PRIME POINT Foundation

Usability Checklist


 
Do you want to take a print out of this checklist? click here for printer friendly version  or click here for downloading the checklist  in word file 

You can use the following Checklist as a self-assessment for your own website.  For every 'yes' give yourself '5' marks. 'No' carries no marks.  To see how your site fared, look at the bottom of the table 

YES

NO

1. The site was designed with the aid of user input from the outset and major revisions have also re-evaluated the wants, needs and expectations of the target audience.

 

 

2. The site has a domain name that is easy to spell, pronounce and remember.

 

 

3. The site is accessible to all users using any device (PC, web enabled mobile phone and personal digital assistant PDA), i.e. the site has good accessibility.

 

 

4. The site is cross-browser compatible. ie. It can be viewed properly in Netscape, Internet Explorer, Opera and Mozilla.  and is meaningful and functional at a variety of screen resolutions and window sizes.

 

 

5. The visitor should be able to go to any page with a minimum links possible i.e proper navigation to be provided

 

 

6. The site avoids tenuous use of metaphor unless absolutely appropriate. Where icons, pictures, or special terminology are used to represent actions, they are intuitive or standardised and well known.

 

 

7. Each page loads quickly. If there is a substantial delay in rendering the whole page (greater than 10 seconds) the most informative and important items become visible and are meaningful while the rest of the page loads.

 

 

8. Where multimedia, new web technology or content requiring plug-ins are used, alternatives with equivalent information are provided.

 

 

9. Frames are not used. If they are then equivalent non-frames content is provided via the <NOFRAMES> tag.

 

 

10. All pictures have meaningful alternative descriptions provided via the <ALT> tag

 

 

11. All text links are meaningful and predictive of their destinations.- link should be self explanatory

 

 

12. Text links retain the standard colours: Blue for unvisited , red/purple for visited.

 

 

13If an application takes time to download, have you mentioned clearly the file size of the application and the time that would take to download (if not applicable put 'yes')

 

 

14. Animation is used only where it supports the meaning of functionality of the page.

 

 

15. Page titles are concise and meaningful and would make appropriate labels for bookmarks.

 

 

16. When a link is provided on an explanatory narration, only certain parts of the text like 'click here' should be hyper linked to the concerned web page 

 

 

17. The location of the page being viewed is indicated clearly on the right or left top of the page eg : About us -> Financial position -> Balance sheet.

 

 

18. Links on a current page do not simply reload the page itself. i.e. no self-referential links.

 

 

19. The company logo provides a link to the home page (except on the homepage).

 

 

20. Windows are only popped up on a user's screen where absolutely necessary, preferably not at all.

 

 

21. Back button functionality is preserved at all times.

 

 

22. Error messages are written in clear, understandable language and indicate how to resolve the problem.

 

 

23. Where appropriate (e.g. big site) a good search facility is provided - this uses a sensible algorithm and if possible supports spelling mistakes.

 

 

24. URL's are meaningful where possible.

 

 

25. Complicated backgrounds are avoided. Where used backgrounds do not impair the contrast between foreground and background.

 

 

26 Are you using extremely bright colours like fluorescent pink or green or any other bright colours on the background

 

 

27. Text size is defined in relative rather than fixed units. Users can modify the base size of text and the page is still meaningful and functional.

 

 

28 Less usage of codes makes the web page light and faster to download.   Are you using cascading style sheets in the site..

 

 

29. All tables degrade gracefully.- text to appear first while the rest of the element like images are being downloaded

 

 

30. If you type in the browser www.name.com and if you type name.com  (without www), your web site should appear 

 

 

 RATING

130 – 150 points -  Very usable website 

100-125 points  - Site is good but can do with improvements  

70 – 95 –  Average website. Needs proper look into its usability 

Below 70 -  Bad website.  Please make use of a professional web designer and developer to redo the website.