Editing Usability (section)

==Introduction==
{{quote|The term "user friendly" must surely rate as the inanity of the decade. When was the last time you thought of a tool as "friendly"? "Usable" and "useful" are the appropriate operative terms.|''[[BYTE]]'', 1982<ref name="rutkowski198210">{{Cite magazine |last=Rutkowski |first=Chris |date=October 1982 |title=An Introduction to the Human Applications Standard Computer Interface Part 1: Theory and Principles |url=https://archive.org/details/byte-magazine-1982-10/page/n290/mode/1up?view=theater |access-date=2024-12-30 |magazine=BYTE |pages=291–310}}</ref>}}

The primary notion of usability is that an object designed with a generalized users' [[psychology]] and [[physiology]] in mind is, for example:
* More efficient to use&mdash;takes less time to accomplish a particular task
* Easier to learn&mdash;operation can be learned by observing the object
* More satisfying to use

Complex computer systems find their way into everyday life, and at the same time the market is saturated with competing [[brand]]s. This has made usability more popular and widely recognized in recent years, as companies see the benefits of researching and developing their products with user-oriented methods instead of [[technology]]-oriented methods. By understanding and researching the [[Human–computer interaction|interaction]] between product and user, the ''usability expert'' can also provide insight that is unattainable by traditional company-oriented [[market research]]. For example, after observing and interviewing users, the usability expert may identify needed functionality or design flaws that were not anticipated. A method called ''[[contextual inquiry]]'' does this in the naturally occurring context of the users own environment. In the [[user-centered design]] [[paradigm]], the product is designed with its intended users in mind at all times. In the user-driven or [[participatory design]] paradigm, some of the users become actual or [[de facto]] members of the design team.<ref>Holm, Ivar (2006). ''Ideas and Beliefs in Architecture and Industrial design: How attitudes, orientations, and underlying assumptions shape the built environment''. Oslo School of Architecture and Design. {{ISBN|82-547-0174-1}}.</ref>

The term ''user friendly'' is often used as a synonym for ''usable'', though it may also refer to [[accessibility]]. Usability describes the quality of user experience across websites, software, products, and environments. There is no consensus about the relation of the terms [[ergonomic]]s (or [[human factors]]) and usability. Some think of usability as the [[computer software|software]] specialization of the larger topic of ergonomics. Others view these topics as tangential, with ergonomics focusing on physiological matters (e.g., turning a door handle) and usability focusing on psychological matters (e.g., recognizing that a door can be opened by turning its handle). Usability is also important in website development ([[web usability]]). According to [[Jakob Nielsen (usability consultant)|Jakob Nielsen]], "Studies of user behavior on the Web find a low tolerance for difficult designs or slow sites. People don't want to wait. And they don't want to learn how to use a home page. There's no such thing as a training class or a manual for a Web site. People have to be able to grasp the functioning of the site immediately after scanning the home page&mdash;for a few seconds at most."<ref>{{cite web|first1=Jakob|last1=Nielsen|first2=Donald A.|last2=Norman|title=Web-Site Usability: Usability On The Web Isn't A Luxury|url=http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/usability_is_not_a_l.html|work=JND.org|date=14 January 2000|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150328002844/http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/usability_is_not_a_l.html|archive-date=28 March 2015}}</ref> Otherwise, most casual users simply leave the site and browse or shop elsewhere.

Usability can also include the concept of prototypicality, which is how much a particular thing conforms to the expected shared norm, for instance, in website design, users prefer sites that conform to recognised design norms.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Tuch|first1=Alexandre N.|last2=Presslaber|first2=Eva E.|last3=Stöcklin|first3=Markus|last4=Opwis|first4=Klaus|last5=Bargas-Avila|first5=Javier A.|date=2012-11-01|title=The role of visual complexity and prototypicality regarding first impression of websites: Working towards understanding aesthetic judgments|journal=International Journal of Human-Computer Studies|volume=70|issue=11|pages=794–811|doi=10.1016/j.ijhcs.2012.06.003|s2cid=9051274 |issn=1071-5819}}</ref>