Daniel Montano — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 05:08:04 GMT

Some things to keep in mind.

Both of the standardized methods were developed and implemented in desktop software before the web. This means that both of these models were not designed with the web context in mind. There is one big difference between the traditional desktop environment and a web-based environment – the browser’s “Back” button.

o “Cancel” is also a way to “go back” and “OK” is a way to move “forward”. This “Forwards/Backwards” metaphor underlies most forms of “Cancel” and “OK” functions.

Here are some other extensions of this metaphor:

o Time: in our standard visualizations ”Old” is usually depicted on the left, “New” is depicted on the right (most graphical depictions of time use this left-to-right metaphor)

o Process: We use the left-to-right metaphor when visualizing progressive steps: “First” is on the left, “Second” is usually displayed on the right.

o Writing and Reading: in writing and reading we “continue” or move “forward” from left to right (unless we’re in Asia of course)

o In film: if a person is “going somewhere” she moves from the left side of the screen to the right. If she’s going “back” she travels from right to left

o The Cancel/OK model may help to improve conscious decision-making: This model assumes that you want to read the options before making a decision on which action you want to take (advisable on important interactions that require the user’s full attention and have more than a couple of actions available to them.) The Cancel/OK model presents the “alternative” actions first (on the left)…so you can read them before deciding that “OK” is the action you really want to take. The OK/Cancel model may get the user in the habit of clicking the first option they encounter. At the same time, the users who are trained to use the Cancel/OK model may go directly for the “OK” button whenever they’re fairly certain that’s the choice they want to make.

o OS Adaptation: Mozilla’s Firefox matches the OS being used when displaying the order of the OK and Cancel buttons. In other words, the display of the buttons adapts to fit what your OS has trained you to use.

Daniel Montano — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 22:01:27 GMT

This link takes you to an article that shows the survey and result about the specific question of the order of the Cancel/OK buttons. Different layouts and different button labels were tested. The results are interesting and worth considering as they introduce other factors that influence the way that people interpret the buttons (such as the distance between the buttons.)
http://measuringuserexperience.com/SubmitCancel/index.htm…

Boxes and Arrows: Comments by Daniel Montano