Learnability Gallery

Categories

This will take a while, categorizing this stuff, and I'm not even sure it's possible, but here's the work in progress:

• Functions
  • Location
  • Timing
• Information
  • Embedding
    • Field
    • Page
    • Function (Report)
  • Specific Types of Information
    • "Not"
    • Advice
    • Mouse-Only Interactions
    • Visual Explanations
  • Timing
    • Immediate (Characterwise) Feedback

Put Functions Everywhere Where They Apply

Although the lion's share of the techniques in this gallery will be text effects, text is almost always a substitute for a more powerful measure... one that usually entails writing a lot more code... providing more functionality... designing bolder solutions. So we'll start with an example from Macromedia Dreamweaver where they emphatically answer an age-old question in software development: where should this function go? The answer is everywhere. In the screen sample below I show four places where you can assign a style to an item. And there are more that I didn't get to! Gone are the days when it was acceptable to provide only one "invocation" or when designers had to justify the fact that redundancy is not foolish.

Here's the same principle in another tool, a help authoring tool. You can add new topics from either the "file/folder" outline or the table of contents outline:

Instantaneous (Character-At-A-Time) Feedback

Explicit, Verbose Function Labels

Email Tips

Don't Disable, Don't Hide... Explain

Advice Right on Menus

Page Advice

 

What Vs. Why

This point gets into pure techwriting. When explaining new features, you must explain two distinct facts: what something technically accomplishes and what the benefit ultimately is... how it saves time (or effort, which translates to time, no?).

Announcements

Documenting "Not" Conditions

"Not Required" Fields

"We Have a Different Mental Model"

Explain What "Won't" Happen... and How To Do It If You Really Want To

Explicit Capability Limits

Unsuccessful Results

Give Corrective Advice

Describe Visual Items Visually, Not with Text

Animated Help

Field Information

Help Beside Every Field

Help Below Every Field

Special Requirements

Limits

Field Help in a Rollover

 

Function Information/Time Lags

Prominent Feedback

Tell the User When Something Is Not Ready Yet

Show Progress Indicators, Not Just the Browser Status Bar

 

Menus in Order of Frequency

Functions Right at the Point of Need

Display the Whole State of Affairs

Link and Blurb

Report Explanations

Just-On-Time Tips

Action/Technique Rollovers

Panel Introductions

Intro Windows

First-Time Usage

This one has an automatic expiration (evaporation?) feature. Avoiding gratuitous info is key.

Tabbed Section Intros

Provide Head-Starts

Perfect Graphics

Detailed Message

How-To Messages

Explain Hidden Processes

For a Mistaken Effort

Sequential Steps

For Deferred Results

Explain Complex Options in Detail

This message deals with one of the most powerful and complex techniques, bulk or en masse changes. I'd consider two somewhat trivial improvements: Bold captions in the two group box borders, and change "OK" to "Update" because of the impact of the ensuing actions.

Show Choices Visually