User-centered design is a philosophy and a process in which the needs, wants, and limitations of the end user of an interface or document are given extensive attention at each stage of the design process. It is often seen as an offshoot of the usability movement, and a progenitor of the experience design and interaction design movements.
#29537
User Centred Design: Is It Working?
Includes three parts--the current state of practitioner user-centred design, an overview of some of the things practitioners are interested in, and an examination of what we need to do to move forward.
Maurer, Donna. SlideShare (2006). Presentations>User Centered Design
#25720
User Expectations in a World of Smart Devices
I'm increasingly convinced that, as networks of smart objects permeate our environment, people's attitudes toward technology will become more animist. In other words, we’ll start to anthropomorphize our stuff.
Kuniavsky, Mike. Adaptive Path (2003). Articles>User Centered Design>Ubiquitous Computing
#29558
Is it more important for your web site to be desirable or accessible? How about usable or credible? The truth is, it depends on your unique balance of context, content and users, and the required tradeoffs are better made explicitly than unconsciously.
Morville, Peter. Semantic Studios (2004). Design>Web Design>User Experience>User Centered Design
#30461
User Experience Design and Usability
Blog on interface design, interaction design and usability.
Lipiec, Maciej. User Experience Design and Usability (2007). (Polish) Design>User Experience>Interaction Design>User Centered Design
#19475
User Experience Design for Working Web Sites and Applications 
As Technical Communicators, we’re often added as members of software and web site development teams merely as an afterthought. Executives, managers, programmers, and other team members frequently view the results of our work—manuals, online help systems, tutorials, and other documents—as 'nice-to-have' additions to products. This pervasive attitude is certainly not healthy for the profession of technical communication... but it’s not good for the applications our organizations and clients produce either. When Technical Communicators working in an e-business unit as user advocates are given more responsibility and more authority over the 'user experience' of a web-based application, for instance, they affect the bottom-line. They increase hits, product buzz, and completed transactions. By moving beyond manuals, beyond help, and into the new role of User Experience Designer, we increase the value we add to services and products and increase our professional status within organizations.
Sisler, Paul and Catherine M. Titta. STC Proceedings (2001). Articles>Web Design>User Centered Design>Usability
#28532
User Experience in a Software Development Team
User Experience (UX) design is traditionally seen as the domain of user interface (UI) design, but within a software development team it should mean so much more! UX should permeate through the whole development team. It should influence the way middle tier developers' craft their components and the way database administrators create their tables, stored procedures and views.
Goddard, Matthew. uiGarden (2007). Articles>User Centered Design>User Experience
#30626
User Experience Inside and Out: The Strategy of Persuasive Design
Presents a strategic roadmap for user experience design. Combining usability with the science of persuasion, learn how you can: impact online decision-making and user motivation; create a dashboard-based framework to measure and track user experience; integrate your customer channels and internal-facing systems; and help executives appreciate and understand the value of user-centered thinking and design.
Nadel, Jerome and Jay More. Human Factors International (2007). Design>User Centered Design>User Experience>Usability
#29496
User Interface Design Newsletter
Monthly articles on the latest usability research and its practical implications for user interface design.
Human Factors International (2007). Journals>User Interface>User Experience>User Centered Design
#29474
User Persona: Its Application and the Art of Stereotyping
I feel that creation of user persona is nothing but realistic stereotyping or a simplified outline of the user. The word 'realistic' is more important as realism can be achieved only through user study. (I am not referring to the fictional personas applicable in futuristic technologies). Humorists, cartoonists and filmmakers are gifted with the art of stereotyping. But they tend to exaggerate a lot. Therefore the personalities they render appear like caricatures. We must avoid caricatured user personas. While stereotyping, you generalize and oversimplify. And when you do that you pick or eliminate some details. That makes all the difference.
Katre, Dinesh S. Journal of HCI Vistas (2007). Articles>User Centered Design>Methods>Personas
#23589
User Preference Tests: Show and Tell for Information Design
This article relates the author's experiences with user preference tests. User preference tests help a technical communicator make design decisions. To illustrate this point, the author describes a real-world scenario, the prototyping efforts involved in preparing for a user preference test, and three types of user preference tests.
