Interesting investigation. I'm not sure that I would interpret this as people losing interest in usability. With the recent surge of job positions now available for usability, I find it hard to believe that usability is no longer on the rise. My interpretation of this data reminds me of the term 'information architect'. There have been many fluctuations of this term (and other terms). When I witness this, I interpret this as the life cycle of 'hype' over a topic becoming 'mature'. There were IAs before the term IA became hype. Then there were tons of people going through the ol "What is Information Architecture" routine (which led to more hype) and "Where can I take a course on IA?". The need for IAs are still strong, but the hype is no longer there. Average IA salaries have went down in general because the industry has been bombarded with this term and like all targets that have been bombed- the dust must settle. People who are not real IAs in the truest and most holistic form can actually do the work that an experienced IA can do...(just not as detailed) and can still get away with it. I believe usability is at one of it's greatest peaks right now. Recent discussions regarding touch screens, car dashboards and consoles, page layouts and button positioning along with job postings tell me that the remnant are doing what they have always been doing, just being interested in plain usability and understanding the desperate need for it. I believe the information that you are witnessing are a combination of a couple things. 1. Hype 2. Interest and the desire to become education on the topic.
At the latter end of the charts where it appears that usability has gone down, shows me that the issue of usability has matured and is now stronger then ever. Most people take usability for granted because hey, if it works they'll just over look it. A pencil works just fine but you won't hear people say "This lead is so workable and the placement of this eraser is incredible and it even writes upside down." In most cases, usability is the unsung and invisible hero. Of course, I did not do any investigation like you did, but I kind of always knew what the charts were saying in my mind, simply by being in the industry. The layers and hype have been peeled off and now we are at the place where we can enjoy the fruit. I say usability is at an all time high. ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help
