On Tuesday 26 December 2006 09:14, jdd wrote: > Randall R Schulz a écrit : > > Once you buy software, you should not be expected to also buy > > training in the use of that software. > > when you buy a car, you may have a licence, and this mean > you may have learned to drive it
Of course. But once you've learned to drive, the knowledge you have is pretty much equally applicable to all cars out there. They're very complicated devices, but the cockpit interface is highly standardized. And no one is required to know about how modern (or even primitive) automobile technologies really work. They rightly expect to buy a car, fuel it up, drive it around, give it periodic maintenance and occasional repair (it's a mechanical device, and wear and failure are inevitable) and that's it. We should subject our information technology to at least this level of expectation. > computers are particular things, because they can do simple > things AND difficult things. > > say you buy a smart little laptop to be able to surf the net > and listen some mp3's. > > any pre-installed computer, either OS, can do this. most > windows users never do other thing > > now imagine a friend say "why don't you use Linux! you could > host your own server, mail agent, edit photos for free...". > But did he say: "you have to learn how to do this". > > in the usual life, free things are easy to manage, so a > people paying a lot of bucks for photoshop can accept > learning it, but people don't paying anithing for GIMP want > to use it at once... There certainly is an issue of expectations management, but remember, this all started out by me saying that I thought the software profession has not done a good enough job. And it hasn't. Are you, too, going to contradict that claim? Do you find software mostly acceptable in its usability, functionality, reliability, etc? I suppose it would be nice for you or anyone who finds it to be so, but I'm more demanding and ambitious than that, and I know that software is still in its infancy, both in the products it produces and in the process by which those products are created. > > Basically, inscrutable software and hardware does not call for a > > coaching service for end users, it calls for redesign of the > > products to make them more usable. > > not true. redesign is often a good idea and make life > easier, but learning how things show work is invaluable. > msword is a not so bad product, but the way most users use > it is a nightmare :-( same for OOO. It's only untrue if the software really is well designed and implemented. I just am not willing to give most software today, even software that is pretty good by today's standards, truly high marks. There's just too far to go, yet. > ... > > jdd Randall Schulz -- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
