ReadWriteWeb

When it comes to viewing websites and apps on the Kindle Fire, is the experience more like that of a bigger tablet such as the iPad or a smaller smartphone? Amazon's new 10-inch tablet appears to occupy an awkward space about halfway in between, which poses new challenges to designers and developers.

While conducting tests on the Kindle Fire, website usability expert Jakob Nielsen said the 7-inch form factor was too small to comfortably browse desktop-sized sites and that in most cases, a mobile-optimized site was preferable from a user experience standpoint. Even so, those mobile-friendly sites were designed for screens much smaller than that of the Kindle Fire, so they may not take full advantage of the 7-inch screen's real estate.

In May, we analyzed usability guru Jakob Nielsen's report on iPad design and concluded that it was a welcome return to form for the web veteran. Nielsen and his company have followed up with another excellent usability report, this time about "transmedia" design. It covers mobile, tablets, TVs and even dips a toe into "extreme screen sizes" (very small or very large screens).

The latest report convincingly argues that although use of mobile devices will dramatically increase, there will still be "much high-value use" on desktop PCs. "One size UI does not fit all screen sizes," the report somewhat obviously points out. The details though are worth looking at, as it shows how user experiences across devices and screen sizes will increasingly differ.

Last year when Nicholas Carr's book The Shallows hit the streets suggesting that the Internet was frying our brains (see our coverage) I asked what we could do to build a less brain damaging Internet. Since then I've been too, well, distracted to pursue that line of thinking.

Fortunately Alex Pang, a visiting fellow at Microsoft Research Cambridge, actively researches this area. Pang proposes a new paradigm called contemplative computing. Today he gave a talk on the idea at the Lift France 2011 conference and has published a PDF of it. You can also find a rough draft of his paper on contemplative computing.

So can computers actually help improve our concentration and contemplation, instead of leading us into distraction?

Firefox user experience designer Jenny Boriss wrote about an experience she had recently conducting usability testing with a man who had never used a computer before.

"It's very rare in San Francisco to meet a person who's not used a computer even once, but such people are amazingly useful," Boriss wrote. "It's a unique opportunity to see what someone who hasn't been biased by any prior usage reacts."

The latest report from web usability guru Jakob Nielsen is about iPad usability. It's the second such report from Nielsen Norman Group and it features in-depth analysis about how people are using iPads. As is usual with Nielsen reports, it also lustily lists all the design flaws that his users found - such as touchable areas that are too small, low discoverability and "swipe ambiguity."

I've found some of Jakob Nielsen's past reports too easy to dismiss, due to generalizations about current trends and a lack of specifics when critiquing websites. But this report about iPad usability is a fine return to form for the Web veteran.

The question of how big a form field should be isn't just about how much you can type into the box. It's also about how it looks, and whether the user understands how much they can type in before they hit the end of the box.

If you've ever filled in a form where it's not obvious how much you can type in, it can become a very frustrating experience.

What should you consider when setting up a form for users to fill in?

The contact page. It's a mainstay in the footer navigation of just about any website, especially those run by companies for whom a well-designed contact page can be mission critical. For some smaller companies it can mean the difference between making a profit and losing money.

Follow these essential guidelines to ensure your current and prospective customers can stay in touch without a hassle.

If we were to ask you to name one thing you wish your computer (or another Web-enabled device) could do, but doesn't now, what would you say? How about the ability to "touch the things that are in the screen, to feel and move them." That's what 7-year-old Daniela* wants. Matthew, 6, wishes he could play 3D games on his computer, and Jenna, 7, would like a solar-powered laptop. Cristina, 12, thinks it'd be great to travel more - to experience new, far-away places with the help of virtual reality.

Understanding that kids are excellent innovators, Latitude Research in conjunction with ReadWriteWeb recently conducted a study asking children to ideate concepts for new computer and Web technologies - and the results are in.

Update: The previous version can still be accessed at news.google.ca (Thanks Bob!).

Earlier in this week we covered the new version of Google News. It's normal to see a backlash against a redesign (see the reaction to Facebook redesigns for instance), but reaction to Google News' new layout has been resoundingly harsh. So far, Google isn't offering an option to revert back to the old version, unlike it did with its last major Gmail update. It seems Google's attempt to balance personalization and serendipity left fans of both unhappy.

Info-Tech Research Group released its evaluation of enterprise collaboration software earlier this year. Microsoft's Office SharePoint Server 2007 and Open Text's Open Text Social Media 7 won the highest praise. But as worker expectations change, there's clearly room for competition on usability.