Eye tracking Web usability

Eye tracking Web usability by ZDNet's Dan Farber -- User interface guru Jakob Nielsen of the Nielsen Norman Group is on the road, giving seminars based on a recently completed an eye-tracking study that indicates how users consume Web pages–such as where people start browsing on a page, whether they have banner and text link blindness, where users look for navigation, how they react to [...]

Change vs. Stability in Web Usability Guidelines

Summary:
A remarkable 80% of findings from the Web usability studies in the 1990s continue to hold today.

As Web usability testing enters its 14th year, it's worth asking how early results have held up to recent user research.

10 years ago, I wrote an article on the changes in Web usability from 1994 to 1997. A few of my original findings were no longer valid a mere 3 years after they were issued. But most of the 1994 guidelines held true in 1997 -- and they're still correct today.

More details about this topic - Usability Guru (http://www.useit.com/alertbox/guidelines-change.html)

The Usability Week 2007 Conference - Nielsen Norman Group

check out the full event information - http://www.nngroup.com/events/

Jakob Nielsen's - The Ten Most Violated Homepage Design Guidelines

Summary:

There are ten usability mistakes that about two-thirds of corporate websites make. The prevalence of these errors alone warrants attention, especially since they appear on sites with significant investment in usable design.

1. 1. Emphasize what your site offers that's of value to users and how your services differ from those of key competitors
   
2. Use a liquid layout that lets users adjust the homepage size
   
3. Use color to distinguish visited and unvisited links
   
4. Use graphics to show real content, not just to decorate your homepage
   
5. Include a tag line that explicitly summarizes what the site or company does
   
6. Make it easy to access anything recently featured on your homepage
   
7. Include a short site description in the window title
   
8. Don't use a heading to label the search area; instead use a "Search" button to the right of the box
   
9. With stock quotes, give the percentage of change, not just the points gained or lost
   
10. Don't include an active link to the homepage on the homepage

Please read the full description here - http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20031110.html

Usabilty