Usability consultant Caroline Jarrett submitted an article to UsabilityNews.com about an issue that’s near and dear to my heart – the usability of writing. She says: “USA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES PASSES PLAIN LANGUAGE ACT
The answer is that the USA House of Representatives passed the Plain Language in Government Communications Act of 2008. It achieved bipartisan support, passing with a massive majority of 376-1. The lone opponent, the aptly-named U. S. Congressman Flake, issued this commentary on the topic: “Bad bill. Voted no”.”

In her article, Ms. Jarrett offers some books about writing clearly. (I’ll add my favorite, “Why business people speak like idiots.“)

She discusses the similarities between good technical writing, and good usability. I have long held that there is no distinction – or at least no clear line where one stops and the other starts. The goal of each is to make things clear, easy, and empowering for the reader, application user, or site visitor. Use language, images, and concepts that are appropriate for the audience. Anticipate questions and provide answers. A Web app or site can have the most sensible flow possible, but if the steps or pages are labeled in a cryptic or overly-stylized way, people might well end up being very confused when trying to use it.

The designer/writer may have created something brilliant and elegant, and they know exactly what they meant by it, but that counts for nothing. Others have to “get it” – that’s the only measure that counts in communication.

One point Caroline Jarrett didn’t quite touch on, is usability testing for content. Just as we test applications and Web sites to be sure people use them easily, we should test instructions, online help, and getting-started guides, to be sure they support the reader as we would hope.

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