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Windows Vista Annoyances
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Imagine a windowless room in a nondescript office building. Inoffensive tan carpet lines the floors, fluorescent lights hum softly overhead, and 20 seated Microsoft employees flank a rectangular folding table in the center of the room. On the table rests a Windows PC, and at its helm, a slack-jawed cipher punches blindly at the controls in a vain attempt to carry out a task requested by the team leader.
“OK, here’s the next exercise: find a picture of a badger on the Internet and print it out on that printer there,” says the leader.
The observers—members of Microsoft’s Usability Research Group—dili- gently note each click, keypress, and hesitation, hoping they’ll learn the answer to the industry’s big secret: why do so many people find computers difficult to use?
Over the years, Microsoft has uncovered many startling facts about PC users with this system, and the software has been changed accordingly. For instance, people new to computers apparently have a hard time with the concept of overlapping windows. (Did I say “startling”? I meant “idiotic.”) So, Microsoft spent six years designing a “Glass” interface for Windows Vista with translucent borders that sort of show stuff underneath. Of course, most people new to PCs figure out the concept of stacking windows after about 10 minutes of fiddling, so is this actually a solution to a genuine usability problem, or just glitzy eye candy included to give those still using XP a compelling reason to upgrade?
David A. Karp - Personal Name
978-0-596-52762-4
NONE
Information Technology
English
2007
1-666
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