Nielsen's heuristics

As with so many aspects of usability, Jakob Neilsen has a mammoth influence on the notion of heuristics. The list below is probably still the most widely used heuristic evaluation list in the industry, although everyone (including us, of course) adapts it to the focuses implicit in any user interface design project. These heuristics were first published in Neilsen's book Usability Engineering.

• Awareness of current status
  Any system should always provide users with feedback as to what is going on and keep them informed about where they are and how they are doing. E.g. status bars for downloads.

• Familiarity match between system and the real world:
  Any system must speak the user's language, using words, phrases and concepts familiar to the user. Any system should follow real-world conventions, making information appear in a natural and logical order.
• User control and freedom to leave:
  Users often choose system functions by mistake. Users require a clearly marked "emergency exit" to leave the unwanted state without having to go through an extended dialogue. Every system requires undo and redo, possibly in multiple iterations.
• Consistency of internal standards and signifiers:
  Follow internal conventions consistently. Users should not have to wonder whether different words, situations, or actions mean the same thing.
• Error management:
  Good, clear error messages have their place but only after a design which prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. Eliminate error-prone conditions or test for them or offer them a confirmation option before they commit to an action.
• Recognition over recall:
  This is especially important in things like the creation of unique iconography. Minimize the user's memory load by making objects, actions, and options visible and immediately recognizable. The onus should not be on the user to remember information from one part of a dialogue to another. Instructions for use of the system should be easily retrievable whenever appropriate.
• Flexibility:
  Systems should appeal to experienced and inexperienced users. For example, things such as accelerators - unseen by the novice user - can help speed up an interaction for an expert user.
• Aesthetic yet minimalist design:
  Dialogues should only contain information that is relevant or needed. Measure the ratio of information to pure relevancy to the task. Every extra unit of information in a dialogue competes with the relevant units of information and diminishes their relative visibility.
• Help users quickly recognize and recover from errors:
  Error messages should be expressed in plain language (no codes), precisely indicate the problem, and constructively suggest a solution.
• Help and documentation:
  Systems are better without documentation of course but such systems are rare or ideal. Always provide the option of help and documentation. Help files and indexes must be easy to search, focused on the user's task and list concrete steps for the user to carry out. Ideally such systems target keywords the user will use without assuming the jargon of the system.

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