Make it Easy to Use!
What brilliant software programmer came up with "Reply All?" This is just one of the many puzzles of usability that truly fascinate me.
Usability is the emerging study of what's called "HCI," or "human computer interaction (or interface)."
Just because you can do it from the standpoint of the programming is no reason to do it. We've always got to consider human tendencies.
For example, one thing we know about humans - and it's not a particularly pretty truth in many ways - we will find a way to use almost any new technology for the purposes of sex. In fact, if we find a way to use something for sex (for example, VHS tapes), that fact alone will propel the technology forward. So it's a given that social networking would promptly devolve into a means to engage in some form of sexual interaction; we now have "sexting," or exchanging sexual texts on our cell phones; webcams quickly became a way to engage in long distance sex or even to market sexual favors over the internet.
My point isn't so much to go into a rant about using technology for prurient purposes: it's more to suggest that we really do need to consider the human factor in any computer engineering.
A while back I whined about the fact that all those swipe card instruments at stores treat "credit or debit" protocols differently - there is no one single approach so that once you've learned it, you've learned it for good. Fortunately, software designers were smart enough to, for the most part, adopt the shopping cart system pioneered by Amazon. The point is, is worked. People got it; people were able to use it. Once you learned it, you were able to apply the terminology and basic process across a wide variety of websites and applications. Not so the swipe card: with some systems you hit "Cancel" if you wanted to apply your card as credit versus debit; with others you hit "Enter."
Nobody wants to be confused. Nobody wants his time wasted. Nobody wants to click around trying desperately to get a job done. Remember, the object when we're on a retail website, or at a DIY gas pump is: get the job done, not play with interface.
I recently tried to update my Garmin GPS maps. I have never encountered so many roadblocks in my .life! What was odd was that the software acted as though it was taking care of business for me - it said, plug in your unit and we'll tell you what to do. Ha!
First, it was a "registration required" upgrade. Interestingly, the website allowed me to buy the maps without a "registered" product. It did not, however, allow me to download these maps to my "unregistered" product. Of course, I'd registered my unit years ago - the email account with which I'd registered it didn't even exist any more.
When I finally got the registration problem solved (it took a call to Customer Service, during which I was informed there was a half hour wait time, and that I should call back "in the morning," (it was 9:30 am), and an email to Customer Service, after which I had to wait two days for a replay), I went through the whole download and unpack the maps, upgrade your browser plug in, run the software which took (no kidding) an hour, I finally, finally got to attempt to install the maps only to find out that the software would not run on Windows 7. Of course, no indication was given to me of this little glitch - and surely, surely Windows 7 is widespread enough now that this should be considered a major warning to users!
I think you get my point. Usability is a key discipline in this brave new world of computers.
Oh, and one more not-so-small point. Usability is not a design issue! Some of the worst usability I've ever encountered has come from designers. Designers, particularly those who come from the print world, are not particularly interested in how usable a product is,only in how pretty it is.
One designer I know created an interface that was meant to be used by a presenter. He was supposed to grab a tiny - invisible - handle on a scroll bar with his mouse (or touch pad) while presenting, and scroll a small window to a non-locking location to show his audience the next set of bullet points. What?? Yes, it looked nice - tiny and elegant and had nice fades at either side of the active part of the scrolling window. But usable? Not even remotely.
Usability is part industrial design, part common sense, and mostly, a real understanding of how people tend to, and like to, do things - what we already know, what we expect, and what we're comfortable doing.
Usability is the emerging study of what's called "HCI," or "human computer interaction (or interface)."
Just because you can do it from the standpoint of the programming is no reason to do it. We've always got to consider human tendencies.
For example, one thing we know about humans - and it's not a particularly pretty truth in many ways - we will find a way to use almost any new technology for the purposes of sex. In fact, if we find a way to use something for sex (for example, VHS tapes), that fact alone will propel the technology forward. So it's a given that social networking would promptly devolve into a means to engage in some form of sexual interaction; we now have "sexting," or exchanging sexual texts on our cell phones; webcams quickly became a way to engage in long distance sex or even to market sexual favors over the internet.
My point isn't so much to go into a rant about using technology for prurient purposes: it's more to suggest that we really do need to consider the human factor in any computer engineering.
A while back I whined about the fact that all those swipe card instruments at stores treat "credit or debit" protocols differently - there is no one single approach so that once you've learned it, you've learned it for good. Fortunately, software designers were smart enough to, for the most part, adopt the shopping cart system pioneered by Amazon. The point is, is worked. People got it; people were able to use it. Once you learned it, you were able to apply the terminology and basic process across a wide variety of websites and applications. Not so the swipe card: with some systems you hit "Cancel" if you wanted to apply your card as credit versus debit; with others you hit "Enter."
Nobody wants to be confused. Nobody wants his time wasted. Nobody wants to click around trying desperately to get a job done. Remember, the object when we're on a retail website, or at a DIY gas pump is: get the job done, not play with interface.
I recently tried to update my Garmin GPS maps. I have never encountered so many roadblocks in my .life! What was odd was that the software acted as though it was taking care of business for me - it said, plug in your unit and we'll tell you what to do. Ha!
First, it was a "registration required" upgrade. Interestingly, the website allowed me to buy the maps without a "registered" product. It did not, however, allow me to download these maps to my "unregistered" product. Of course, I'd registered my unit years ago - the email account with which I'd registered it didn't even exist any more.
When I finally got the registration problem solved (it took a call to Customer Service, during which I was informed there was a half hour wait time, and that I should call back "in the morning," (it was 9:30 am), and an email to Customer Service, after which I had to wait two days for a replay), I went through the whole download and unpack the maps, upgrade your browser plug in, run the software which took (no kidding) an hour, I finally, finally got to attempt to install the maps only to find out that the software would not run on Windows 7. Of course, no indication was given to me of this little glitch - and surely, surely Windows 7 is widespread enough now that this should be considered a major warning to users!
I think you get my point. Usability is a key discipline in this brave new world of computers.
Oh, and one more not-so-small point. Usability is not a design issue! Some of the worst usability I've ever encountered has come from designers. Designers, particularly those who come from the print world, are not particularly interested in how usable a product is,only in how pretty it is.
One designer I know created an interface that was meant to be used by a presenter. He was supposed to grab a tiny - invisible - handle on a scroll bar with his mouse (or touch pad) while presenting, and scroll a small window to a non-locking location to show his audience the next set of bullet points. What?? Yes, it looked nice - tiny and elegant and had nice fades at either side of the active part of the scrolling window. But usable? Not even remotely.
Usability is part industrial design, part common sense, and mostly, a real understanding of how people tend to, and like to, do things - what we already know, what we expect, and what we're comfortable doing.
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