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Just as Flash animation is often wrongfully deemed successful based on pure aesthetics, software solutions are too often deemed successful when the code (the technology) is 98% bug free. Too often software design falls short because the end result is not nearly as usable as it can be. Sure, everyone likes seeing good looking layouts, but, in the software world, without a rock solid understanding of human factors those pretty screens will still end up confusing your users and costing you money. You won't get the repeat customers you deserve and you won't get good word of mouth. I'll create user scenarios and perform needs analysis before creating your software components so that they are easy to use and look sharp.
When studying industrial design in the early 90's our instructors would tell us, "if you don't apply human factors analysis to your designs you should transfer to the fine art department and paint watercolor landscapes for a living!" You have to be honest with yourself about the type of design you're looking to accomplish. You've come here for design services. What are you trying to accomplish by hiring a designer? Fluffy, cool looking "graphic stuff" or systems design, tested and usable solutions that make you money and also look fantastic and innovative! When designing mass produced products, from software and web applications to an automobile's instrument cluster I've come to understand that human factors is a requirement for long-lasting and profitable design solutions.
Good usability practices don't have to break your bank. In fact, they can actually save you money while increasing sales! From card sorting and paper prototypes to category agreement analysis and in house focus groups, these inexpensive user feedback processes and principles I use make my software solutions elegant, easy to use, innovative and based on tested data as opposed to pure speculation.
The terms usability and human factors are interchangeable. Both terms refer to the extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use. Typically, software companies will use the term "usability" while most of other product manufacturers use the term "human factors".
When we start a project I'll create a password protected site for you on goldmanDesign.com. Only you can view this site. It's the place we'll go to review your designs and documentation, download files and in general keep in tight communication about your project status and progress.
