Considering that a ridiculously high fraction of my waking life that is spent in front of a computer terminal it is probably inevitable that I usually find people who don't understand technology to be, themselves, downright confusing and alien. Often I wonder "what is wrong with them", but recently have come to realise the interesting question is "what i s wrong with me?".
It's not often I read a blog post that makes me question the way I think, but just now I did. Over at The Old New Thing is a post about how when people are confused by computers the problem isn't people. The problem is computers. I guess this is something I forget all too easily: People shouldn't change; technology needs morph itself to fit the cultural norms of the day, to fit the quirks of the user.
The article starts like this:
Go and read the rest of it. I originally wanted so badly to find some chink in its armour, to find some reason to call non-technoliterate people idiots but I can't. The author is correct; technology should always be adapting to the person, not the other way around. In the same way that I don't give a flying fuck how my washing machine and microwave operate, people should be given the same freedom with a computer. Just like the interface on a dishwasher or television has been endlessly ergonomically refined so that everybody can understand it, so should computers.
For that matter, whenever we interact with technology it should be designed so that we don't even notice it.
This is perhaps old news to designers but from the point of view of somebody that unashamedly enjoys technology for the sake of technology it is a timely reminder that the way I hack and fight with copmputers is not the way that most of the world should be forced to experience it!
late edit: I have taken a real shine to the people behind "The Old New Thing". Just take a look at this post
It's not often I read a blog post that makes me question the way I think, but just now I did. Over at The Old New Thing is a post about how when people are confused by computers the problem isn't people. The problem is computers. I guess this is something I forget all too easily: People shouldn't change; technology needs morph itself to fit the cultural norms of the day, to fit the quirks of the user.
The article starts like this:
Earlier this year, one columnist was baffled as to why "Yahoo" was the most searched-for term on Google. I wasn't baffled at all. Back in 2001, Alexa published the top ten most searched-for terms on their service, and four of the top ten were URLs: yahoo.com, hotmail.com, aol.com, and ebay.com.
A lot of people simply don't care to learn the difference between the search box and the address bar. "If I type what I want into this box here, I sometimes get a strange error message. But if I type it into that box there, then I get what I want. Therefore, I'll use that box there for everything." And you know what? It doesn't bother me that they don't care. In fact, I think it's good that they don't care. Computers should adapt to people, not the other way around. Go and read the rest of it. I originally wanted so badly to find some chink in its armour, to find some reason to call non-technoliterate people idiots but I can't. The author is correct; technology should always be adapting to the person, not the other way around. In the same way that I don't give a flying fuck how my washing machine and microwave operate, people should be given the same freedom with a computer. Just like the interface on a dishwasher or television has been endlessly ergonomically refined so that everybody can understand it, so should computers.
For that matter, whenever we interact with technology it should be designed so that we don't even notice it.
This is perhaps old news to designers but from the point of view of somebody that unashamedly enjoys technology for the sake of technology it is a timely reminder that the way I hack and fight with copmputers is not the way that most of the world should be forced to experience it!
late edit: I have taken a real shine to the people behind "The Old New Thing". Just take a look at this post
