The first time i sat and observed a usability test on a CDROM application I designed was back in 1996. I watched while people were asked a series of questions to locate information on the screen.
I fall into a unique when it comes to usability. I don’t believe that this area of the screen should be used for a function or piece of information. I think that these rules were born out of the terrible design standards of the Internet during the 90’s, and some of which continue today. I don’t believe that users are slow, don’t read, or are lazy.
I believe that a well designed page, with thought behind placement of features and functions (wherever they are on the page), with engaging written content trumps the cookie cutter, red button, upper right corner every web design that we see popping up everywhere.
