Itqualityassurance
- What are the guidelines for effective error messages?
- Which is not recommended for error messaging in application?
- Should you say please in error messages?
What are the guidelines for effective error messages?
Summary: Established wisdom holds that good error messages are polite, precise, and constructive. The Web brings a few new guidelines: Make error messages clearly visible, reduce the work required to fix the problem, and educate users along the way.
Which is not recommended for error messaging in application?
Don't blame the user
Users are already going to be frustrated when they get an error message—don't make it worse by placing the blame on them. This means you should avoid using phrases like “you did” or “you didn't” when explaining what went wrong.
Should you say please in error messages?
Use “please” only rarely, if ever. Sometimes lengthy instructions or error messages might need a touch of politeness added to one of several sentences, but generally, do not use “please” in English. If you still feel the need, at least avoid using “please” more than once in one text or group of sentences.
