Hi Catherine, Fun post to read late at night here in OZ!
Usability didn't start with the web. Tactile products with usability issues are generally designed by an Industrial Designer who is generally trained to deal with these things, however they are often designed by mechanical engineers who only seem to worry about if they work or not; not necessarily how people interact with them - so blame them ;-) TFIC. (Disclaimer: I started my working life as an Industrial Designer and have been dealing with usability issues in electronic control systems for about 25 years now!) 1. Elevator buttons - I agree, however what stops somebody who un-selects YOUR floor so that they go straight past yours to theirs? Scenes of "elevator rage" - (pictures at 10!) Solve that one and you'll be rich! 2. Toilet doors - here in Oz we don't have that issue - public toilets at least have to push in - building regs. As for washing hands, that is what a hand drier is for? Germs on door-handles is a fallacy perpetuated by manufacturers of disinfectant creams and toilet seat cover salespeople. Germs can't live that long outside a host. 3. Coffee cups without handles - perhaps there are some designers out there having a bit of a laugh at everyones' expense (look at the idiot using those cups that I designed that I designed to look good but didn't bother testing properly), but maybe the real reason is that some cups without handles have been designed to work well - I have cups with a rubberized sleeve and no handles that work really well. I have seen cheap knock-offs that look the same but will burn you. Now my bitch: 4. Apple Mouse - admit it Steve Jobs - two buttons ARE okay on a mouse. Just move one dude! ;-) TFIC Stephen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=46113 ________________________________________________________________ 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
