Answer Geek
QUESTION: Where can I find design guidelines for Websites and Web-based training? I'm also interested in research on designs that are easiest for users to read and interact with.
Usability is an important consideration when designing Web-based environments to promote your company or for distance learning. Usable Websites and learning environments are intuitive. Designers who plan for usability realize that the user's software and hardware environment may not be optimal, so they test the site under various combinations of browsers, screen settings, and operating systems.
In his book Designing Web Usability, self-proclaimed Web design expert Jakob Nielsen identifies two principles of usability: simplicity and focus on the user's goals. You can learn more about usability from Nielsen's site, www.useit.com, which chunks usability information into three-page articles published twice a month that designers can turn into action items for their own sites.
Additional usability links can be found at
Usability and accessibility go hand-in-hand to make a site easy to use for everyone. Accessibility is and will be at the forefront of federal Webmasters' minds because Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act will require federal Websites to be accessible for people with disabilities. You can find out more about Section 508 (the final regulations have not been issued yet) at
Accessibility is more than just making a site usable for people with disabilities, although that is one of its main functions. Usability and accessibility also help users retain control of their Web environment. The phrase to keep in mind is "best viewed in any browser." For example, use of special fonts and inflexible site layout may make Websites difficult for many people to read. Instead, it's suggested that a cascading style sheet (CSS) be used. If a user's customized browser settings for, say, font size helps them read the page easier, the designer's CSS settings will be able to accommodate the user's needs.
To address usability issues with background and type colors, frames, and graphics, spend some time getting acquainted with these sites and tools. They provide information about accessibility and usability guidelines, including use of colored text and use of alt tags with images.
Excellent references about learning styles on the Web can be found at the Masie Center and brandon-hall.com. Books that can help you design pages for various learning styles include
- Brooks, David W. Web-Teaching: A Guide to Designing Interactive Teaching for the World Wide Web. New York: Plenum, 1997 (see Chapter 2: Research on Teaching; Web Issues).
- Driscoll, Margaret. Web-Based Training: Using Technology to Design Adult Learning Experiences. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1998.
- Harrison, Nigel. How to Design Self-Directed and Distance Learning Programs. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1999 (see Unit 2: How to Get Inside the Heads of Your Target Group).
Finally, Web designers will also want to study information architecture; its guiding principle is that users go to Websites to accomplish a task and sites should be designed accordingly. You can find information on IA at Info.Design's Website.
Additional usability and accessability links:
Published: October 2000
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Beth Archibald Tang, an associate in the Information Technology Group at Caliber Associates, a management consulting firm in Fairfax, Virginia.
Aina G. Irbe, an associate in the Information Technology Group at Caliber Associates, a management consulting firm in Fairfax, Virginia. Irbe is a distance education training specialist for EYT and a member of the distance education adjunct faculty at George Washington University, where she recently moderated a Human-Computer Interaction course dealing with Web usability, design, and sociological issues. |
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