Design: User Assistance Design

I know as well as anyone that we humans are very visual creatures. My area of specialty is the design of forms and, as you can imagine, a significant part of my work focuses on visual design and layout. Recently, I published a series of six articles about human perception, or how people see, and the impact this has on the way we should design Web forms. We can use what we know about human perception to help people move through forms quickly, easily, and successfully. Form design is not about aesthetics just for aesthetics’ sake.

Don’t get me wrong. I do think the attractiveness of a user interface is important. My concern is that people sometimes pay disproportionate attention to how sexy, pretty, or aesthetically pleasing a form is, in comparison to how well a person can actually use it. If users can’t successfully fill out and submit a form, it’s a waste of pixels—not to mention everybody’s time.

As a result of this fixation on fashionable forms, it seems, every other week, there is a new article with a title like “20 Fetching Forms” or “How to Jazz Up Your Forms with CSS and JavaScript.” I get excited by the possibility that these articles might show us some way to help people fill out forms faster or make fewer errors. Alas, they frequently do exactly the opposite—promoting techniques that are often unnecessary reinventions of the metaphorical wheel or, worse still, result in forms that are harder for people to fill out. Read More

Sometimes, new technical writers might feel a bit lost. They may not be aware of all the areas in which they can contribute. The general perspective of many companies is that technical writers do not add value to the product, but are simply part of a support function. As a technical writer, this can make your life really difficult!

In this article, I’ll discuss the various ways in which you can contribute as a technical writer. I’ll also provide an overview of a general documentation process, or workflow, that you should follow, which can vary depending on whether you’re creating release-related content or improving existing content, as well as from company to company. Read More

Is it possible to integrate documentation into an existing user experience? Yes, this is certainly possible. I would even go so far as to state that creating such an integrated user experience is a must for every vendor trying to create greater customer loyalty.

I am not referring to the kind of loyalty that results from loyalty schemes that give a customer a sense of belonging—for example, when checking into a hotel where the customer stays frequently. Although such schemes undoubtedly do add to the customer’s satisfaction when using a product or service. I’m really thinking of something much more basic—something that seems to be terra incognita for most companies. Read More