The subtitle of Steve Krug’s book Don’t Make Me Think! says it all: “A common sense approach to web usability.” His succinct yet comprehensive guide explains how people tend to use the internet and introduces the principles of web design. Although the second (and most recent) edition of the book was published in 2005, the concepts that Krug presents remain pertinent for present day web design.
Krug designed his book to be short – “you read it on a long plane ride” – and easy to understand for beginners and professionals alike. Some of the topics Krug covers include designing pages for scanning rather than reading, eliminating unnecessary information, user testing, navigation, and accessibility. Diagrams and illustrations throughout the book further clarify Krug’s points, while his humor pervades each topic.
Towards the end of the book are “five things you can do right now,” a section intended to get the ball rolling by narrowing in on things that can have a major impact without extensive effort. Krug concludes with a few real-life scenarios of design requests from company executives that go against the usability principles and how to address those issues, as well as a list of recommended reading on usability and web design. Don’t Make Me Think! delivers on its promise of a quick read that is nonetheless highly informative. More information about the book and its author can be found at http://www.sensible.com/.
Editor’s note: This book review is purely for informational purposes. GraVoc Associates, Inc.is in no way affiliated with the author of the book or the company that published it.