Software Usability SLP - Research Paper Example

Analyzing www.usability.gov The referred website www.usability.gov is maintained by the US government in collaboration with several agencies (The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services is the major contributor) as an information source for web based activities such as web hosting, web designing, online communication etc. It provides guidance and tools specially targeting the people who involve in web developing activities including web managers, designers and usability specialists.The website has eight (8) main sections (including homepage and “about us”) directing audience to different web usability information such as basics, templates, guidelines etc.

The homepage provides a brief description about the content of the main sections making it more user friendly to the customers. Each section is further divided in to subsections and different categories for convenience. Related links are also provided with the content of each section. A link is provided in the home page to the blog which was started in July 2009 and has several usability articles. Unlike a typical personal or commercial website, this blog is written by authors with sound professional background adding more value to the authenticity and accuracy of the article.

Comments for the blog articles were also written or moderated carefully by the experts and beneficiaries in the field. Commercial advertisements such as Google ads are not run in the website following the usual practice of official websites. However site promotional announcements and RSS feeds are displayed right top corner of the homepage and other sections.The design, fonts and the colors used in the site are user friendly and comfortable. The site provides a range of specific and undiluted information on usability.

However categorization seems to be lacked in this site. Most of the articles are written randomly without relating to existing articles. Although the search option is provided in the website, it is still confusing to find the needed information. If information in the main sections categorized under relevant topics and lessons (instead of random articles) are provided this will be more convenient for the target audience. Most of the articles provided in the site are short in length. Although they provide information on major topics directly, the users who visit an official government website expect more informative content than briefed information.

Although the accuracy and the authenticity high number of articles as well as the length in the site is not adequate for a government official site.The section “Articles and Discussions” is interesting to follow. It has several articles on interested areas such as “Aesthetics & Perceptions”, “Building Trust”, “Color Blindness”. However most of the articles are briefed and lacking detailed information.Conclusion: The referred website is an official website by the government intended to provide information on usability for the professional web developers.

The content is specific, accurate and authentic. Site design, site tools and colors are user friendly and at ease. The main drawbacks of the site are lack of organization/categorization of information, inadequate number of articles and, inadequate length of the articles (too short for an informative website).References1. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. http://www.usability.gov2. Gray, Daniel (1999). The Complete Guide to Associate and Affiliate Programs on the Net. McGraw-Hill Trade3.

Postel, J., Reynolds, J. (1984). Domain Requirements. The Internet Society.