Lately, my writing efforts have been entirely focused on my master’s degree in Human-Computer Interaction, so I thought I could at least post some of that work here for the time being.
I recently wrote a research paper about web usability in developing nations. I love discussions around web performance, so I was particularly interested in this topic. In the context of the class, I wasn’t able to dive as deep into the technical aspects as I would have liked, but I’m pretty happy with out it turned out overall. Here is a quick intro to the paper:
The internet is widely available and reliable for those of us in developed countries like the United States and most of the European Union. We have fast, highly accessible networks, ever more powerful technology to access these networks, and relatively good education systems to help us use them. But people in less developed areas of the world can have a significantly different, and often more challenging experience accessing the web. What are the problems people in these developing countries face in regards to web accessibility and usability? How can a better interaction with the web help improve the lives of these people? As designers, developers, and analysts, what can we do to improve this interaction, and why do we even care in the first place?