Archive for the 'Usability and HCI' Category

Must-have WordPress Plugins

Published on April 13, 2012 in Design, General, Technology and Usability and HCI. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Recently I was asked to consult with someone developing a website for their small business. We discussed their goals, developed requirements and at the end settled on WordPress for the content management system. As the individual was developing the site they became familiar with the feature of plugins and asked what would be some essential ones to include in their site. I sat down and put this list together and I’d like to share it with you.

In no particular order, my favorite and most useful WordPress plugins.

Advanced Blogroll- For links to other sites or other online presence (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) you create links in what’s called a blogroll (The name is a holdover from the early days of WordPress.)y The default WordPress configuration displays them in alphabetical order. This plugin allows you to arrange them as you see fit. You can see how “Latest” comes before “Elsewhere” on the navigation to the right. ->

WordPress Database Backup - Lets me sleep at night. Since WordPress stores all of your pages and post content in a database, keeping a backup is a smart idea. I have this setup to email me once a week with a zip file of my database. It’s a small little email and I have Gmail set to filter it out of my inbox automatically.

Jetpack – What once was a gathering of separate plugins is now a super kung-fu collection of some great features. Two of my favorite features are the Wordpress stats and After the Deadline. The stats gives you near real-time feedback on traffic to and from your site. Popular pages, keywords and links displayed automatically in your dashboard. After the Deadline is a super grammar, style and spell checker that uses artificial intelligence to make you sound more-than artificially intelligent. That’ just two of the many features of Jetpack.

Akismet - Comment spam blocking magic. Spammers target popular content management systems like WordPress in an attempt to trick site owners into allowing spammy comments. Akismet sits in the background and filters these fake comments without any interaction. According to my stats it’s blocked over 17,000 spam comments with a 99.87% accuracy over 6 years. Not too bad.

Google Analytics – Google Analytics is the most powerful web tracking tool out there. Coupled with WordPress and a good email campaign tool (like MailChimp) you can track your readership with great detail. I could hours just going over how useful good web metrics are!

WP Super Cache – This is just incase you suddenly get hit with a million visitors. Normally, WordPress dynamically generates each page and post which causes a lot of requests for information in the database and all the pictures and styles in  your theme. This plugin uses a complex set of rules to create a static version of your page, making the load on the server much less. There by allowing for many more visitors at the same time.

One last recommendation is not a WordPress plugin but a web service called if this then that. ifttt allows me to glue things I do online together. For example, when I post a photo to Instagram ifttt automatically creates a new post on my site and posts the picture. It can greatly help in automating posting to a lot of other web services, which allows you to spend more time writing content and growing your business than messing with tech stuff.

I hope this helps you firm up your WordPress site and please leave a comment if you have a suggestion of your own.

Siri, With Headphones On

Published on April 2, 2012 in Design, Technology and Usability and HCI. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Today I learned that when using Siri with headphones on¹ she will read back any text or email messages before they are sent.

From Apple,

“When you use earphones or a headset, Siri reads back text messages and email messages that you’ve dictated before you send them, and it reads back the subjects of reminders before you create them. This is especially helpful when you’re driving and can’t see the iPhone 4S screen.”

I wish this option was the default behavior. There have been numerous times when I’m walking between buildings or to the car and want to send a note without looking at the screen and I’m not wearing headphones.

¹In my case my phone was plugged into the aux jack in my car.

Unification ≠ iOS-ification

Published on February 21, 2012 in Media, Technology and Usability and HCI. 0 Comments

I originally wrote this in the comments to this tongue-in-cheek article – itself a response to the plethora of pundits claiming that Apple is dumbing down OS X by leveraging consistent UI elements across their products.

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There been this idea floating around that computers should have scalable modes. An “easy” or beginners mode for people new to the environment. As their skills and comforts develop the software would somehow adjust to open new interfaces like advanced menus or shortcuts.

Well, this isn’t coming to fruition. It’s nearly impossible to predict and implement. But you know what is close? Familiarity and simplicity – both things OS X has been trying for years to do and (In my humble opinion) iOS excels at.

As for the worry that Apple devices will become nerfed consumption machines where no one can produce anything of value (the written word, art, programs) is a bit dramatic. Things in life are rarely black and white.

As someone who could be considered a power user, I’m not in the least bit worried. The command line is still there, a plethora of 3rd-party apps that aren’t “dumbed down” still (and will continue to) exist and frankly most of the design decisions have been positive for users of all types. (Unified conventions, consistent app names, gestures, etc.)

iOS-ification sounds scary because certain mindsets see that as a negative thing. What isn’t being discussed or recognized is the judicial use of iOS ideas. If Apple wanted to make OS X just like iOS they could in a second. They chose however, to select the best ideas and are starting to integrate them across their product line. No longer is the iOS devices over here and the OS X devices over there similar in little ways, but in big ways.

 

What Does the New iPad Screen Look Like?

Published on February 9, 2012 in Technology and Usability and HCI. 6 Comments Tags: , .

It’s that time again! Apple’s rumored to announce a new iPad next month. One of the supposed features is a new higher resolution screen. What does 2048×1536 look like? To answer my own curiosity I threw together this little chart.

Click to see full size

 

That’s a lot of pixels. You could watch a full resolution HD movie and still have some space for content. On a 9.7 inch screen!

New Year, Same Job

Published on January 3, 2012 in Design, Media, Technology and Usability and HCI. 0 Comments

As the new year begins I’m reflecting on the work I’ve done over the past year. Some of it was good, some could have been better and some was crap.

In an attempt to make more things and become a better <whatever I’m trying at the moment>, I look to inspiration from other smart people. Mike Monteiro’s words this morning struck me as sound advice. Particularly this passage:

“We have more processing power, affordable tools, and combined intelligence right this very minute than at any point in the history of design. We are using it to build shit. It’s time to aim higher. Let’s find problems to solve that actually improve people’s lives. Whether it’s figuring out a better way to access medical records, figuring out how 14 year olds can stop carrying forty pounds of textbooks back and forth to school every day, or a reservation system for the communal rooftop farm in your building, there has got to be something more beneficial to society than the next Facebook clone.”

While it may be a new year, ripe with new opportunities, it’s still the same job. Keep working, better yourself and better your community.