I am not sure why I am here (look at my design efforts to understand why)
So I shall confine myself to some conclusions that I have come to that reference older and new users.
New users often do not understand that they need to click on things. Now and then I get an older car club member in my office that has recently got onto the net. I find myself telling them "you can click on anything blue that is underlined" New users think this is fantastic and I often find myself heading off to make two cups of tea while they zoom themselves to some place where they are lost. The back button (top right on most screens) is the second wave of fun. If i list a row of links vertically new users recognise them as links a great deal faster than horizontally, A huge bunch of links in an outlined area is often readily recognised as 'links' probably because as text they make no sense. a link in text is often 'read' sometime absorbing the message in the text makes the change of colour in the link totally invisible.
The more we use website the more things we understand somebody with 50 years of reading everything from newspapers to glossy mags just do not cotton on instantly. I often think the first page an older viewer reads should have every word as a link to somewhere and an invitation to click anywhere. Important links for older users should should have a larger area to allow for near misses. mouses are horrible things if your hands are not young and supple. (probably why verticle links are easier - or maybe my stats record more near misses on verticle links. I have found that small links are usually well seen, I presume that most users with vision problems are well prepared with glasses for other use - Its getting ther mouse to them that is the problem.
older newspaper readers do expect ther headlines to be at the top of the page. will identify a message posted next to a photo faster than anywhere else on the page and will accept hints (like lists) as having a purpose (links) without being told.
If new users find a 'blue' link that works, they seem to instantly know that underlined blue is a link. . this knowledge can sometimes automatically make a red word just something that has been emphasized and confusing ( why are links red, blue, and black?
Its an impossible task attempting to write rules for new or more trickier older users. they just do not seem to have that 'internet intuative'. webmasters have to grow it for them. If a site expects or designs for a first time user the first page should be I think, a lesson in test your intuition.
I do not consider myself to be a usability expert, but I do have a website that has been the first site visited by thousands of first time users, mostly on a son or daughters website looking for parts for a much loved classic car. I get emails from relatives saying 'What day do you upload the buick parts, Dad is coming around again on friday.
Get your grandmother, for a usability test, webmasters see very little we know how to find the code, we recognise gifs, we get curious about all sorts of things . . And we all know how to use it.
I could probably write forever about silly thing, but a lot of them contradict what I have written already, and to be truthfull making it usable for one user is just as likely to make another user frustrated.
The majority of my users are able bodied, A suprising number of these able bodied users get a less able bodied users to 'work the internet' this seems to me to be a peculiar phenomenon, but the chances are that in a household with an able bodied 70 year old man, his disabled wife will often be the one that does the browsing.
I have seen post on site from people that have knowledge of users with disabilities, I myself would like to read other members experience with disable users. I myself am partially colour blind so I never worry about colours other than to note, blue on a palest yellow background is the most comfortable for me.
Having quickly read what I have written. I hope that its not confusing or contradictory, two things about the site that seem to me glaringly not how I would leave it would be mixture of red, blue and black links. and (click here to talk not hooked up yet/)
I too think its a beautiful site, and If I have posted any experience here that could prove usefull I shall consider the last twenty minutes well spent.
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