What A/lakes Products More Usable? - I

User-centered design (UCD) describes an approach that has been around for decades under different names, such as human factors engineering, ergonomics, and usability engineering. (The terms human factors engineering and ergonomics are almost interchangeable, the major difference between the two having more to do with geography than with real differences in approach and implementation. In the United States, human factors engineering is the more widely used term, and in other countries, most notably in Europe,

ergonomics is more widely used.) UCD represents the techniques, processes, methods, and procedures for designing usable products and systems, but just as important, it is the philosophy that places the user at the center of the process.

Although the design team must think about the technology of the product first (can we build what we have in mind?), and then what the features will be (will it do what we want it to do?), they must also think about what the user's experience will be like when he or she uses the product. In user-centered design, development starts with the user as the focus, taking into account the abilities and limitations of the underlying technology and the features the company has in mind to offer.

As a design process, UCD seeks to support how target users actually work, rather than forcing users to change what they do to use something.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in standard 13407 says that UCD is "characterized by: the active involvement of users and a clear understanding of user and task requirements; an appropriate allocation of function between users and technology; the iteration of design solutions; multidisciplinary design."