: Putting “placeholders” in the application user interface is a bad practice that conflicts with Agile development methodology, confuses users, gives engineers a false sense of accomplishment, and should be banned. If a feature or object isn’t serving some purpose today, it shouldn’t be in the user interface at all. : http://www.voximate.com/blog/article/782/ui-placeholders-confuse-users/

: Infinite scrolling is a new interface technique you’ll find popping up on various web sites. It allows users to browse through content without clicking on pagination links. : http://uxmovement.com/navigation/best-practices-for-infinite-scrolling

: Apple always gets flack for not conducting user research (even though that’s a myth — it’s market research they don’t conduct). Apparently Facebook doesn’t feel the same way about keeping their research under wraps. I recently happened upon an interesting page on Facebook where they allow people to apply to participate in user research [...]

: We recently posted about how 37signals increased their sign-ups by 200% with A/B Testing. A lot of you are using WordPress, which makes A/B testing pretty tricky, so we’ve recorded a screencast tutorial to show you how to do it. : http://thinkvitamin.com/design/how-to-do-ab-testing-in-wordpress/

: Interaction designers spend a fair bit of time creating and revising wireframes in the early phases of our online projects. Whatever your take on wireframes is, they are a mainstay in the user experience professional’s toolkit. Although typical wireframes are essentially dead documents, they’re extremely helpful as thinking and communication tools during a project. [...]

: Recently, Verizon and T-Mobile announced they would be shipping Android phones quite soon. Technology pros know about Moore’s Law but often forget a critical aspect: it’s not just about increasing power, it’s also about decreasing cost. : http://www.uxmag.com/technology/the-coming-zombie-apocalypse

: Ideas on redesigning Apple’s Game Center. : http://thomasdavi.es/2010/10/thoughts-on-game-center/

: A look at how the meaning of icons can change dramatically based on neighboring content. : http://buildinternet.com/2010/11/context-by-proximity/

: Nobody needs to convince you that it’s important to test your website’s design and interaction with the people who will use it, right? But if that’s all you do, you’re missing out on feedback about the most important part of your site: the content. : http://www.alistapart.com/articles/testing-content/

: The subject of design education, UX careers, and mentoring has been on my mind a lot lately. It wasn’t long ago that I was looking for UX job and I’ve learnt a lot in the process, not to mention the experience I’m gaining on the job right now. : http://boonyew.com/interaction/2010/12/13/why-we-need-ux-apprenticeships/