For those fearful of impotent programs "dumbed down" by "popular" interfaces: relax. Good interface design has little to do with how pretty it looks and more to do with how easy it is to use! (imagine that!)
This means that a good user interface for an expert user is different than a good user interface for a novice user. It is one of the challenges of UI design to make a program that can accomodate both classes, well. Some might say it's impossible, but that's another issue. That having been said, good user interface design for novice users is indeed frightfully absent in most open source programs. Don't worry, though--there aren't a lot of good commercial examples, either.;) From my admittedly poor viewpoint, this can be possibly attributed to the modular nature these programs exhibit. Let's look at a Linux distribution, since it's often brought up:
First, the typical novice Linux user initially has no concept of distributions, or that "Linux is just the kernel," or even what a kernel is. It is probably a failing of Linux that these points must be learned at all. To them, "Linux" is the whole experience--everything that came out of that red box.;) The modularity of the programs in the distribution is an initial hurdle.
Now, let's talk about the GUI. Again, we have modularity that may be admirable from a formal design standpoint, but to a novice user is just confusing. You've got the "basic OS" (TTY-based IO), and X (which a novice typically can't even fathom the purpose of--they usually think it does the work the WM does), and the various window managers (all modular, and all with different interfaces!) The Mac OS is often brought up as an example of several things done right in OS UI design, and I'd like to postulate that it is its very seamlessness that makes it easy to use for novices. The implementation is usually hidden from view--and for many, that's a good thing. I'm an optimist, though. Through the modularity present in Linux's design, one has a lot of power in design. Just because all this modularity is there doesn't mean that it has to be hung out in the open, and the power of modularity makes it possible (but not necessarily easy) to design interfaces that make sense. Aditionally, the open source model can, I believe, be extended to include reviews by UI enthusiasts/experts/professionals. That's not a very informed opinion, but it's mine, anyway.;)
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This means that a good user interface for an expert user is different than a good user interface for a novice user. It is one of the challenges of UI design to make a program that can accomodate both classes, well. Some might say it's impossible, but that's another issue.
That having been said, good user interface design for novice users is indeed frightfully absent in most open source programs. Don't worry, though--there aren't a lot of good commercial examples, either.
First, the typical novice Linux user initially has no concept of distributions, or that "Linux is just the kernel," or even what a kernel is. It is probably a failing of Linux that these points must be learned at all. To them, "Linux" is the whole experience--everything that came out of that red box. ;) The modularity of the programs in the distribution is an initial hurdle.
Now, let's talk about the GUI. Again, we have modularity that may be admirable from a formal design standpoint, but to a novice user is just confusing. You've got the "basic OS" (TTY-based IO), and X (which a novice typically can't even fathom the purpose of--they usually think it does the work the WM does), and the various window managers (all modular, and all with different interfaces!) ;)
The Mac OS is often brought up as an example of several things done right in OS UI design, and I'd like to postulate that it is its very seamlessness that makes it easy to use for novices. The implementation is usually hidden from view--and for many, that's a good thing.
I'm an optimist, though. Through the modularity present in Linux's design, one has a lot of power in design. Just because all this modularity is there doesn't mean that it has to be hung out in the open, and the power of modularity makes it possible (but not necessarily easy) to design interfaces that make sense. Aditionally, the open source model can, I believe, be extended to include reviews by UI enthusiasts/experts/professionals. That's not a very informed opinion, but it's mine, anyway.
-(())