Corbin Nichols, Michelle. STC Proceedings (1994). Articles>Information Design>User Centered Design
#30827
User Skills Improving, But Only Slightly
Users now do basic operations with confidence and perform with skill on sites they use often. But when users try new sites, well-known usability problems still cause failures.
Nielsen, Jakob. Alertbox (2008). Articles>Web Design>Usability>User Centered Design
#23060
In January 1998, Kodak introduced a new top-level structure and visual design for its Web site. This paper describes the user-centered approach utilized in the design process. We discovered that combining the knowledge gained from a variety of data collection methods was critical to understanding and defining Web site user requirements. We also found an on-line preview and survey to be a useful tool for assessing user acceptance of new designs. A sampling of results is provided to illustrate the process we used and to discuss its effectiveness.
Yu, Jack J., Prasad V. Prabhu and Wayne C. Neale. HFweb (1998). Design>Web Design>User Centered Design>Case Studies
#18452
A User-Centered Approach to Selling Information Architecture
One of the most popular topics for discussion among those practicing Information Architecture is “selling IA.” There is a constant struggle to show the value and benefits of including information architecture techniques on a project. The most common approach to selling IA involves introducing the basic concepts, along with explanations and examples of what deliverables are produced, and some discussion of the benefits. At that point, usually the client will comment, or ask about how these procedures can fit in to a specific project. This is antithetical to the mantra of user-centered design, which says that the needs of the user should be understood before the design begins. How can one design a sales approach before understanding the needs of the client? The proper approach should be to figure out what the goals and needs of the client are before ever starting to try and sell Information Architecture as a possible solution.
Lash, Jeff. Digital Web Magazine. Articles>Information Design>User Centered Design
#24735
User-Centered Deliverables: Communicating the Right Things to the Right People
As usability professionals working on the Web, it is our responsibility to make sure our clients' sites communicate effectively to their intended audience. We make recommendations about what information the audience needs, how they expect it to be presented and how they’ll need to work with it once they’ve got it. But how often do we consider our own audience, the people we need to make our recommendations happen? Does one set of documentation meet the needs of all members of an interdisciplinary team? Probably not.
Beecher, Frederick. Usability Professionals Association (2004). Articles>Usability>User Centered Design
#20607
Graphic user interfaces were designed to give people control over their personal computers. Users now expect a level of design sophistication from all graphic interfaces, including Web pages. The goal is to provide for the needs of all your potential users, adapting Web technology to their expectations and never requiring readers to conform to an interface that places unnecessary obstacles in their paths.
Lynch, Patrick J. and Sarah Horton. Yale University (1999). Design>Web Design>User Centered Design
#18567
User-Centered Design is a well established process that has been widely adopted by many organizations to deliver products that meet users' expectations. IBM has regularly enhanced this process, which has now been consolidated within the broader framework of User Engineering.
#30628
The design of everyday objects is not always intuitive and at times it leaves the user frustrated and unable to complete a simple task. How many of us have bought a VCR that we have struggled to used and missed recording our favorite programs because we misunderstood the instructions or had to put up with the clock blinking 12:00 because we didn't know how to stop it? Do we have to put up with designs like these? Isn't it possible to design systems that are more usable? 'User-centered design' (UCD) is a broad term to describe design processes in which end-users influence how a design takes shape. It is both a broad philosophy and variety of methods. There is a spectrum of ways in which users are involved in UCD but the important concept is that users are involved one way or another. For example, some types of UCD consult users about their needs and involve them at specific times during the design process; typically during requirements gathering and usability testing. At the opposite end of the spectrum there are UCD methods in which users have a deep impact on the design by being involved as partners with designers throughout the design process.
Abras, Chadia, Diane Maloney-Krichmar and Jenny Preece. University of Maryland (2004). Articles>User Centered Design
#19921
User-Centered Design and the Role of Technical Communicators
This panel provides an introduction to and overview of the principles of user-centered design, and gives real- world, practical examples of how technical communicators can implement these principles in their work. The panel is intended for any technical communicator or manager designing user documentation, including training materials, or the user interfaces of hardware or software products. It does not assume any prior knowledge of user-centered design principles. It does assume familiarity with a product development process and with basic technical communication and usability principles.
