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Year 2 of World Usability Day
On November 14, more than 40,000 people celebrated World
Usability Day 2006 worldwide. With over 225 events in 40 countries, thousands
of visitors to online presentations and over 10,000 volunteers who helped
organize and execute these events; we set a new record.
2006 brought an increase of more than 90% in the number of
events over 2005 and an increase in the number of attendees at each event,
making the exponential growth significant and very exciting. Additionally, the
concept of usability was promoted for the first time as a part of World
Usability Day in several countries including Paraguay, Iceland, Egypt, Kuwait,
and Japan.
The focus this year was on accessibility and “Making life
easy”. Of the more than 40,000 people participating in World Usability Day
2006, the largest percentage were professionals involved in usability, design,
engineering, technology, research, product development, government and
marketing. However, there was strong outreach to general consumers and youth as
well. The range of events addressed
issues in healthcare, education, communications, government, and more. From the U.S. Census Bureau to voting machine
technology, to accessibility regulations and implementation worldwide, the
concept of “Making life easy” was fully integrated into the presentations.
The World Usability Day Charter officially launched as part
of World Usability Day 2006. The charter addresses key worldwide sectors
affected by usability: Healthcare,
Education, Government, Communications, Privacy and Security, and Entertainment. The charter received more than a thousand
signatures and is gaining support daily. World Usability Day charter http://www.worldusabilityday.org/charter
Walking your red balloon was an international effort to
identify products – including maps, road signs, forms etc - that are usable or
not usable. The initiative began in London and Auckland New Zealand and
inspired people to walk around their communities with a red balloon and photograph
or video the products they’ve identified.
Hundreds of photos from this initiative and from local events have been
placed on Flick’r photo galleries and can be accessed at www.flickr.com/groups/makinglifeeasy
and http://www.flickr.com/groups/worldusabilitygallery2006/pool/
Many videos were also taken and can be found on YouTube at
www.youtube.com/groups/worldusabilityday200.
World Usability Day is about collaboration and it is meant
to bring EVERYONE interested and affected by usability together. We value the collaboration of our supporting
organizations and look forward to enhancing these relationships in future
years. These included: Human Factors and
Ergonomics Society (HFES), SigChi, STC, UserexperienceNetwork (Uxnet).
The impact of World Usability Day is created and driven by
the tens of thousands of people that participate and volunteer their time,
their skills, their offices and more. It is their commitment and energy that
makes this a unique event. With all of
our creativity, energy, and collaboration, World Usability Day can make a
strong impact on society.
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