..until you read the book.
I personally just purchased this little ditty at Border's not four nights ago, and flew through it. What Raskin does, and why, in the end, you can not help but agree with him, is to walk up to each concept he presents clearly, and explain that why, yes, UI designers often think this way, I think they are forgetting x and y, and thinking of z. Very similar to Aquinus's theolgica in voice.
What he points out, quite poignantly, is that engineers design the interfaces, not people. We engineers are a different breed, and, when creating our interactions, we tend more towards Neal Stephenson's essay "In The Beginning..", where every intimate interaction with machine, as well as each step in the process, should be visible to us.
However, as Raskin states, this is rarely transfered into an interface that makes it's current state obvious to it's user, and instead, engineers often assume the user a vast idiot.
Unlike Tog, who claims to be the definitive source of interfaces, Raskin admits that his ideas are difficult to actually place in an interface, and instead, seems to prefer the book be used as a guideline for meeting halfway.
Raskin also explains in very simple terms, just how the human mind is thought to work, and that if these fundamental are true, then why would working with a computer feel like x, when, in review, it should be z.
For instance, perhaps the most harped upon item in the work is the idea of modes. What Raskin believes is that the human brain takes 10 seconds to switch gears between two tasks, and that modes actually slow a user down. He seems to believe there should only be one mode, 'edit', giving the user complete control of all aspects of the document at any time. Most UI people believe modes save users from themselves, allowing certain changes to a document only when in mode x, and you have to click 'Ok' to enter. However, Raskin solves this argument by simply calling for the Universal Undo/Redo button ( as found on the Canon Cat), the inability to delete anything permanently, and automatic saving of documents.
One of the more intricate ideas, and one everyone seems to wonder about is the Raskin's idea to remove file-heirarchies.Here's how Raskin believes it should work;
One, within a machine there are only documents. The system itself is invisible to the user. You don't launch applications, or move around system extensions, you just work. With this removed, you then look upon hard drives as actually an infinitely long scroll, where documents simple begin to occupy blocks of space, and can grow within their space indefinetly. While Raskin never explain exactly how this will work with hard drives that become radically more crammed, I don't think it was ever his intention to explain exactly how to do anything.
What many reviewers miss is Raskin's assertion that his ideas, the sum of this book, are just that, ideas, and guidelines. Bascially the book is a statement of 'In an Ideal world, this world happen.' However, he does provide several methods for testing current interfaces, as well as examing ways to improve them now.
I recommend it as shelf-material for anyone who works day-to-day in UI. At it's best, the book is a profound guide for the ideal that computers, or any device for that matter, should be less-complicated, more thought-out structures.
..to see Slashdot users backing a proposal like this!
AOL is a giant corporation which piggy-fucks just about any and everyone's machine it can. Sony is a consumer electronics dynsasty, who got lucky with the PSX, and is now hoping to rule with the PSX2.
But, it runs Linux, so every things okay?
Sweet mother mary of God what happened to sanity.
Game consoles are perhaps the next generation of connected-computing. Through this new boxes, presumably half the cost of a PC, many home-users will view the world of the internet, and those the world in general. If AOL and Sony band together on this outing, you will begin to see the world's larget content whore providing systems for the world's largest profit vixen.
In short, just another Microsoft with bigger balls, and squinty eyes.
The fact remains it doesn't matter who has the monolopy, no one should have it. The GameCube is likely to remain a niche player, as was the N64 (Ninentdo is the Apple of game consoles), while the PSX2, despite repetitive gameplay, and various hardware issues, will likely just slightly lead in the Game Console war to be appearing at local theaters in 2002. However, with AOL now providing service to PSX2 first, and the some 4 million customers strong in adverts that can not be ignored so easily, Sony has positioned itself to push the PSX2 into the laps of consumers before the XBox hits the streets.
Once you have 60% market saturation, you're as good as gold.
If the XBox manages to survive it will only be because Microsoft can dump millions into the project without blinking an eye, until it survives, where other companies are forced to let go of unprofitable dogs, M$ can strive on them.
So, at the end of 2002, we now have two vast monopolies controlling what about 4-10 million, see, and hear.
Sweet merciful crap.
