Usability Heuristics For User Interface Design.
In the context of user interface design, heuristics can be used as guidelines or rules of thumb to evaluate and improve the usability of software applications. These are developed based on studies of how users interact with software systems and can help designers identify common problems and areas for improvement.
Heuristics are problem-solving strategies or mental shortcuts humans use to make decisions and judgements quickly and efficiently. They are based on prior experiences rather than formal logic or analysis.
Jakob Nielson’s 10 usability heuristics provide broad guidelines for user interface design that have been widely adopted since their introduction in 1994. These heuristics apply to complex domain-specific applications and other forms of interactions, such as video games and VR apps.
1. Visibility Of The System Status
Visibility of system status is a user interface design principle emphasising the importance of informing users about what's happening in the system by providing relevant and timely feedback. The system should easily see what the system is doing and what progress is being made.
The visibility of system status is about keeping users informed with helpful and understandable feedback, especially in complex applications where long waits and uncertain outcomes can be confusing.
Progress indicators are a common way to provide feedback and detailed information about the time elapsed. The remaining steps or time can help users decide whether to wait or do something else.
Examples:
Progress bars: These usually show how much task has been completed and how much left
Loading spinners: Visual feedback that a process is ongoing and that the system has not frozen or crashed and understanding the system is still working.
Autosave notification: Visual feedback that the system is saving what we did and which disappears after it's been saved.
2. Match Between System And The Real World
Shows the importance of designing a user interface that closely matches the language and concepts of the user's mental model. The system should use language, symbols and concepts that are familiar and understandable to the user rather than requiring the user to learn new or unfamiliar technology.
By designing interfaces that match the user's mental model, the user can more easily predict the effects of their actions and understand the behaviour.
Examples:
Traffic lights: Color-coded system to communicate to the drivers. The way people understand and respond to visual cues.
Touch Screens: Use the gestures like swiping, tapping etc., to control the device.
GPS Navigation system
Smart home devices: Automating user tasks.
3. User Control and Freedom
Users may make mistakes while using a system, especially for complex tasks and need clear options to undo or exit unwanted actions. These systems can help users quickly correct errors avoiding the loss of time and effort invested in the task.
Examples:
Undo and Redo options, Cancel buttons, Save, and Restore options.
4. Consistency and Standards
Consistency refers to using the same design elements and patterns throughout a system. Standards refer to commonly accepted design patterns and conventions that are widely recognized and familiar to users.
Consistency and standards can help designers create interfaces that are easy to learn and use. They rely on familiar and predictable design patterns.
Examples:
Layouts: Consistent layout of different screens or pages in the system helps users to understand how to navigate and find what they need.
Icons: Usage of commonly recognized icons and symbols.
Navigation: Consistent navigation is important for users to move around different system parts quickly.
5. Error Prevention
To create a good user experience, preventing problems before they happen is essential instead of relying on error messages. This can be done by avoiding situations likely to cause errors or asking users to confirm before taking specific actions.
Showing a live preview of changes can help users see their action's impact and easily fix mistakes.
Examples:
Spell checkers: Many applications include spell checkers that help prevent spelling errors. Highlight misspelt words and suggest corrections.
Warning messages: Alert users to potential errors or problems. If a user tries to delete a file, a warning message asks if they are sure they want to delete it.
Confirmation dialogues: If a user tries to close a document without saving a confirmation dialogue might ask if they want to save their changes before closing.
6. Recognition Rather Than Recall
Designers should make elements and options visible and easily retrievable to minimize the user's memory load, making users think less. Recognition is a cognitive process by which people identify something they have previously encountered. Recall is the process of retrieving information from memory.
Examples:
Auto-suggest or Autocomplete: To reduce the amount of text entry required by the users and to help them recognize what they are looking for.
Visual cues: Use visual cues as highlighted or colour coding to draw the user's attention to important information or action they need to take.
Preview and Feedback: Users can recognize the effect of their actions without recalling specific details.
7. Flexibility and Efficiency of Use
Designers should provide shortcuts and accelerators in complex applications to help inexperienced and experienced users. Accelerators are UI features that speed up an interaction or process.
These features can help expert users become more efficient, while inexperienced users can still use primary methods of completing a task.
Examples:
Customizable toolbars or menus that allow users to add frequently used commands or tools for easy access.
Contextual menus that provide options relevant to the current task or selection.
Keyboard shortcuts for frequently used commands.
Gesture commands or touch shortcuts for touch-enabled devices.
8. Aesthetic and minimalist design
The designer's approach focuses on keeping things simple and what's essential for users. Only the necessary elements in an interface, such as labels, icons, buttons etc. These help the users quickly and easily find the information they need and complete tasks without distractions.
To ensure that interfaces remain focused on essential information, designers should avoid including irrelevant or rarely needed information.
Examples:
Apple iPhone: iPhone interface is an excellent example of minimalism in design. Clean lines, simple icons and a limited colour palette help users to navigate and find what they need quickly.
Google search: The search interface of google is another example of minimalism.
Dropbox: The site features clean lines, muted colours and only a few key elements. this helps users focus on its core message and understand what it offers.
9. HelpUsers Recognize, Design and Recover From Errors
The importance of designing interfaces that make it easy for users to identify errors, understand what went wrong and take steps to fix them. Providing specific guidance on resolving the errors and offering additional resources or support if needed.
To help users fix errors, error messages should be clear, easy to understand and suggest a solution. Messages that use technical language or error codes can confuse users and make it difficult for them to fix the problem. The messages should be brief and descriptive to teach the users about the system.
Examples:
In a web form, if a user forgets to fill in a required field, the interface can highlight the missing field and display a clear error message indicating that the field is required.
In an application, if we try to close a file currently in use without saving, it will suggest we save it before closing.
In a messaging app, if a user tries to send a message to a contact who has been blocked, the interface can show the users the message cannot be sent.
10. Help and Documentation
It aims to provide users with the necessary assistance and guidance to use a product efficiently. It recognises that users may encounter difficulties or need additional information while using a product and provides resources to address those issues.
The product should have a user-friendly interface that minimizes the need for help and documentation. Design products in such a way that it is easy to use so that users can complete tasks without searching for external resources.
Examples:
User Manual, FAQs, Knowledge Base, Video Tutorials, Helpdesk Support.
