1. Write Clear Text and Messages Lecture-11
Step-8
Write Clear Text and Messages
Lecture-11
Computer Systems Interface

2. Computer Systems Interface
Topics covered
The concept of readability
Choosing the proper words
Writing sentences & messages
Kinds of messages
Presenting & writing text
Window title, conventions, & sequence control guidance
Web-specific guidelines
Computer Systems Interface

3. Computer Systems Interface
Readability
(Ex: Street signs)
The degree to which prose can be understood, based upon the complexity of its words & sentences
Word length
Word commonality
Sentence length
Number of syllables in a sentence
Information organization, layout, & formatting
Write at a readability level below the reading skill level of the intended audience
(Ex: Word)
Computer Systems Interface

4. Choosing the Proper Words
Do not use
Jargon, terminology (See p.567)
Abbreviations or acronyms
Word contractions, suffixes, & prefixes
Use
Short, familiar words
Standard alphabetic characters
Complete words
Positive terms
Simple action words, avoid noun strings
The “more” dimension when comparing
Consistent words
Do not
Stack words
Hyphenate words
Include punctuation for abbreviations, mnemonics, & acronyms
Computer Systems Interface

5. Writing Sentences & Messages
A sentence and a message must minimize ambiguity and confusion, allowing easy,
correct, and fast interpretation. They must also have the proper tone, reflecting the
needs of the users. Threatening, rude, or impolite messages most often evoke negative
responses. The following guidelines lead to easy, correct, and fast message interpretation
and acceptance. A study restructuring error messages along such guidelines has
found higher success rates in problem resolution, lower error rates, and improved user
satisfaction.
Brief and simple.Amessage that has to be explained does not communicate. It fails
as a message. Brief, simple sentences are more readily understood than longer
sentences containing multiple clauses. Research indicates that sentences over 20
568 Part 2: The User Interface Design Process
words in length cause a loss in reading comprehension with each additional sentence
word. It is also recommended that the number of sentences in a paragraph
should not exceed six. Another research study created messages at three levels of
reading ability (fifth-, tenth-, and fifteenth-grade) and tested them on people of
varying verbal abilities. The fifth-grade version was found to be best for all levels.
People of high verbal ability did not perceive the fifth-grade version as insulting,
as some had feared. So, break long sentences into two or more simple
sentences if this can be done without changing the meaning. Always write at the
eighth grade level or less for the general population.
Computer Systems Interface

6. Writing Sentences & Messages
Sentences & messages must be
brief, simple, 20>=words, 6>=sent
< 8th grade level
Affirmative statement
Active voice (Ex: Word)
Sentences & messages must be of the proper tone:
Nonauthoritarian
Nonthreatening
Cautious in the use of humor (Ex: Tone)
Computer Systems Interface

7. Computer Systems Interface
Kinds of Messages
MYTH
If the users need an explanation, they’ll always read the documentation.
Computer Systems Interface

8. Writing Message Box Text
Title bar
Clearly identify the source of the message (object, application referred)
Do not include an indication of message type
Use mixed case in the headline style
Message box
Provide a clear & concise description of the condition causing the message box to be displayed (See p.571)
2-3 lines
Relevant icon to the left of the text
Center the message text in window
(Ex: Message Box)
Computer Systems Interface

9. Computer Systems Interface
Presenting Text
Fonts
Plain & simple fonts
Min size 12 to 14 (Ex: Format/Font size)
Justification
Left-justify (do not right justify) (Ex: Alignment)
Do not hyphenate words
Line length
If fast reading is required, use characters
If user preference is important, acceptable
Avoid very narrow columns
Line endings
Coincide with grammatical boundaries (Ex: Gramm.Ending)
Computer Systems Interface

10. Computer Systems Interface
Q/A
Which type of fonts are used in newspapers? What about other media? Why?
More on this here.
(Ex: Other)
Computer Systems Interface