Slashdot Mirror
..until you read the book.
I personally just purchased this little ditty at Border's not four nights ago, and flew through it. What Raskin does, and why, in the end, you can not help but agree with him, is to walk up to each concept he presents clearly, and explain that why, yes, UI designers often think this way, I think they are forgetting x and y, and thinking of z. Very similar to Aquinus's theolgica in voice.
What he points out, quite poignantly, is that engineers design the interfaces, not people. We engineers are a different breed, and, when creating our interactions, we tend more towards Neal Stephenson's essay "In The Beginning..", where every intimate interaction with machine, as well as each step in the process, should be visible to us.
However, as Raskin states, this is rarely transfered into an interface that makes it's current state obvious to it's user, and instead, engineers often assume the user a vast idiot.
Unlike Tog, who claims to be the definitive source of interfaces, Raskin admits that his ideas are difficult to actually place in an interface, and instead, seems to prefer the book be used as a guideline for meeting halfway.
Raskin also explains in very simple terms, just how the human mind is thought to work, and that if these fundamental are true, then why would working with a computer feel like x, when, in review, it should be z.
For instance, perhaps the most harped upon item in the work is the idea of modes. What Raskin believes is that the human brain takes 10 seconds to switch gears between two tasks, and that modes actually slow a user down. He seems to believe there should only be one mode, 'edit', giving the user complete control of all aspects of the document at any time. Most UI people believe modes save users from themselves, allowing certain changes to a document only when in mode x, and you have to click 'Ok' to enter. However, Raskin solves this argument by simply calling for the Universal Undo/Redo button ( as found on the Canon Cat), the inability to delete anything permanently, and automatic saving of documents.
One of the more intricate ideas, and one everyone seems to wonder about is the Raskin's idea to remove file-heirarchies.Here's how Raskin believes it should work; One, within a machine there are only documents. The system itself is invisible to the user. You don't launch applications, or move around system extensions, you just work. With this removed, you then look upon hard drives as actually an infinitely long scroll, where documents simple begin to occupy blocks of space, and can grow within their space indefinetly. While Raskin never explain exactly how this will work with hard drives that become radically more crammed, I don't think it was ever his intention to explain exactly how to do anything.
What many reviewers miss is Raskin's assertion that his ideas, the sum of this book, are just that, ideas, and guidelines. Bascially the book is a statement of 'In an Ideal world, this world happen.' However, he does provide several methods for testing current interfaces, as well as examing ways to improve them now.
I recommend it as shelf-material for anyone who works day-to-day in UI. At it's best, the book is a profound guide for the ideal that computers, or any device for that matter, should be less-complicated, more thought-out structures.
..to see Slashdot users backing a proposal like this! AOL is a giant corporation which piggy-fucks just about any and everyone's machine it can. Sony is a consumer electronics dynsasty, who got lucky with the PSX, and is now hoping to rule with the PSX2. But, it runs Linux, so every things okay? Sweet mother mary of God what happened to sanity. Game consoles are perhaps the next generation of connected-computing. Through this new boxes, presumably half the cost of a PC, many home-users will view the world of the internet, and those the world in general. If AOL and Sony band together on this outing, you will begin to see the world's larget content whore providing systems for the world's largest profit vixen. In short, just another Microsoft with bigger balls, and squinty eyes. The fact remains it doesn't matter who has the monolopy, no one should have it. The GameCube is likely to remain a niche player, as was the N64 (Ninentdo is the Apple of game consoles), while the PSX2, despite repetitive gameplay, and various hardware issues, will likely just slightly lead in the Game Console war to be appearing at local theaters in 2002. However, with AOL now providing service to PSX2 first, and the some 4 million customers strong in adverts that can not be ignored so easily, Sony has positioned itself to push the PSX2 into the laps of consumers before the XBox hits the streets. Once you have 60% market saturation, you're as good as gold. If the XBox manages to survive it will only be because Microsoft can dump millions into the project without blinking an eye, until it survives, where other companies are forced to let go of unprofitable dogs, M$ can strive on them. So, at the end of 2002, we now have two vast monopolies controlling what about 4-10 million, see, and hear. Sweet merciful crap.