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How Kids Use the Web
An Anonymous Coward writes: "Jakob Nielsen's latest Alertbox usability column details how kids use the web. Even if you don't design sites for kids, some of the results are very interesting. As you might expect, kids like sound and animation more than adults. They're also much more likely to click on ads ... but mostly because they don't realize that's what they are. And although there are some differences, the testing shows kids really aren't that different than adults, preferring consistent, simple and clear interaction. (And they hate slow load times, too!)"
Bob the Analyst says:
"duh."
I was under the impression that all kids spend 99% of their online time in chat rooms talking to 40-year old cops about sex! Did the TV lie to me? ;-)
I probably would've clicked on a banner that said "BREAK DOWN WALLS WITH YOUR PENIS!". Now I know better, but back then I probably would've thought to myself "oh.. so THAT'S what it's for!"
actually designing sites for kids is incredibly similar to designing sites for the elderly. the format is the same; lots of graphics, simple directions, and easy to navigate. the only real difference is that instead of cartoon charecters you use pictures of Rush Limbaugh
--rock me like a huricane? NO rock you
The suits start scribbling madly: testing shows kids hate slow load times
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- - You can't take something off the Internet! That's like trying to take pee out of a swimming pool.
you should stay away from slashdot... if that pedophile JonKatz find out where you live, you'll be in deep shit.
At first I thought "add" was a typo. I quickly realized that you're just a 'tard.
Boys were significantly more annoyed by verbose pages than were girls (40% of the boys complained, compared to 8% of the girls), possibly because at the ages we tested, boys are not as accomplished at reading as girls.
If I had Jakob Nielsen (most likely shouting "Micropayments are the answer! Micropayments are the answer!") hovering over me as I tried to navigate the web, I'd complain too!
Not that Disney execs are necessarily avid Nielsen readers. Disney Sites have some of the worst navigation. Take a look at Disney.com, for instance:
:)
I was of the five web designers at Sun Microsystems who did the first site for disneyland.com, back in 1996. The site hasn't changed much since then - very little text, cluttered menus, silly clickable Java animations. This is what they wanted. The artwork we received from Disney was crap. We'd actually go to other Disney fan sites on the web and steal their gifs! (Technically, we were just stealing them back since it's all (c) Disney).
It was still a lot of fun though - when the site was finished, they flew us all down for a VIP tour. We met Michael Eisner, he showed us Walt Disney's appartment, we rode Disney's private car on the train. Fun stuff...
Oh, and we had a quad-processor Sparc server just for vi.
*You* take an 8 year old and a 11 year old 340 miles to Disneyland in the back seat of a station wagon, and then you tell me if that classifies as "Family Fun".
"Pull my finger".