how to make things easy to read (and understand)
TRANSCRIPT
How to make things
Easy to Read(and understand)
Presenters
Kimberly Vlies
Web/Graphic [email protected]
Leif Nelson
Instructional Designer/[email protected]
Presented by the Academic Staff Professional Development Programming Committee
Fonts
• Use Serifs for printed documents – (e.g., Times New Roman)
• Use sans-serifs for web pages – (e.g., arial)
• Don’t mix too many fonts, sizes, and colors within the same document.
Making things stand out
• Bold Text• Italic• Underline• ALL CAPS
•Outlines
Making things stand out
DON’T TRY TO MAKE EVERYTHING STAND OUT OR NOTHING WILL.
Don’t try to make everything stand out or nothing will.
ABOUT USING ALL CAPS
For PowerPoint:use the "seven by seven" rule
Your slides should have no more than seven lines of text with each line having no more than seven words. This keeps your word slides visually clean and appealing. More importantly, it keeps the audience's attention focused on YOU, not on the slide. If there is a novel up there on the screen, people will be reading it, rather than listening to you. The words on your slides should be talking points only. If you find yourself writing lengthy word slides, move the text down to speaker's notes, and just boil the slides down to the essential points.
Source: http://groundwire.org/resources/articles/powerpoint-best-practices
Think Like Your Audience
• Is the language clear?• Are you over-using the passive voice?
– The TPS report was filed by Peter (passive)– Peter filed the TPS report (active)
• Check grammar and spelling– Don’t always rely on spell check– re-read yourself or have someone proofread
Psychology of Design
The pleasure of your company is most sincerely requested for the honorable celebration of the Anniversary of Hank’s birth year. This illustrious event will be held at Kroll’s East.
Psychology of DesignHey, Guess What? . . .
YOU STILL HAVE A JOB!
How People Scan Web Pages
Source: http://www.useit.com/alertbox/reading_pattern.html
F’F’ F ’
Alignment
F
“I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the
most distinguished of that republic. My ancestors had
been for many years counsellors and syndics, and my
father had filled several public situations with honour
and reputation. He was respected by all who knew
him for his integrity and indefatigable attention to
public business. He passed his younger days
perpetually occupied by the affairs of his country; a
variety of circumstances had prevented his marrying
early, nor was it until the decline of life that he
became a husband and the father of a family.”
Excerpt from Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelly
Avoid Centered Text
“I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of
the most distinguished of that republic. My
ancestors had been for many years counsellors and
syndics, and my father had filled several public
situations with honour and reputation. He was
respected by all who knew him for his integrity and
indefatigable attention to public business. He
passed his younger days perpetually occupied by
the affairs of his country; a variety of circumstances
had prevented his marrying early, nor was it until
the decline of life that he became a husband and
the father of a family.”
Excerpt from Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus
by Mary Shelly
Don’t Center Bullet Points!
• Labrador retriever• German shepherd• Yorkshire terrier
• Beagle• Golden retriever
• Bulldog• Boxer
• Dachshund• Poodle• Shih Tzu
• Labrador retriever• German shepherd• Yorkshire terrier• Beagle• Golden retriever• Bulldog• Boxer• Dachshund• Poodle• Shih Tzu
And for Pete’s sake,
Pay attention to line length
A good rule of thumb is to use thirty-nine characters, an alphabet and a half, in a single line.
Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzabcdefghijklm
Lines of text that are too long can impede tracking. In long segments of text in it can cause the eye to accidentally skip lines or jump back and re-read the same line of text twice, without even intending to. Can you imagine how difficult it might be to read something like this if you have a learning disability or you’re not a strong reader to begin with?
Lines of text that are too short are difficult to read. There’s just to many line breaks and the constant need to zig-zag can cause eye strain and fragmented understanding of the text.
Too Short
Too Long
Columns help
When columns aren’t possible
Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzabcdefghijklm
If you absolutely must make your lines longer than thirty-nine
characters, try increasing the line spacing. It will make it easier for
the eye to focus on the single line of text and not get lost when
dropping down to the next line
Compensate
with line
spacing
Contrast
Is this easy to read?
Is this easy to read?
Is this easy to read?
Reversed Text Avoid large amounts of
“I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most
distinguished of that republic. My ancestors had been for many years
counsellors and syndics, and my father had filled several public
situations with honour and reputation. He was respected by all who
knew him for his integrity and indefatigable attention to public
business. He passed his younger days perpetually occupied by the
affairs of his country; a variety of circumstances had prevented his
marrying early, nor was it until the decline of life that he became a
husband and the father of a family.”
Excerpt from Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelly
Light text on a dark background not only uses up toner, it’s difficult to read.
“I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most
distinguished of that republic. My ancestors had been for many years
counsellors and syndics, and my father had filled several public
situations with honour and reputation. He was respected by all who
knew him for his integrity and indefatigable attention to public
business. He passed his younger days perpetually occupied by the
affairs of his country; a variety of circumstances had prevented his
marrying early, nor was it until the decline of life that he became a
husband and the father of a family.”
Excerpt from Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelly
Dark text on a light background not only uses less toner, it’s easier to read.
“I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most
distinguished of that republic. My ancestors had been for many years
counsellors and syndics, and my father had filled several public
situations with honour and reputation. He was respected by all who
knew him for his integrity and indefatigable attention to public
business. He passed his younger days perpetually occupied by the
affairs of his country; a variety of circumstances had prevented his
marrying early, nor was it until the decline of life that he became a
husband and the father of a family.”
Excerpt from Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelly
“I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most
distinguished of that republic. My ancestors had been for many years
counsellors and syndics, and my father had filled several public
situations with honour and reputation. He was respected by all who
knew him for his integrity and indefatigable attention to public
business. He passed his younger days perpetually occupied by the
affairs of his country; a variety of circumstances had prevented his
marrying early, nor was it until the decline of life that he became a
husband and the father of a family.”
Excerpt from Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelly
Don’t use faded background images
Clear graphics
Source: http://headrush.typepad.com/creating_passionate_users/2006/06/do_your_graphic.html
Sometimes line art is more effective at conveying a concept than detailed images or photographs
When to Use . . .
Where to Find Graphics
• http://www.flickr.com/creativecommons• Best to avoid Copyrighted material
Use tables and graphics for quick understanding
All grading will be done on a “0 - 100%” scale which translates into the following letter grades. A is 92% and higher, AB is 89 to 91%, B is 82 to 88%, BC is 79 to 81%, C is 72 to 78%, CD is 69-71%, D is 59-68% and F is less than 59%.
Letter Grade PercentageA 92% +
AB 89 - 91%B 82 - 88%
BC 79 - 81%C 72 - 78%
CD 69 - 71%D 59 - 68%F Below 59%
All grading will be done on a “0 - 100%” scale which translates into the following letter grades:
Don’t scale images disproportionately
Hold down your shift key while scaling to preserve height to width ratio.
Questions?