Web Directions 2007 Ben Bailey Usability Consultant Stamford Interactive November 2007

48 hour geek fest Web design conference, Sydney late Sept Local and international speakers 600 attendees Designers Developers Content Managers Private/public/large/small/freelance

Web design conference, Sydney late Sept

Local and international speakers

600 attendees

Designers

Developers

Content

Managers

Private/public/large/small/freelance

Topics Mobile Usability Accessibility eMarketing Analytics Community driven content Technology/programming Software Design/development techniques Philosophy - sort of

Mobile

Usability

Accessibility

eMarketing

Analytics

Community driven content

Technology/programming

Software

Design/development techniques

Philosophy - sort of

Successful Community Collaboration using Wikis – Angela Beesley The founder of Wikia , the community-focused wiki hosting site which is developing over 2500 wikis. Wikimedia Foundation , the non-profit organisation responsible for Wikipedia, Wikibooks, Wikinews, and the other Wikimedia projects.

The founder of Wikia , the community-focused wiki hosting site which is developing over 2500 wikis.

Wikimedia Foundation , the non-profit organisation responsible for Wikipedia, Wikibooks, Wikinews, and the other Wikimedia projects.

Wikipedia Founded in 2001 9 th most visited site on the Web Created and operated by volunteers Openly editable (once logged in) 5,400,000 registered users Open source software 230 languages (English has the lion’s share) Non-profit

Founded in 2001

9 th most visited site on the Web

Created and operated by volunteers

Openly editable (once logged in)

5,400,000 registered users

Open source software

230 languages (English has the lion’s share)

Non-profit

Can you trust user generated content? Open to correction and improvement Everything is reversible Changes are transparent User, date, time, IP Poor content is flagged Bots run to highlight questionable edits Articles that are subject to debate are “tagged”

Open to correction and improvement

Everything is reversible

Changes are transparent

User, date, time, IP

Poor content is flagged

Bots run to highlight questionable edits

Articles that are subject to debate are “tagged”

Wiki communities Welcome newcomers Rewards old-timers Well documented dispute resolution process Avoidance Discussion Disengage Third party opinions Informal mediation Formal mediation Arbitration

Welcome newcomers

Rewards old-timers

Well documented dispute resolution process

Avoidance

Discussion

Disengage

Third party opinions

Informal mediation

Formal mediation

Arbitration

Wiki text Markup language Simplified version of HTML No standards

Markup language

Simplified version of HTML

No standards

Example Wiki text

A successful wiki is… community owned openly editable freely licensed full of members with a shared goal and common vision

community owned

openly editable

freely licensed

full of members with a shared goal and common vision

How can Stamford use a Wiki? Knowledge management tool (SZ) Alternative to email Drafting proposals Project management

Knowledge management tool (SZ)

Alternative to email

Drafting proposals

Project management

Social media and Government 2.0 – Sebastian Chan (Powerhouse Museum) “ More than ever before there is an enormous amount of publicly held data about our community, our culture, and citizens. How can government respond to the opportunities of Web 2.0? How can government websites and databases become more citizen-centric, and more responsive by leveraging social media?”

“ More than ever before there is an enormous amount of publicly held data about our community, our culture, and citizens. How can government respond to the opportunities of Web 2.0? How can government websites and databases become more citizen-centric, and more responsive by leveraging social media?”

How popular are Govt websites? 2% of all websites visited by the Australian public Up to 6% if you include health and edu (Hitwise Aug 07) BOM 17% ATO 3.7% Centrelink 2.25% Ourbrisbane.com 1.15% Medicare 1.1% ABN lookup 0.7%

2% of all websites visited by the Australian public

Up to 6% if you include health and edu (Hitwise Aug 07)

BOM 17%

ATO 3.7%

Centrelink 2.25%

Ourbrisbane.com 1.15%

Medicare 1.1%

ABN lookup 0.7%

Early experiments – Electronic swatchbook A digitised collection of fabrics and patterns over 300 years www.powerhousemuseum.com/electronicswatchbook/s / Used by designers and students Public domain Offers print resolution downloads 10,000 users and gigabytes of downloads per month

A digitised collection of fabrics and patterns over 300 years

www.powerhousemuseum.com/electronicswatchbook/s /

Used by designers and students

Public domain

Offers print resolution downloads

10,000 users and gigabytes of downloads per month

Electronic swatchbook tagging Cataloging this much content would be too time consuming with traditional models Invites users to “tag” swatches with simple descriptions Patters Colours Moods Users will tag without incentives

Cataloging this much content would be too time consuming with traditional models

Invites users to “tag” swatches with simple descriptions

Patters

Colours

Moods

Users will tag without incentives

Powerhouse collection search Most of the collection is in storage Want to allow unskilled users access to the collection via simple search Use filters, tags to increase accuracy 95% of all objects views at least once in first 10 weeks 17 million objects views Most popular object only viewed 28,000 times The most viewed object is…

