I am confused as to what is considered broken here. The menu bar across the top? Surely, it is not hard to understand why this needs to be a large, prominent and permanent anchor - especially in a foreign environment, on a foreign system, and accessed by clientele with a completely unknown expertise-level.

I design public kiosk interfaces. You might be astonished at the usability issues we face.

Posted by: DaveC426913 at June 23, 2004 09:46 AM

Also, is it a touchscreen? You can't get away with using power-user icon sizes on a touchscreen aimed at casual users.

What's particularly broken here is the table-based layout and all-image "text" on the website displayed in the browser -- not only completely inaccessible to a screenreader but requires left-right scrolling in a smaller window or PDA.

It would help if you would make the connection between "the buttons are big" and "you spend less time online" explicitly. If you're going to go against accepted kiosk usability guidelines, it'd help to say *why* -- otherwise it just comes across as "I dislike this".

Power users are more apt to use the wifi in the airport than the kiosk, after all -- given the existence of wifi, the kiosk seems to be going after users for whom 'net access is only an intermittent need.

Posted by: mendel at June 23, 2004 10:43 AM

I can at least understand the huge toolbar buttons, but what I can't understand is the ridiculous size of the "Welcome" title bar. Is that there for...anything? Why does a kiosk running in full-screen mode need a title bar at all, especially one that big?

Posted by: codeman38 at June 23, 2004 01:50 PM

I'd just like to know about Seth's book. I would say new book, but it's been a year now. Most probably, no one will see this post ever. I'm depressed now.

Posted by: anonymous at March 17, 2005 01:36 PM

Good news: I've seen your post.

Bad news: Don't know anything about two years old Seth's book.

Posted by: as well anonymous at April 28, 2006 05:38 AM