WhoWhatWeb

This article has some interesting eye-tracking data from experiments with label placement in web forms. The conclusions:

• Label position Placing a label above an input field works better in most cases, because users aren’t forced to look separately at the label and the input field. Be careful to visually separate the label for the next input field from the previous input field.
• Alignment of labels In most cases, when placing labels to the left of input fields, using left-aligned labels imposes a heavy cognitive workload on users. Placing labels above input fields is preferable, but if you choose to place them to the left of input fields, at least make them right aligned.
• Bold labels Reading bold labels is a little bit more difficult for users, so it’s preferable to use plain text labels. However, when using bold labels, you might want to style the input fields not to have heavy borders.
• Drop-down list boxes Use them with care, because they’re so eye-catching. Either use them for important data or, when using them for less important data, place them well below more important input fields.
• Label placement for drop-down list boxes To ensure users are immediately aware of what you’re asking for, instead of using a separate label, make the default value for a drop-down list box the label. This will work for very long lists of items, because a user already has the purpose of the input field in mind before the default value disappears.

In his recent article on A List Apart, Power to the People, D. Keith Robinson makes an important point about web technologies.

Both techies and business folks can become enamored of shiny new web technologies and try to throw as many of them as possible into a site. But the best web sites focus on solving problems for real people, and doing it as simply as possible.

By all means learn new technologies and use them when it’s appropriate to do so. But first and foremost, find out who your target audience is and what those people need to do with your site. Then make sure you help them do it quickly and reliably.

The people will thank you for it.

A great source for tips on user-centered web design is the UI Design Newsletter. Produced as an electronic mailing list by Human Factors International, it’s a monthly column about research into human factors issues associated with the web. Usually, a recent research study is detailed and the results are summarized. At the end of the issue, the “Pragmatic Ergonomist” gives a quick take on what it all means and what to do about it on your own site.

In the latest issue, Dr. Kath Straub ponders the question of which of the two pillars of navigation, structure or labels, is most important in helping web users find what they’re looking for.

These two parameters — structure and labels — are asserted to be as independent and complimentary. Neither is individually sufficient to trigger that 80% usability threshold. You have to get both right.

But when the study is complete, which turns out to be more important? You might be surprised.

If you’re at all interested in making your web site more usable by mere humans (and you should be!), you or your web designer will want to subscribe to the e-mail list or visit the web site to browse past issues. Sadly, there doesn’t seem to be an RSS feed yet. Maybe that’s one usability trick they still haven’t researched.