Does Your Blog Pass The Hallway Usability Test?
My post - Do You Make Your Readers Run An Obstacle Course? Make Your Blog Comment Friendly has obviously hit a chord and has sparked a lot of interest. There’s been renewed traffic with its recent inclusion as a Make It Easy To Comment link in Chris Garrett’s Web Community Tips Roundup.
Reader Comment
Web designer, Steven Snell, commented “I personally don’t like the comment system on Blogger regardless of how it is set up. But I’m not a Blogger user so I guess my opinion doesn’t make much of a difference.”
My Reply
“Steven - Not being a Blogger User, your opinion is probably even more important, as blogs should be easily accessible and user friendly by everyone, not just those familiar with the particular system. While we can work it out, the comment obstacle course on some blogs can be frustrating.”
Hallway Usability Testing
Jacob Nielsen, a pioneer of web usability testing, talks about hallway usability testing. While originally referring to bringing in random people (as if you passed them in a hallway), to help test the usability of software, it now refers to testing any web usability issue, formally or informally. Nielsen claims that the hallway usability approach will uncover up to 95% of usability problems.
With blogs being increasingly used by mainstream outlets such as newspapers and businesses, blog usability (not just commenting), is becoming more important, especially as we know potential readers are only prepared to give you a few seconds to grab their attention. I know I have a way to go with improving my blog’s usability, but it’s a work in progress. In fact, I’m looking for a new theme to address some issues.
Over To You - Let’s Talk
Do you have your own version of hallway usability testers - family, friends or readers? Who do you find gives you the best feedback on whether your blog or site is user friendly? What do you like to see usability wise on a blog?
Credit: Comment button is courtesy of Paper Napkin for International Delurking Week in January. I’m just giving you some early practice. 
Yvonne,
I agree with your points. Thanks for the mention.
Steven - Thanks for stopping by, and for inspiring the post. I think we often assume usability is fine, because we know our way around our own blog.
I just hate the pop-up comments - you know, the blogspot type of comments with all their captchas and log in to blogger and… and—
Mig - Just catching this comment … sorry.. I totally agree with you about the blogspot commenting set up though… not user friendly at all.
I use HaloScan commenting. It’s doing fine now but there was a time when I was really frustrated because it kept experiencing down time.
Rach - I remember when you had problems with HaloScan. I’m pleased it’s settled down for you.
Oct 4th, 2007 at 5:31 am
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