in discussing his universal library and docuverse
• Had vision of a Xanadu system with hypergrams (branching pictures), hypermaps (with transparent overlays), and branching movies
• Many concepts adopted in WWW
Early Commercial Systems
• Knowledge Systems’ KMS– One or two frames of text/graphics– Links (tree/annotation) to additional
information
• Xerox PARC’s NoteCards– Cue card metaphor– Resizable but non-scrollable
• Apple’s HyperCard– Deck of cards metaphor– Links to other cards/programs
Hyperties
• Uses electronic encyclopedia metaphor• Indices and table of contents list
contents of information space• History lists show recently visited
pages• No syntactic entry means no error
messages (and less flexibility?)• Used in help systems, books
Shneiderman’s Golden Rules
of HypertextChoose projects where:1. There is a large body of information in
numerous fragments2. The fragments relate to each other3. The user needs only a small fraction
of the fragments at a time
Hypertext Guidelines
• Know the users and their tasks
• Ensure that meaningful structure comes first
• Apply diverse skills• Repect information
chunking
• Show interrelationships
• Ensure simplicity in traversal
• Design each screen carefully such that they can be grasped easily
• Require low cognitive load
Hypermedia and theWorld Wide Web
Jacob Nielsen
• Designed Sun Microsystem’s Web site in early 1990s
• Chronicled nine versions of the site• Employed usability testing approach• Author of numerous books and articles
on Web design• Writes bi-weekly article at
www.useit.com
How To Write On The Web(March 15, 1997)
• Relates to how users read on the Web (they don’t)
• Be succinct: write, cut in half, cut in half again
• Write for skimmers: use multiple levels of headlines, be meaningful, highlight
• Use inverted pyramids (start w/conclusion, add support, end w/background)
Web vs GUI Design(May 1, 1997)
• Give up full control (users, hardware, software have control)
• Plan for device diversity (in GUIs every pixel is controlled, on Web sw/devices differ)
• User controls Web navigation• Web is part of a whole with other
options
Top Ten Mistakes(May 1996)
• Frames• Gratuitous use of
bleeding edge technology
• Scrolling text and constant animations
• Complex URLs• Orphan pages
• Long scrolling pages• Lack of navigation
support• Non-standard link
colors• Outdated
information• Overly long (>10
sec) download times
Why Frames Suck(December 1996, revisited)
• Broken back button• Printing problems• Authoring problems (hard to learn)• Search problems• User preferences• Nielsen acknowledges that frames
are no longer a “disaster”, but are still “clumsy”
Browser Version PersistenceApril 18, 1999
• Users are reluctant to update browsers
• Thick line shows actual data, thin shows projection
• Web pages most be designed to work with older browsers or risk losing users
The Case for Micropayments
January 25, 1998• Nielsen predicts that most non-sales sites
will move to micropayments within 2 years• Time costs money, replace ad download
with direct payment• Most pages will cost less than a penny
(cost invisible), others 1-10 cents (shown with an icon), others more (must click OK)
• Equates Web use with long distance calls and electricity
End of Web DesignJuly 23, 2000
• Four trends require toned down appearance– Users spend most of their
time at other sites– Mobile devices drive
standardized navigation– Use of multiple devices
require semantic, not representation, emphasis
– Syndicated content
• What remains in Web design?– Task-based
development (what do users want)
– Content design (visit site for content, not looks)
– Information architecture beyond standard links
Eyetracking Study of Web Users
May 14, 2000• Poynter Institute study:
– Text (78%) attracts attention before graphics
– Headlines should be simple and direct
– Shallow reading is common (users select short articles, only read 75% of it)
– Users alternate between two open browsers (design for easy reorientation)
• Implications for non-newspaper sites– Must establish trust– Users spend less time
at non-news sites– Users will read fewer
words on non-news sites
WAP Doesn’t WorkDecember 10, 2000
• Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) defines a way to access the Internet with phones
• 70% of users said they would not be using WAP in a year
• Even simple tasks required too much time
• WAP guidelines– Do not use traditional
Web design principles– Develop a distinct
voice with minimal word count
– Do not use unique (and unclear) labels/menus
– Match information architecture with tasks (provide TV listings by time, not network)
Are Users Stupid?Feb 4, 2001
• Opponents of usability claim that it focuses on stupid users who cannot overcome complexity
• Do not exclude potential buyers from your site for elitist reasons
• Even if users can overcome complexity, that does not mean that they will