Web usability: a review of the research

Abstract

As with the information technologies that have preceded it, Web technology is faced with many of the same issues of accessibility and usability. Paraphrasing the definition supplied by the ISO [1], Web usability is the efficient, effective and satisfying completion of a specified task by any given Web user. Support of essential user tasks made possible by Web technology serves is the benchmark of its usability. With this definition in mind, a brief review of available empirical research on Web usability was carried out to determine what is known about the factors that might affect Web usability. This review is not intended to be exhaustive nor is it intended as a review of the many design alternatives and suggestions that have been proposed for improving Web use. The primary purpose of this review is to identify Webspecific usability research and to provide some suggestions for future research.