What did we learn this year?

Legibility for low-vision users is improved by using wider characters
with extended spacing. Of the standard fonts, Times New Roman is the
best option for users with low vision. (Arditi, 2004)
Narrative
presentation enhances comprehension and memory. Narrative
advertisements produce more positive attitude about the brand and a
higher incidence of intent to purchase. (Escalas, 2004)
The earlier in the decision process a product is recommended, the more
likely it is that users will choose that product. Surprisingly, use of
a negative tone increased the chances that the recommendation would be
considered. (Ho and Tam, 2005)
The elements of content, navigation, interaction, and presentation all
seem to play a role in determining a site’s trustworthiness.
(Corritore, et al., 2003; Sillence, et al., 2004)
The organizational structure (grouping and schema) has oft been touted
as the key to good Web site design. To the contrary, the Resnick and
Sanchez study indicates that generating high quality labels is more
critical. First concentrate on creating user-centered labels; then
focus on the structure of the site. (Resnick and Sanchez, 2004)
Avoid simultaneous audio playback of onscreen text when designing
multimedia instruction. You should only present text and audio
concurrently if their content is different. The exception: use of
auditory files for users with visual impairment. (Kalyuga, Chandler and
Sweller, 2004)
Screen vs. Print: 100 characters per line seems to be the optimal
length for on-screen reading speed; however, there’s a mismatch between
subjective measures and objective performance. Although longer line
lengths are read faster, people prefer a more moderate length. Also, a
single, wide column is read faster, but users prefer multiple narrow
columns. (Dyson, 2004)
Black text on white background is the combination users prefer, and the
one they rate as most “professional”; however, if you use other color
combinations, users will remember what they read just as well. (Hall
and Hanna, 2004)
E-mailed surveys are cheaper and have the same response rates as postal
mailed surveys when proper motivating tools, such as advance-notice
postcards, are used. (Kaplowitz. Hadlock, and Levine, 2004)
GUI vs. Web – In general, visual layout guidelines for GUIs also
apply to the Web, but there are differences to be aware of. For
example, dense pages with lots of links take longer to scan for both
GUI and Web; however, alignment may not be as critical for Web pages as
previously thought. (Parush, Shwarts, Shtub, and Chandra, 2005)
In 2001, Bernard found that prior user experience with Web sites
dictated where they expected common Web page elements to appear on a
page. The same still holds true today: Users have clear expectations
about where to find the things they want (search and back-to-home
links) as well as the things they want to avoid (advertising). (Shaihk
and Lenz, 2006)