The first lesson

The first lesson of usability is protect the user experience. When creating a website, every group in involved has request and concerns. Even when legitimate, these demands often conflict with the user experience. For example, users are wary of giving more information than absolutely necessary. Users are also wary of being spammed. With this in mind, does the account sign up flow in your website require a fax number? For arguments sake, let's say that there is a legitimate reason for requiring a fax number from users. Does the fax number have to be required during sign up? Most likely, it is better to ask for a fax number when the user want to send or receive a fax. Protecting the user experience means that every interaction must be as simple as possible. If you don't agree, think of it this way... The next time you sign up for a checking account, library card, or other online account, imagine being required to enter the names and ages of your three closest relatives. Not a very good experience is it?