Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
computer-supported cooperative work (CSCW). We have, however, provided
some practical suggestions about how to support communication between users
and systems.
The most common way that people communicate with each other and with
technology is through language. By considering language, concepts such as
Grices' maxims can be applied to help you optimize the way that users interact
with your system.
Most systems require the user to do some reading from the screen. The reading
process will be affected by factors such as the legibility of the text, which is
influenced by the font size and the way the text is laid out. The quality of reso-
lution of the text is also important: printed text usually has a much higher reso-
lution than text displayed on a screen. In addition, users tend to scan rather than
read text on a display screen, particularly if they are looking at menus or web
pages containing hyperlinks.
One of the other main tasks that users do is seek information. The way they do
this is based on their preliminary understanding of the information they are looking
for, and how it is organized. How they will understand the information that they
find depends on their previous knowledge and experience, and may be affected by
the contexts in which the information is being sought and used.
When it comes to interacting with the web, the structure and delivery of content
is critical. Content is an active element that has to be designed, developed, and
maintained over time, which requires the setting up of a content strategy. The way
the content is organized will be determined by your information architecture.
When you create content you need to make sure that it will be intelligible (as well
as legible) to your readers, and to structure it in such a way that the user can
understand and learn what it means. Finally, the medium through which the
content is delivered is increasingly important, as more and more people access the
same content using a wide range of devices.
7.8 Other Resources
Users read material on the screen as part of systems, so learning how to write is a
part of interface design. Strunk and White's very famous Elements of Style is well
worth looking at for this topic. This topic provides advice about how to present
information to readers in a format that they can most easily digest:
Strunk, W., & White, E. B. (1979). The elements of style. NY, NY: Macmillan
Another skill worth picking up is how to structure documents. For this, Parker's
Looking good in print is a good text. The advice is not specific to any word processor
or page layout tool. It discusses the use of color, layout, white space, fonts, and other
aspects of design. It is easy to read. It is a very gentle introduction to graphic design.
While based on print, some of the guidance will apply to online materials:
Search WWH ::
Custom Search