Has no one ever thought about useability when developing a style? There isn't a single style available that doesn't just copy poor choices from the default.
For instance, if you have an icon to tell users that there are new posts since their last visit, why do you need another one to tell them there aren't? On my forum there's a yellow box with "New" in black. Doesn't take any explanation of what it means. If there aren't any new posts, the space is simply blank. The subtle "this icon is slightly bluer" distinction isn't an issue.
It would be great if designers would consider some simple useability testing. Just ask a friend to sit at a computer at you home page and ask them to do things. Register. Visit a particular forum. Read a post. Post a reply. Etc. Just watch what they do and note where they encounter problems.
I just updated my forum from 3.0.1 and had to have the style recreated. In the days before the recreation I was thoroughly confused trying to navigate. It shouldn't be so hard.
For instance, if you have an icon to tell users that there are new posts since their last visit, why do you need another one to tell them there aren't? On my forum there's a yellow box with "New" in black. Doesn't take any explanation of what it means. If there aren't any new posts, the space is simply blank. The subtle "this icon is slightly bluer" distinction isn't an issue.
It would be great if designers would consider some simple useability testing. Just ask a friend to sit at a computer at you home page and ask them to do things. Register. Visit a particular forum. Read a post. Post a reply. Etc. Just watch what they do and note where they encounter problems.
I just updated my forum from 3.0.1 and had to have the style recreated. In the days before the recreation I was thoroughly confused trying to navigate. It shouldn't be so hard.
Statistics: Posted by alvo — Fri Mar 08, 2024 10:58 am