3 usability testing tools & more

Go to New Zealand company, Optimal Workshop, to check out:

  • Chalkmark – website first impression testing; see where people click when they visit your site
  • OptimalSort – get people to test your IA or help you create it; takes card sortinginto the online age!
  • TreeJack – answers to questions about which labels work best, whether a structure is too deep and where to put certain types of content

Their blog is interesting too. Check out the article on Userfly.

I’ve seen the future for small business

Clouds for small business makes sense. US company, Parallels, believes most future will mall businesses will be in the clouds within 10 years.
Parallels focuses on service providers that address the needs of small businesses, Jack Zubarev, president of the company’s service provider division… During the last two years, telecommunications companies have been taking a growing interest in this space, and some three dozen telcos now use Parallels software to deliver cloud services to small businesses.

… Zubarev believes small business is increasingly turning to cloud services, and he predicts that in around 10 years practically all small business IT will be in the cloud. The reason, he explained, is that small business owners want the best of what technology has to offer, but they don’t want to rely on IT consultants or specialist staff.