Human Factors and Web Development

Over the past two decades, standards for the usability of human-computer user interfaces have emerged. To assure the quality of human-computer interfaces, practitioners trained in human factors have become routine participants in the computer software and hardware development process. But, for the vast majority of Web-based materials, the developers are neither trained in human factors, nor have access to such expertise. The human factors profession, with its unique knowledge and practices, has had only a marginal impact on the World Wide Web and Web developers.

Traditional human factors offers many insights regarding how to achieve usable, web-based interfaces. As Web-based products have begun to permeate the lives of more and more computer users, human factors practitioners have begun to contemplate the human-computer interface issues arising with the Web, and experiment with solutions for improving the usability of Web products. However, the growth of the Web has occurred at such a rapid pace that, to date, virtually no comprehensive sources have emerged as guides for the design of usable Web products.

This book amasses perspectives from a broad range of experts in human factors, cognitive psychology and Web development, and reports research issues associated with the design and usability of Web products. In doing so, it simultaneously seeks to fill two voids. First, it makes human factors expertise, knowledge, and practices available to the Web development community. Second, it provides a comprehensive source for human factors practitioners responsible for the design of usable Web-based products.