stuff we like - web sites to visit
Usability First
http://www.usabilityfirst.com/
Good introduction to what usability is, definitions, good explanations and examples.
Useit.com
http://www.useit.com/
Jakob Nielson's site of usability research, reports, information about web site standards. Use this site to search for research or ideas for interface designs, widgets, standard web behaviors etc.
Web Style Guide
http://www.webstyleguide.com/index.html?/
Good tips for standard design on the web.
Usability.gov
http://www.usability.gov/
Good site of easy to use resources for designing good web sites.
User Testing.com - Low cost usability testing.
http://www.usertesting.com
Good, inexpensive way to conduct remote usability testing. You create some tasks, tell them who you are targeting and for less that $100 you can get user tests from 5 users. Your results are video clips and a written report from each tester. Nice!
Accessibility Guidelines
http://www.washington.edu/doit/
Good site about designing interfaces and web sites for accessibility.
Human Computer Interactions (HCI)
http://www.ida.liu.se/~miker/hci/guidelines.html
Web site of Guidelines, Style Guides and Standards.
Human Factors International
http://www.humanfactors.com/downloads/10tips.asp
Great site of usability research and tips. Offer Usability Certification courses, very good.
Optimal Sort
http://www.optimalsort.com
Good electronic tool for conducting card sorts. Can conduct open or closed (reverse) sorts.