Column: Mobile Matters

Tables have an undeserved reputation for being evil and wrong in the digital environment.

We’re now deeply into an era when developers code tabular data into Web pages using CSS tricks because the perceived overuse of tables for layout in Web 1.0 has resulted in a tables are bad mantra throughout the Web design and development world.

But we should display tabular data in tables. Using tables properly, for the display of data, is a good and necessary thing. However, small-screen tables are an entirely different matter. Tables generally take up lots of space, and mobile devices do not have big screens. For years, I have set aside most discussions of mobile screen size in favor of discussing their use in hand and on the go and the extra capabilities that sensors and connectivity provide. But the data table is one case where the size of a mobile screen is absolutely the biggest problem, and the other capabilities of a mobile device provide no clever workarounds. Read More

Editor’s note: Since writing this column, Steven has done additional user research and has updated his design guidelines for mobile phones accordingly. Read his latest column on this topic: “Design for Fingers, Touch, and People, Part 1.”

As UX professionals, we all pay a lot of attention to users’ needs. When designing for mobile devices, we’re aware that there are some additional things that we must consider—such as how the context in which users employ their devices changes their interactions or usage patterns. [1] However, some time ago, I noticed a gap in our understanding: How do people actually carry and hold their mobile devices? These devices are not like computers that sit on people’s tables or desks. Instead, people can use mobile devices when they’re standing, walking, riding a bus, or doing just about anything. Users have to hold a device in a way that lets them view its screen, while providing input.

In the past year or so, there have been many discussions about how users hold their mobile devices—most notably Josh Clark’s. [2] But I suspect that some of what we’ve been reading may not be on track. First, we see a lot of assumptions—for example, that all people hold mobile devices with one hand because they’re the right size for that—well, at least the iPhone is. [3] Many of these discussions have assumed that people are all the same and do not adapt to different situations, which is not my experience in any area involving real people—much less with the unexpected ways in which people use mobile devices. Read More

The Internet can make the world seem very small, but a lot of the digital products you’ll work on must eventually work well for the billions of people outside your home country.

“Easy!” some product manager might say, giving your team a story to add multiple-language support to your app or Web site, maybe add a few specific features to make it acceptable to your new audience or local governments, and upload it to the app store.

But there’s much more than autotranslating to a new language to prepare your product for another market. A lot of the problems you’ll encounter in new markets are likely to emerge from your translation being culturally insensitive or just your being unaware of how different things can be in other regions. Read More