Usability bookshelf
Cliff Wilding
People often ask me if I can recommend any good usability
or user-centred design books. Here are a few of the best.
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Don't Make Me Think!
by Steve Krug and Roger Black
Excellent introduction to web usability. Great
read, and well illustrated. Full of good advice, and origin of one
of my all-time favourite quotes, "If you love Amazon so much,
why don't you marry it".
More
information from amazon.com |
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Contextual Design: A Customer-Centered Approach to Systems
Designs
by Hugh Beyer and Karen Holtzblatt
Techniques for doing user research and
user-centred design, from the inventors of the influential
"contextual inquiry" user research technique. The bible
for field studies, including a rich set of analysis and design
tools.
More
information from amazon.com |
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The Media Equation: How People Treat Computers, Television, and
New Media Like Real People and Places
by Clifford Nass and Byron Reeves
Very interesting read, with many serious
implications for how to make your UIs "nice" to people,
rather than condescending, judgemental or just plain rude.
More
information from amazon.com |
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Visual Explanations: Images and Quantities, Evidence and
Narrative
by Edward
Tufte
Tufte is the guru of visual information displays,
and all three of his books are visual feasts which inspire the
reader to create rich visual representations of information.
More
information from amazon.com |
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GUI Design for Dummies
by Laura Arlov
You may laugh, but this is one of the best
textbooks of user centred design I've seen in a long time. Currently
out of print, snap it up if you can.
More
information from amazon.com |
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Web Site Usability: A Designer's Guide
by Jared Spool et al
Often surprising findings from user research into
using web sites. Jared is often controversial but always useful and
practical.
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information from amazon.com |
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