Whither Usability

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Note: This message is from the outliners.com archive kindly provided by Dave Winer.

Outliners.com Message ID: 2647

Posted by srdiamond15
2005-01-24 12:46:55

This quote from the blog of one of the designers of the Firefox browser:

Of course, the idea that software should be invisible to its users is somewhat sobering to its developers. Ask any seasoned programmer if coding is an art or a science and he will invariably claim the former. The frustrating difference is that art is inherently an end unto itself, created to be consumed and enjoyed. People enjoy the painting, but software is just the paintbrush. Until some programmers come to terms with the hard realization that nobody actually wants to use software for the sake of using software, I fear we will be forced to cope with ever more task panes and other distractions that seem to serve no purpose other than to remind us that someone worked late hours creating the program. (http://blakeross.com/index.php?p=9)
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But is it the case that nobody enjoys the sheer process of using software? Maybe the point is that I’m in a small minority regarding that taste.

My view is that the degree to which the software must be transparent to the user varies depending on the class of software. It is vital in organizers; to me at least, less necessary in a pim. The rule I’d suggest is that the more intellectually demanding the actions in which the software is directly involved, the more transparent its actual operation should be to avoid draining needed resources. As to web browsers, it seems to me Blake is entirely wrong. Web browsing, in and of itself, is about as intellectually demanding as turning the switch on a tv remote. That’s why it’s called “surfing” the web. Browsers can stand a great deal more complexity than they currently have, which is why I prefer Opera to Firefox.

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