Learning Plan 4 - User Testing
- What is user-testing?
According to UsabilityGeek, usability testing is a process whereby actual end users are observed "as they try and complete tasks."
- Why is user-testing important?
User testing ensures that the website provides a good user experience before it is deployed to the public. If this method is followed, most of the design and usability headaches will likely be smoothed out before production.
- Why should I test my websites on different browsers?
According to the MDN Web Docs, certain web standards are not supported on all browsers (such as older or less-commonly used browsers). Also, sometimes bugs are contained in browsers and don't properly incorporate the W3 standards. Also, I've personally found Firefox and Chromium-based browsers to render things slightly differently (such as user forms, for example).
- Why should I test my websites on different screen sizes?
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This form of user testing is perhaps the most-important one, since these days, mobile phones are becoming more-commonly used for web surfing. According to Forbes, websites that are usable on the desktop are not neccissarily just as usable on mobile platforms. Some of the changes that can be made include disabling pop-ups to increasing the font size of the text.
- Conclusion
Just because some newer and cooler web technology exists, it may not look the best on a website you're developing, be supported on all web browsers, or usable on all screen sizes. Because of this, it is important to not only test your website yourself during the development process (including on different platforms), but also seek input from outsiders.