Datasheet
CHAPTER ONE FUTUREPROOF SURVIVAL TECHNIQUES
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Don’t be afraid to ask a community for help in testing your work or letting you know what
things they’d like to see in future versions of your site. Feedback of a negative nature may
seem like a miserable way to spend a day of inbox catching-up, but it’s often the less- at-
tering stu that has the biggest impact. If everyone says that your work is perfect, be
suspicious; if some send hate mail, don’t take it personally — see it as a chance to improve.
Users matter in the design process, so don’t neglect this mighty resource.
Here are some ways you can initiate communication with your visitors:
> Direct methods like e-mail, instant messaging, and chat rooms.
> Indirect methods like forums, feedback systems, or bug trackers.
> External solutions like social networks and review websites.
Of the di erent ways that you can gauge this feedback, your two primary sources of useful
data will come from quantitative (numbers and statistics) and qualitative (descriptive and
opinionated) research. Measuring this data is a challenge, but the bene ts that they bring
include faster identi cation of aws and ideas to help you make your site more exible. If
users want 3D video, for example, you can implement it.
Ultimately, as with any type of community involvement, there will be disputes, and not
everyone will agree on every action. Just know that, as you test to ensure compatibility
and durability, you’ll encounter a few bumps along the way. Finding a happy medium is
something many designers do in their daily jobs with clients, users, and each other.
Because going for broke and leaving users to their own devices aren’t acceptable options,
compromising (that is, going for adequate rather than optimal solutions) is a satisfactory
alternative.
The Web: Survival of the ttest
e modern Web presents many challenges. With competitors breathing down your neck,
a layout that fails to work on a range of devices and hardware, such as the simple ones of
the laptop shown in Figure 1-15, represents a missed opportunity. Sites are like children,
needing lots of care and attention. Nurturing unique devices will encourage return visits,
and providing enough education to ensure users can react appropriately in current situa-
tions helps, too. In this ever-demanding environment, you want to think in terms of tak-
ing small steps toward achieving long-term goals.
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