Hi Everyone
In my June blog I mentioned that we had released Abel Version 6.0 featuring Abel’s new User Interface (UI), and now I can tell you a bit more about it!
We’ve been planning to update Abel’s look for some time. In 2016 we reviewed several ERP systems in the Tier 2 space to gain a better understanding of how Abel compared. The review confirmed what we’d been thinking. We needed to improve Abel’s User Interface, both to position us for the future and also to deliver real benefits to our customers.
We wanted a really professional look and feel, so we engaged a team of user experience designers to work with us on all the design elements and also on the usability aspects. This collaboration has delivered Abel 6.0 with:
- A fresh modern User Interface
- A more intuitive system that’s easier to learn and easier to use
- A UI framework and style guide for future development
It’s important to note that only Abel’s User Interface and appearance has changed. The layout of the screens is mostly the same, so it’s easy for existing customers to upgrade. Abel’s underlying functionality and business logic remains the same as before so 6.0 still provides the functional breadth and stability of Abel’s tried and tested core.
Usability was a key goal for this project. Throughout the 6.0 development, we considered all the graphical elements from a usability perspective. This led us to make the following improvements:
- We have made the screens kinder to your eyes by using a larger screen size, more whitespace, a new font, more restrained use of color and more subtle borders and lines.
- We redesigned the header area at the top of each screen to reduce visual clutter and make it faster and easier to navigate.
- We have used icons extensively to make functions easier to find and to make field actions more obvious. This makes Abel easier to learn and more intuitive to use.
- We have improved accessibility for people with conditions like color blindness. To start with we’ve reduced the use of color in the common elements of the screens. We still have a way to go (as we still have colors within the functional areas) but we are happy to have taken this significant step towards a more accessible system.
Here are a few examples that show the differences between Version 5 and Version 6.
This example shows the re-designed header. The new header is cleaner and all buttons have icons to improve usability.
This example shows how more subtle borders make the new screens clearer than the old ones. The date picker is much more readable. This example also shows how we have reduced the use of color.
We’re delighted with the fresh look and feel of Abel ERP. It uses our proven underlying framework and significantly improves overall experience and productivity for our users.
Abel 6.0 is available now for new installations and for upgrades.
If you want to know more about Abel 6.0, please contact your Abel Consultant or your nearest Abel Software Office.
Until next time
Jane