Older adults in the US are the fastest-growing demographic, and also the largest-growing group of internet users. The aim of this research was to evaluate websites designed for older adults in terms of (i) how well they adhere to ‘senior-friendly’ guidelines and (ii) overall ease of use and satisfaction. In Experiment I, 40 websites designed for older adults were heuristically evaluated based on their adherence to usability guidelines derived by the National Institute on Aging and the National Library of Medicine. In Experiment II, three websites with varying levels of guideline compliance were evaluated by older adults in a usability test. Results from this study indicate that the website most compliant with the ‘senior-friendly’ guidelines resulted in higher task success, but did not result in significantly better efficiency, satisfaction, or preference. These findings demonstrate the importance of using both guidelines and usability testing when designing websites for older adults.

This study investigated how common online text affects reading performance of elementary school-age children by examining the actual and perceived readability of four computer-displayed typefaces at 12- and 14-point sizes. Twenty-seven children, ages 9 to 11, were asked to read eight children's passages and identify erroneous/substituted words while reading. Comic Sans MS, Arial and Times New Roman typefaces, regardless of size, were found to be more readable (as measured by a reading efficiency score) than Courier New. No differences in reading speed were found for any of the typeface combinations. In general, the 14-point size and the examined sans serif typefaces were perceived as being the easiest to read, fastest, most attractive, and most desirable for school-related material. In addition, participants significantly preferred Comic Sans MS and 14-point Arial to 12-point Courier. Recommendations for appropriate typeface combinations for children reading on computers are discussed.