The Usability Business : Making the Web Work

Reviews of the 'Politics of Usability' by the same editors:"Designing quality web sites or easy-to-use software is simple: just employ established usability engineering methods. The only hard part is getting people to actually do so instead of basing the design on their own intuition. Luckily, the authors in this book know all the devious tricks that are necessary to get development organizations to do the right thing. Follow their advice and the usability of your products will double."Dr Jakob Nielsen, Sun Microsystems Distinguished Engineer, Author of 'Usability Engineering'"This well written book shows how to overcome many of the problems of putting research into the theories, methods and techniques of human computer interaction to work in commercial systems projects."Dave Clarke, Consultant, Visualize Software - Computer Bulletin, September 1998A follow-up to the successful 'Politics of Usability' this book shows how to apply HCI expertise in the pressured environment of a modern organisation. Quite apart from the need to provide a good usability service cheaply and efficiently, most HCI practitioners also have to deal with day-to-day concerns such as funding, budgets, project and people management, teamwork, communication and promoting an HCI ethos within the company. How to achieve this and still find new ways to make modern technology more usable is the central message of this book.The Usability Business offers a unique insight into usability issues. The book deals with real work situations focussing on practical, workable approaches to professional responsibilities.

Preface
Introduction
About This Book
Author Biographies

Part I : Usability Professionals : Dealing With Organizational Politics in an Uncertain World
Chapter 1 : The Myth of Objectivity: Making the Transition from Ivory Tower to Real-World Usability Evaluation
Chapter 2 : No Usability Test Is an Island: Is Our Expertise Enough on Its Own?
Chapter 3 : Who Moved My Lab? The Effect of Constant Organizational Change on Usability Practice
Chapter 4 : “What Does That Button Do?” Effective Usability Project Scheduling Around Complicated and Unfamiliar Technology

Part II : A New Usability for New Applications: Adapting Our Skills, Growing Our Role
Chapter 5 : “I Enjoyed That This Much!” A Technique for Measuring Usability in Leisure-Oriented Applications
Chapter 6 : Caught Between Real and Virtual Worlds
Chapter 7 : The XMod Files: Defining and Designing the “User Experience”
Chapter 8 : Protoypes and Archetypes: Coping with Adult Behaviour in the Development of Information Systems for Children
Chapter 9 : Prototypes in Web-Site Design-Representations with Political Agenda

Part III : Politics and New Media: the Overwhelming Importance of Usability on the Web
Chapter 10 : The Politics of Intranet Usability: Can One Size Fit All?
Chapter 11 : Developing Intranets Which People Use: Making Progress When Everyone Has an Opinion
Chapter 12 : Getting Past the Home Page: Structuring Information With People in Mind
Chapter 13 : Strategies to Make E-Business More Customer-Centred

Index