Most of the collection is in storage

Want to allow unskilled users access to the collection via simple search

Use filters, tags to increase accuracy

95% of all objects views at least once in first 10 weeks

17 million objects views

Most popular object only viewed 28,000 times

The most viewed object is…

Delta Goodrem’s evening dress

Enhanced serendipity and browsability Object name, subject and type taxonomy added/created by trained staff Has been applied to 90% of collection User keywords/tags (folksonomy) Anonymous No incentive Badwords filter 8000 user tags 5000 unique tags Tags compliment existing records and taxonomies Used for discovery not descriptive purposes “ Bridge the semantic gap”

Object name, subject and type taxonomy added/created by trained staff

Has been applied to 90% of collection

User keywords/tags (folksonomy)

Anonymous

No incentive

Badwords filter

8000 user tags

5000 unique tags

Tags compliment existing records and taxonomies

Used for discovery not descriptive purposes

“ Bridge the semantic gap”

Learning more about the collection

Moving the web forward – Chris Wilson Internet Explorer Platform Architect at Microsoft. He’s worked on web browsers since 1993, when he co-authored the first version of NCSA Mosaic for Windows. Since 1995, he’s worked on Microsoft’s web platform.

Internet Explorer Platform Architect at Microsoft. He’s worked on web browsers since 1993, when he co-authored the first version of NCSA Mosaic for Windows.

Since 1995, he’s worked on Microsoft’s web platform.

So when’s the next version of IE? Won’t discuss the features, date or name of the next version of IE

Won’t discuss the features, date or name of the next version of IE

Chris’s Web 1993 Content should be simple to create and serve Everyone should be a content producer Change was driven by the need to connect – hyperlink referencing, not folder structures

Content should be simple to create and serve

Everyone should be a content producer

Change was driven by the need to connect – hyperlink referencing, not folder structures

Chris’s definition of “Web 2.0” Caring about the quality of the UI/UX Rich social experiences to make the web immersive Portable across platforms, devices, languages, cultures

Caring about the quality of the UI/UX

Rich social experiences to make the web immersive

Portable across platforms, devices, languages, cultures

3 types of people on the Web Web Developers – Painful Browser vendors – Painful and a constant target Everybody else – experience getting better

Web Developers – Painful

Browser vendors – Painful and a constant target

Everybody else – experience getting better

IE and security Not a good history IE has the most users therefore the most amount of attacks Every time a new technology is invented it has implications for the security of IE and Windows

Not a good history

IE has the most users therefore the most amount of attacks

Every time a new technology is invented it has implications for the security of IE and Windows

IE, web standards and not “breaking the Web” IE has over 500,000,000 users Compatibility with IE6 prevents easy browser upgrades Users expect sites to work in IE7 like they did in IE6 If a page works in Browser X, Version Y then it must still work in Version Y+1 “ How do we support standards without breaking the Web for millions of users?”

IE has over 500,000,000 users

Compatibility with IE6 prevents easy browser upgrades

Users expect sites to work in IE7 like they did in IE6

If a page works in Browser X, Version Y then it must still work in Version Y+1

“ How do we support standards without breaking the Web for millions of users?”

Mob rules - Mark Pesce Shortly somebody will become the three billionth mobile phone subscriber. The people are the network! We can get in front of this spree of self-organisation - or get run over by it. Either way, mob rules are the new laws of business, politics, and culture.

Shortly somebody will become the three billionth mobile phone subscriber.

The people are the network!

We can get in front of this spree of self-organisation - or get run over by it. Either way, mob rules are the new laws of business, politics, and culture.

Where there’s a will… TV shows and movies end up on BitTorret before they are released. (Oink) Open source movement “ever so slowly eating Microsoft” Ricardo’s iPhone Radiohead – In Rainbows Cliff Richard “ Encyclopedia Britannica is a ‘walled garden’ and is made obsolete by Wikipedia”

TV shows and movies end up on BitTorret before they are released. (Oink)

Open source movement “ever so slowly eating Microsoft”

Ricardo’s iPhone

Radiohead – In Rainbows

Cliff Richard

“ Encyclopedia Britannica is a ‘walled garden’ and is made obsolete by Wikipedia”

Mobiles in the developing world Cheap mobile handsets help fishermen earn a better living Initiatives in Bangladesh place mobile phones into the hands of the poor “ Helping the poor to communicate is one of the best ways to help them improve their economic status”

Cheap mobile handsets help fishermen earn a better living

Initiatives in Bangladesh place mobile phones into the hands of the poor

“ Helping the poor to communicate is one of the best ways to help them improve their economic status”

You can’t censor the Mob “ The net interprets censorship as damage and routes around it” – Gilmore’s law (1993) Great Firewall of China Net Alert 16 y/o boy 30 mins to crack the filters and after an upgrade it took him an additional 40 mins

“ The net interprets censorship as damage and routes around it” – Gilmore’s law (1993)

Great Firewall of China

Net Alert

16 y/o boy 30 mins to crack the filters and after an upgrade it took him an additional 40 mins

Is Web Directions an opportunity for Stamford? Yes What do you think?

Yes

What do you think?