In this article we will be examining the fifth criterion under the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines “Adaptable” guideline. You are likely familiar with the “type” attribute that many input fields support, for example <input type=”text” />. Common types include number, date, checkbox, etc. More niche types include email, tel and password. These are extremely useful, and often cue the browser to offer different behaviour for input. However, those types don’t provide much indication of the purpose of the information. For[...]

We will be continuing our series of insights articles on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines by looking at the first of the criteria under the “Adaptable” guideline: Information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined, or are available in text The real crux of this one is that we can make a screen of our application look perfectly comprehensible to a user approaching it purely visually, while a user approaching the same screen using a screen reader[...]

Within our Innovation Delivery (ID) team our UX designers work very closely with our developers to deliver intelligently designed products for our clients in the health, engineering, and science sectors. Our designers need to transfer their ideas or designs of a digital product for development. There are numerous design collaboration tools on the market – at ID we have been using Zeplin and it has made a noticeable difference in improving our teams’ workflows. It has become our single source[...]

"The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone, regardless of disability, is an essential aspect." (Tim Berners-Lee, W3C Director and Inventor of The World Wide Web) Digital Accessibility is about ensuring that content produced is accessible to all. This is not just a moral and legal requirement but is also good business. This article delves into the benefits of paying close attention to digital accessibility, includes information on automated accessibility testing tools and manual testing methods and an interactive exercise.

After identifying general trends in the results from OPERANDO and other user research projects relating to how users perceive software utility, our team decided to formally investigate its impact upon technology acceptance rates.

Sometimes, when people are thinking about a new product or ways to improve or develop an existing product, their ideas aren’t fully formed. The Discovery process provides a framework for identifying the potential users of the product and investigating in detail exactly what their needs are. Each process is unique, adapting in response to where the customer is in their own thinking. Discovery outputs vary depending on needs, from specification, budget estimates and possible funding sources to prototypes to help clients see how their ideas might work.

Meeting the challenges of software commercialisation is not just about the code. How do you start that journey? What needs to happen along the way to ensure the best launch? And once your product has made it into the market, what needs to be in place for its continued success?

As designers, we tend to use our own abilities as a baseline and evaluate designs based on our own bias. Inclusive design is a methodology that enables everyone, regardless of their situation, to participate. Understanding what can prevent people participating, in both the physical and digital world, helps us to create better designs.

Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) is software intended to be used for one or more medical purposes without being part of a hardware medical device.

UX Designer Leanne Dobson rounds up the pros and cons of voice technology and what you should consider when designing for voice interaction.

A recent survey of social care directories found OCC’s MarketPlace offers one of the best user experiences for those seeking information and advice about care. Socitm, the society for IT practitioners in the public sector, carried out the survey in December 2017. It reviewed 152 council sites on a range of user experience criteria, including: how easy it was for a user to find the site content and presentation of information, including the clarity of headings and the relevance, continuity[...]

The most successful apps and products generally have something in common: as well as meeting a need, they are a pleasure to use. They provide the features a user wants in a clear and intuitive way, and create a satisfying journey that anticipates and focuses on user needs at every step. So how do you get it right? How can you be sure that the interface presenting your innovation to the marketplace is providing great usability?

My name is Florence. I am an A-Level student from Oxford, studying English, Philosophy and Psychology, but I also have an interest in art and design. I spent the last week at OCC, doing work experience with the design team. I’m still unsure about the career path I will take, but this week has been beneficial in helping me learn about design. With the help of the team, I worked on multiple projects, starting with making a banner for the[...]

Hi, I’m Isabel. I’ve always wanted to get into coding and hoped to start at Codebar, Oxford, but was too young. However, through my contact with Codebar I met one of the organisers, Beverley Newing, who’s part of the front-end development team at OCC. Beverley was really helpful and after lots of emails, involving her sending me a lot of resources, and me thanking her a lot, she kindly offered me work experience at OCC. Day 1 I was introduced[...]