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RE: Here's why formatting and layout can really matter:
Subject:RE: Here's why formatting and layout can really matter: From:"Dick Margulis" <margulis -at- mail -dot- fiam -dot- net> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 9 Nov 2000 10:31:57 -0500
Dan Hall wrote:
>
>Obligatory TW tie-in: how much additional effort should we expend after
>providing clear directions that could be followed by someone of average
>intelligence? Write very slowly and in large letters so the audience can
>follow along. <g> Step-by-step directions in baby-talk, anyone? <vbg>
It depends, Dan. Could failure to follow the instructions result in the meltdown of a nuclear reactor? An airline disaster? A candidate being elected President who was not the choice of the people voting?
If someone is too dumb to read the warning in the manual about setting AutoSave options correctly and therefore loses a document and has to recreate it, what's the worst that can happen? Maybe the reputation of your software suffers and your company goes bust. Not a tragedy for me (I dunno if it's a tragedy for you). So you make a tradeoff decision that usability testing costs more than what you are risking by not doing it, and you go on with your life. That's fine in the software industry.
But if there are social, environmental, or safety consequences in the eventuality that someone fails to follow directions that you think are clear enough, then the tradeoff decision to skip usability testing is irresponsible. In this case, you may find that writing big and using one-syllable words is what you have to do, even if it wasn't the approach you initially preferred.
Just my two cents' worth.
Dick
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