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We often want to persuade people to prioritize customer control, both online and offline. We’re not going to convince our business colleagues by citing Shneiderman’s Eight Golden Rules of Interface Design or Tognazzini’s First Principles, so here’s a story that might do the job.

Two Banks

I needed to pay some bills. I went to check one account but couldn’t remember the password my husband said he’d changed it to. I clicked the forgot password link and was asked for my email address. I received an email with a link, which took me to a page where I could reset my password. I changed it and got into the account, but unfortunately, did not have enough in that bank account to pay the last bill, due the next day. Read the entire post: UX Stories: User Control

The buzz is building for the February 2010 Interaction10 Conference in Savannah, with good reason. There’s an outstanding line-up of speakers and an impressive community of attendees. (Including many people I haven’t met in real life, but talk to quite a bit on the twitters.) I was amazed at the inclusiveness of the 2009 IASummit, and was a little concerned IxD10 wouldn’t live up to welcomeness I found in Memphis. Those fears have disappeared. I’ll report back, but it’s looking like there will be no lack of making new friends. Read the entire post: Looking forward to Interaction 10

I heartily recommend Luke Wroblewski’s Web Form Design (May, 2008) for people who create web forms and for those who hire others to create them. The book is structured in three parts: form structure, form elements, and form interaction, and includes a plethora of real-world examples. Whether you’re a novice or expert, walking through Wroblewski’s overview of forms-related issues will provoke your thinking about design choices and their impact. Luke is Chief Design Architect at Yahoo! and blogs at Functioning Form.

Below are some of my thoughts and recommendations in response to the book.

Deepen your understanding of other people’s experiences

Who are we to not bother to ensure the resources we create are universally usable? As you are thinking about making better web forms, deepen your understanding of how design choices affect people with disabilities. Read the entire post: Book Review: Web Form Design: Filling in the Blanks