Posts Tagged "News"

Ragequit The Dashboard

This is another editorial where I challenge myself to think of a better way of handling what I feel are problems in User Experience. During my career I have designed dozens upon dozens of product dashboards ranging from consumer portals, to customer control panels, with widgets, gadgets, gizmos, etc. The concept of a dashboard is both solid and sound; a central portal where a user can get a snapshot of everything related to them.

Ultimately I feel that they end up being a barrier of entry to most users; everything is present, but nothing is useful. It ends up being an extra step; a hoop the user must jump through to get where they need to go.

The purpose of the dashboard is to show the user as much information as possible, however this ends up looking convoluted, confusing, and often times the average user suffers from information overload and ignores everything on the screen.

I still think product dashboards serve a purpose in some traditional business applications. I do, however, think we need to start auditing their use more much more closely, as oppose to using them as a product crutch.

See Es VI

Several days ago Adobe introduced their Creative Suite 6 line of software, as well as their brand new product platform Creative Cloud. I have been using the public beta of Adobe Photoshop CS6 since they released it, and I must admit it is going to be hard to go back. I think this was probably their plan to begin with, as this is probably the single largest single update to their software that I have ever seen.

Instead of just taking on new features, like it felt like they had with previous versions, most of the changes that I have seen appear to focus more on integrating or improving existing features into the experience as a whole.

I even get the cheaper discounted Creative Cloud subscription price because I purchased CS4 several years ago. When Adobe originally announced subscription based software I didn’t think I would be a fan of “renting” my software, however they appear to have done a polished run at turning it into a legitimate service.

The Creative Professional

I have allot to say about the iPad; I have to admit I was one of those watching intently as it was revealed, keeping track of the rumors for over year now, and once it was shown to the world I was among those disappointed by it as well. I realize one thing, however, that when a product gets as hyped as the iPad was then there is no way that it will ever be able to live up to the expectations of the consumer. Unless of course it will make you a sandwich and allow you to travel through time.

Ultimately this is why I created a little HackBook Mini. A coworker of mine had one and I had been jealous of it for a while, so I did some research and I realized that it is relatively easy to load up Mac OSX Snow Leopard on the Dell Mini 10v. The hardest part was upgrading the RAM, which wasn’t even required. It serves the same purpose of the iPad, it cost me less, and I am able to do more with it. Instead of the creative tool I was wishing the iPad would be, this becomes a networking tool that it wishes it was. I am able to store and share files, email and chat with co-workers, watch movies, listen to music, etc. The best part of is that I am free to install any application I want to and I am not forced to stay within the confines of the app store.

Complaints about the iPad are widespread and when you see them they all seem to be the same, so I will assume you are hip the word on the interwebs and skip those; they aren’t even what truly bothers me. For better or for worse, Apple used to be the company for creative professionals. This however did birth the stereotype of the quintessential stuck-up elitist Apple user. Which, as I type this – sitting in a coffee shop, wearing a black t-shirt, sipping a latte, as I blog – I can’t help but feel a sense of ironic hypocrisy. The problem is I have with the iPad is that I was expecting it to be a tool for me to use; essentially, I wanted it to replace my wacom tablet and run Photoshop.

That’s when I saw Microsoft’s Courier, which appears to have both pressure sensitivity and handwriting recognition (please correct me if I am wrong). I realize that these as well as the sharing features could be added to a Journal app for the iPad, however having them built into the system as core features creates a powerful tool. It also show the potential power of running multiple apps at the same time sided by side with one not affecting the other, but instead working together almost as if they are one application.

I ultimately decided that neither products were something I was interested in; they aren’t made for me. They are both good products, but I am not the market. I want them both, but unfortunately I know my habits too well; I would use them obsessively for a month, and then never pick them up again.

Thoughts on Google Buzz

I am kind of’ torn on my feelings about Google Buzz. Now as a product guy who works on web development I find myself excited about the features they are implementing; I may even consider using it as inspiration for future projects (stealing). However as a consumer I don’t want my email cluttered with the noise of social networking.

The only accurate metaphor I can think of is: I want my peas and mashed potatoes separated. In this scenario social networking is the peas, and email is mashed potatoes. I don’t want my mashed potatoes ruined by putting peas in them. I eat my peas because they are good for me, however I don’t like them. I never really like myface or spacebook, however in order to keep in contact with some people it became a requirement. I like mashed potatoes, and in this metaphor I thought Google Wave was going to be the gravy.

This is probably one of those features I am going to end up using in the long run, however as the internet becomes more and more public I find my private safe zones getting smaller and smaller.

The Pendulum

I have had various conversations recently discussing the uniqueness of my generation; how we are the paradigm shift in modern technology. We are the children of the information age, yet maybe the last generation to know what it feels like to be disconnected.

My high school experience is a good example of how the pendulum has swung. My freshmen year of high school very few families owned a computer. People who considered themselves “gamers” were considered to be socially crippled. The only ones who owned a cell phone were those who needed them for business purposes. Yet by my senior year finding a student with a cell phone was an easy task, and most families had at least one computer.

My little sister is graduating high school later this year, and the idea of the family computer was all but dead because in many cases every family member in a household owns their own computer. It is common to find multiple video game consoles in a single household, and just about every person that you run into has a cell phone attached to them. It is also common to find people that do not have a land line.