Continuing with the idea that ubiquitous computing is messy, Antti Oulasvirta writes about his research in Interactions, which includes the following recommendations:
Minimizing overheads that create temporal seams between activities;
Making remote but important resources, such as connectivity or cables, better transparent locally and digitally;
Propagating metadata on migration of data from device to device;
Supporting ad hoc uses [...]
“This section on Universal Design introduces AT&T Mobility’s point of view on the relationship between accessibility and innovation. Principles of “barrier-free design” or “design for all” are not seen as constraints on design, but as fodder for innovation.
“Consider scenarios such as accessing phone keys in a darkened theater, waiting for a call in a noisy [...]
“This document introduces you to the iPhone environment and how it shapes the user experience of iPhone content. Then, it explains how to design a superlative user interface for your web content so it displays and works well on iPhone. It does this by first examining different types of iPhone content and exploring how you [...]
“The judo rule: Turn your weaknesses into your strengths. If you cannot escape the limitations of the small screen, use them to your advantage! Think of ways to turn the screen size into an integral part of gameplay — part of the game’s challenge that the player must learn to overcome. Make the small screen [...]
The One Laptop Per Child project has taken a fairly radical departure from the standard desktop metaphor, instead going for an activity-centric, social and temporally biased user experience.
“There are no software applications in the traditional sense on the laptop. The laptop focuses children around “activities.” This is more than a new naming convention; it represents [...]
An introductory paper from Nokia about the basic principles of visualization and graphic design principles for mobile devices.
“Most of the new rules relate to the mobile device capabilities and to the context of use. Mobile devices are small and they can be used virtually everywhere: The users can be sitting comfortably on the train [...]
“The user interface guidelines for Windows Mobile-Based Pocket PCs assist you in developing Windows Mobile-based applications that provide a good user experience. The guidelines are based on extensive usability research.”
Link: Pocket PC User Interface Guidelines (microsoft.com)
Gong & Tarasewich take design guidelines typically used for desktop applications and transform them for mobile applications. Short and clear.
“Design for multiple and dynamic contexts
Allow for single- or no-handed operation
Design for small devices
Design for limited and split attention
Design for speed and recovery
Design for ‘top-down’ interaction
Allow for personalization
Design for enjoyment”
Link: Guidelines for handheld mobile interface design [...]
Resources from Nokia about design. Some interesting stuff in there, a lot of it pitched to developers.
“Usability articles. Usability articles illustrate concrete perspectives on usability in mobile application creation. They describe in brief the most interesting issues in wireless development with end user in mind. There are success cases as well as general guidance on [...]
Published by Gabriel White.