Pick a Time Zone, any Time Zone

You know I don’t want to seem like I’m constantly being negative about the usability and Web issues I discover on my journeys around the Internets, but often the best way to learn what to, is to see what not to do. Take this Web app that shall remain nameless above.

In the registration form you’re asked to select your time zone, from which there about 100 to choose from (with duplicates no doubt), and as you can see above, shown in at least three different formats. Any idea where I’d find Eastern Americas? (Oh wait, there’s three of them right there but I never saw it since I don’t associate Toronto with Indiana or North Dakota)

Best practice: Ditch the time zone selection entirely. Most people have no idea what GMT is, nevermind that we’re -5 from it in the Eastern time zone. Ask the user for what city they’re in, and let the application do the heavy lifting in the background to cross-reference that with a time zone. Computers are tools to make our lives easier - don’t make me do data entry because it’s easier on your database.

April 9, 2008 | Filed Under Uncategorized