Is a nudge enough to change user behaviour?

In 2010, the UK government set up a “nudge unit” to look at ways the public could be persuaded – “nudged” – into making better choices for themselves without force or regulation. This should be of interest to software designers and Technical Authors, because perhaps the same techniques could be used in the field of… Read more »

What roundabouts can teach every software developer

Roundabouts have been in use in the UK for over 50 years, and today are seen as a natural part of the landscape – something as intuitive to use as a postbox. Everyone knows how to use them, they’re just intuitive to use, surely? Apparently not, judging by this BBC article on the introduction of… Read more »

Help in your line of sight

In an article called “The Future of Advertising will be Integrated“, Mark Suster argues readers’ attention is focussed on text and not the banners around it. This “banner blindness” is leading advertisers to move their messages to “the stream”. An example of this is Twitter’s promoted tweets service, where advertisers can pay for a tweet… Read more »

Help is broken?

Are we at the point when we need to acknowledge that classic online Help files are not working as well as they should – that is, as the primary source of information to assist users when they get stuck? This is not a Don Draper “why I’m quitting tobacco” moment, and this is not a… Read more »