Fisher, Lori H., Candace Soderston, Thyra L. Rauch and Frederick P. Szydlik. STC Proceedings (1996). Design>User Centered Design>TC
#19182
User-Centered Design and Web Development
User Centered-Design (UCD) is a philosophy and a process. It is a philosophy that places the person (as opposed to the 'thing') at the center; it is a process that focuses on cognitive factors (such as perception, memory, learning, problem-solving, etc.) as they come into play during peoples' interactions with things. UCD seeks to answer questions about users and their tasks and goals, then use the findings to drive development and design.
Katz-Haas, Raissa. STC Usability SIG (1998). Design>User Centered Design>Web Design
#18568
User-Centered Design: Cost Justifying Ease of Use 
At any instant, millions of people around the world are trying to use or do something that is difficult or confusing. They may be trying to find a product, trying to figure out how a product works, trying to get service for a product, or trying to replace it. Eventually and inevitably, they will begin to lose time and patience. And, no matter what particular answer they are looking for, the question they pose will be the same: 'Why would anyone make something this confusing?' It's a good question. At IBM, we wonder the same thing ourselves. We know consumers benefit greatly from ease of use; we know making a product easy makes it easier on the customer. We know that making it easier on the customer increases customer loyalty. Products that are easy to use lead to increased customer satisfaction, and satisfied customers return again and again. So ease of use actually increases business. On the other hand, we're also aware that consumers aren't the only ones who reap rewards from usable products. Companies that invest in ease of use enjoy benefits of their own. Around the globe, across a range of industries, studies have proven it time and again. Whether you are in the business of producing products, or purchasing product for your employees, usability equals profitability. And, that's the bottom line.
IBM (2002). Design>User Centered Design
#23251
User-Centered Design: From Thought to Product
A session presentation from edgewise 1999 available in both PowerPoint and HTML. Covers the what, why and how of user centered design.
Merholz, Peter. PeterMe (1999). Design>User Centered Design
#10627
User-Centered Design/Ease of Use Guidelines
The most compelling design solutions are ones that are simple, natural to use, and completely in tune with users' needs and experiences. Achieving these solutions in the design of technology products and e-business applications requires building a multi-disciplinary team, tapping resources such as published research, guidelines, and standards, and involving users throughout the design process. Here we outline a process and provide resources for achieving compelling designs.
#21489
A User-Centered Drowsy-Driver Detection and Warning System
This work is a culmination of years of research to develop an effective in-vehicle countermeasure to drowsy driving. Previous work resulted in an independently validated measure of drowsiness that was then incorporated into a drowsy-driver prototype monitor. The goal of this project was to develop an associated drowsy-driver interface that enabled effective, user-centered interactions with the underlying system. A multidisciplinary team designed a new drowsy-driver interface and introduced smart user interactions through a careful participatory design process that included both design experts and commercial motor vehicle drivers. It is hoped that this effort and subsequent field trials will result in a reliable, smart system that convinces drivers that they are driving in an unsafe condition and to make a wise choice--stop and rest.
Ayoob, Ellen M., Richard Grace and Aaron Steinfeld. AIGA (2003). Design>User Interface>User Centered Design
#30019
User-Centered Engineering for Web Applications
This paper presents a lightweight form of usage-centered design that has proved particularly effective in designing highly usable Web-based applications. Fully compatible with both traditional object-oriented software engineering methods and newer agile techniques such as Extreme Programming, this approach employs rapid, card-based techniques to develop simplified models of user roles, tasks, and user interface contents. The process attempts to resolve the conflict between the demands of rapid iterative design and incremental development on the one hand and the needs for integrity in a user interface fitted to the full set of user tasks on the other. The resolution depends on creating a navigation architecture and a visual and interaction design scheme based on quick but comprehensive task modeling. The process is illustrated with experiences from the design of a Web-deployed application for classroom teachers.
Constantine, Larry L. and Lucy A.D. Lockwood. Constantine and Lockwood (2002). Design>Web Design>User Centered Design
#22187
Review: User-Centered Organizations: Are We Making Progress, Yet?
In Designing Customer-Centered Organizations, John Zapolski and Jared Braiterman suggest a strategy for applying user-centered design principles to business strategy.
