Random petty annoyances in the usability world: When a web site makes me log in, but has nowhere for me to log out. When a site makes me log in more than once (for instance, once to enter a members-only section, and again to comment on a discussion forum). When my e-mail program randomly logs [...]
Monthly Archives: May 2009
Expressive language v. 3
I just love finding words eloquently or imaginatively written for the enjoyment of readers. Here are more examples spotted recently: “An earthquake will unzipper a fault at two miles per second.” – National Geographic “[Sea lions are] a cross between sea slugs and sumo wrestlers.” – Hidden San Francisco & Northern California, by Ray Riegert [...]
Lessons from a garage sale
Our basement was crowded with toys, games, puzzles, children’s books and more, the result of two sons, two sets of grandparents, multiple doting aunts and uncles, hand-me-downs from a dozen cousins, birthdays, Christmases and a house of people who keep everything. It was time to get serious about cleaning up, so we held a garage [...]
What music speaks to you?
Have you ever heard a song, smelled a perfume or tasted food that instantly transported you to another place and time? I had that experience while having lunch the other day with my mom and two sons at the Mandarin restaurant, our after-Mother’s Day treat. The background music was instrumental (elevator music) versions of various [...]
An imperfect world
The sun is shining and it’s a brand new week. Time for a reminder to be careful out there by looking at some of the recent errors spotted in our imperfect published world: “eek out a living” (eke, although I like the frisson of living on the edge that “eek” suggests) “hit the gas pedal [...]
Hard to find a fold on a web page
Have you noticed the use of somewhat dated phrases in modern copy? While they are interesting, I wonder if the reader’s eyes just skip right over the words without registering them. Here are a few examples: “Above the fold” when referring to a web page. The graphic design term refers to locating the most important [...]